More than 510,000 acres of hemp were licensed across 34 U.S states in 2019, representing an increase of over 455% compared to 2018 according to VoteHemp.

However, what is licensed compared to what is actually planted and then harvested will be very different numbers.

VoteHemp estimates 230,000 acres will have been actually planted and as for what will be harvested, it’s making a guesstimate of 115,000 – 138,000 acres. But being a relatively new crop in recent times, issues such as seed availability and lack of experience play a role in the big difference in numbers.

Regardless, 2019 demonstrates solid progress.

“We are seeing hemp cultivation dramatically expand in the U.S. in 2019, with over quadruple the number of acres licensed in hemp compared to last year and the addition of 13 more states with hemp programs,” said Eric Steenstra, President of Vote Hemp

Vote Hemp’s 2018 U.S. Hemp Crop Report estimated 78,176 acres were cultivated in 2018 and just 25,713 acres in 2017.

Other highlights in the 2019 report:

• State cultivation licenses were issued to 16,877 farmers and researchers, a 476% increase over 2018.
• States with licensed processors reported 2,880 processing licenses, an increase of 483% over 2018.

Pushing things along in 2019 was the signing of the 2018 Farm Bill late last year that lifted federal prohibition on hemp farming, distinguishing the crop from marijuana.

U.S. hemp holdout states are now very much on the outer, with only Idaho, South Dakota, Mississippi and New Hampshire yet to enact legislation. Last year at the time of VoteHemp’s 2018 report, there were nine states yet to do so.

Even among those left, legislation is in the pipeline for most – although South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem appears to be doing all she can to prevent a hemp industry of any substance starting up under her watch. It’s quite possible South Dakota will be the last state to allow widespread cultivation of the crop within its borders given Ms. Noem only started her role as Governor in late 2018.

Nationally, the future is looking bright for next year, with the USDA expected to publish new federal regulations for hemp cultivation soon and in time for the 2020 growing season.

More detail from VoteHemp’s 2019 Hemp License Report can be viewed here.

The CannTrust Holdings (NYSE:CTST) scandal just keeps on getting bigger. While we're still waiting on a decision from Health Canada on what its punishment will be in relation to illegally growing marijuana, last week the public learned of even more potential problems: Multiple sources told BNN Bloomberg that seeds from the black market found their way into CannTrust's operations.

The industry has been hit hard

It may be a bit unsurprising for a company that's already faced allegations that it created fake walls to hide illegal growing operations from regulators, but it still has had a negative impact on the industry as investors are clearly showing a lack of confidence in pot stocks. Canadian producers, in particular, have been struggling. Since July, which is around the time that the CannTrust scandal first emerged, the Horizons Marijuana Life Sciences Index ETF (OTC:HMLSF) has fallen by about 18%. And to make matters worse, there has also been lots of negative press surrounding Curaleaf (OTC:CURLF) making exaggerated claims on what its products can do, drawing the attention of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. There have also been claims made by short-sellers that Hexo (NYSE:HEXO) might be in trouble as a result of aggressive advertising practices.

The worst might not be over for the industry, because until Health Canada hands down a decision on CannTrust, there's going to be a big question mark surrounding what kind of precedent Canadian regulators will set. It has taken just three months for CannTrust to lose more than two-thirds of its value, and there could still be more losses to come. Investors could be worried about which company will be the next to get into trouble.

Will this create a new wave of cannabis companies?

Trust is becoming a growing issue in the industry, and that could create a big opportunity for businesses and investors. Getting the correct product and the right mix of cannabidiol (CBD) and tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) is important for medical marijuana patients to ensure the product they are taking is safe and suitable for their needs. Recreational users also want to ensure they're getting a product that works for them. That's why the issue of CannTrust mislabeling products could pave the way for more transparency and the need for testing.

For medical marijuana patients, a DNA testing kit that can help give users more information about how their bodies will respond to cannabis will be very important in helping them make an educated decision about which kind of product they will need. It may seem like an excessive step to take, but with so many cannabis companies out there and doctors not always willing to recommend marijuana, it's going to be necessary, at least in the early stages of the industry's growth. Private company Lobo Genetics in Canada already offers a direct-to-consumer testing kit that will help build a genetic profile that can help give customers insights into the risks they may face and can make recommendations relating to an individual's cannabis use.

Meanwhile, TruTrace Technologies  is hoping to use blockchain technology to help identify and trace cannabis products to help verify details related to its contents, providing consumers with some transparency. While it is still in its pilot phases, it's already landed Aphria as a partner.

Takeaway for investors

Remember that there are many different ways to invest in the industry if you're uncomfortable with the volatility of cannabis producers. With concerns about the quality and accuracy of cannabis products on the rise, a whole new segment of the market could open up that focuses on verifying and validating cannabis products and matching them to the specific needs of customers.

After graduating from The New School with a masters in Media Management, Sarah Remesch founded a marketing agency called 270M that specializes in creative services, social media strategy, and branding for both luxury and cannabis based businesses, writes Emily Berkey. Though she works in the cannabis space and has a front row seat to the multitude of ever-changing products on the market, Sarah found herself frustrated by her inability to find a CBD product she felt comfortable using, so she set out to create one herself — New Highs CBD. 

On a mission to make a wellness-focused product, Remesch focused on sourcing high-quality oils — no herbicides, pesticides, added scents or flavoring. Remesch sourced her full-spectrum CBD oil (which means it contains all of the cannabinoids of the hemp plant, not just CBD) from Oregon, a state with stringent hemp standards and regulation policies surrounding extract and oil purity. And so, from her home in New York City, Remesch created her dream CBD product to help quell anxiety, promote relaxation, and fill a void she found on the market.  Now, not only does Sarah use her product, but her parents are utilizing it, too. 

We met up with Remesch during one of her recent visits to Los Angeles and discussed the birth of New Highs CBD through a marketing lens, what advice she has for entrepreneurs wanting to create their own cannabis-based product, what actions she’s taking at her companies to diversify the cannabis space, and how she and her marketing firm navigate the ever-changing legal climate surrounding marijuana from a city, like New York, where adult use cannabis is not yet legal. 

You have a degree in marketing from the New School and you own a boutique marketing agency. At what point did you decide to hop into the hemp industry and what did that look like for you?

So cannabis actually happened first. Four or five years ago, I spoke with Women Grow NYC on social media marketing in the cannabis space… The next month I was like, "Let’s create a product, a hemp product." I wanted to create something I hadn’t seen in the market. There’s nothing [harmful] in our products — no herbicides, pesticides, or anything that’s an additive.  

What is marketing in the cannabis space like, and what were some obstacles you faced when you first entered this industry?

Marketing cannabis is wild — just like cannabis regulation and everything else. We never know if what we’re gonna do is gonna fly, if it’s gonna pass [our] legal [team] — that’s always a barrier. But it’s also really fun because we get to create these stories and branded experiences that aren’t your normal advertising campaigns. You get to think out of the box. You come up with different groups of people who are in different walks of their life, and then you create these campaigns around how they’re using these products instead of just, “Here it is, buy it, sell it.” 

How were you able to launch a marketing agency?

I worked towards becoming an industry expert with a strong expertise in social media and starting pitching brands with an array of agency offerings. I then continued to develop offerings after learning in-house at some of the top-tier agencies globally… A mix of my background in communications, psychology, and media allows me to understand the communication style of consumers in order to develop marketing plans on behalf of brands helping them reach internal goals.

Why did you mix cannabis and luxury in one marketing agency?

Cannabis is another category and does not need to be separated. Good ideas don’t have a certain product they are tied to and they can be fluid along with methodologies. I wanted to work with all types of brands and products, not to narrowly make the shop only for a certain type of client.

Where are you selling your CBD products in NYC, which has a complex relationship with cannabidiol currently?

We are currently selling in Come Back Daily and Mamacha. We develop relationships with certain retailers in New York who understand the sales complexities and are educating consumers in the same fashion as New Highs. Outside of NYC, at Raba Marfa. Plus, online.

When you run a boutique marketing agency, do you have legal counsel that you need to run your campaigns by? Is that what’s different between cannabis space marketing and other marketing?

We have counsel that advises us on regulation to make sure we’re up with it. But all the clients’ teams have in-house legal. We make sure that we’re always in communication with them or that our clients are in communication with them so that what we’re posting and managing on their behalf is all good and you don’t have any worries once it hits the internet. But as far as keeping up on it, we have some legal counsel that just makes sure we’re minding our p’s and q’s.

Smart.

You have to. We wanna play on the safe side. We’re in New York.

What was your motivation to make New Highs? What do you personally use it for?

I live in New York, which is a very hectic and stressful place… I think that everyone who lives there is a little anxious. I definitely am not one to say, “I wanna medicate myself!” But when I tried hemp seed oil last year, I saw what all of the hype was about and I was like, “I wanna make it.” For sure. I take only three drops of the 700mg oil in the morning. ...It just lets me breathe and wake up. I add it to my routine like anything else you’d take- — like a probiotic, vitamin C, or multivitamin. 

New Highs. What’s the name about?

So actually, at Viride, which is our online publication, our tagline was always, “We strive to reach new highs.” We spun it off of that and we realized that you can be high in life without actually being physically high. The idea is that if this formula can help you be calm throughout the day — maybe help you get work done or help if you’re dealing with a stressful family situation or help you feel [less anxious in social situations]. 

What are you doing at your marketing company, 270M, if anything, to make the demographic of your company culture more reflective of the consumer?

That’s a great question and I get it all the time. Every time I speak, it’s, “What do you do to diversify cannabis?”

It’s so important. I’m glad that other people are asking that too.

Especially in New York we talk about it all the time. So for us, we’re making sure that our team is always a wide range [of people], even our freelancers. That could be, maybe we have a freelance photographer who is African American and we have a product that maybe sitting at the table [with] a bunch of older white men, right? We can integrate that [point of view] into the creative we’re making and that’s going to be reflective in the campaigns that we’re shooting and producing for that client. I also have the ear of a lot of those senior level executives and dropping those hints once in a while, someone has to do it right?

Absolutely.

It’s easy to live in your own box especially when it’s your own product. But if someone just gently reminds you that, “Hey, let’s diversify the talent in this production.” It does ring a bell. It’s gonna be a slow process. Our team is also mainly women. They’re younger. They’ve worked both in and out of the cannabis space. Some of them have never worked in the cannabis space, but they’re interested in it. I think it’s also good to bring those outside ideas into cannabis, as opposed to people that have been diehards the whole time.

I’m sure having people who are new to the cannabis space on your team is an advantage.

I also thought about that! With both of my parents, I was like, how are they gonna react? They think it’s the greatest thing ever. 

Do they use your products?

Yes. I was shocked by that, too. The older generations that we can influence, they are gonna use it. A lot of them are closeted and are using it. They just don’t want to tell the neighbor down the street, but the neighbor down the street is probably using [cannabis or CBD], as well. 

How do you plan on building your brand’s name and reputation specifically on the East Coast — how do you advertise?

New Highs is partnering with organizations, retailers, and individuals who are all continually striving to normalize the conversation around cannabis and hemp with roots on the East Coast. For example, we’re producing a launch event called Full Spectrum which explores how CBD is incorporated and explored with all five senses. For this, New Highs has partnered with Humble Bloom. We are all using an owned and earned media mix currently and intend on exploring paid media to further amplify our reach.

What advice do you have for newcomers in the cannabis space who want to create a product? What advice do you have for them in regards to marketing?

I think it’s best to network and learn as much as you can before you decide to go jump into anything, especially in an industry that’s constantly changing. There are most likely people in your community who are in groups, and there are talks you can go to, to see if you really like what you’re about to get into. Learn a little bit about what’s in the market and then ask yourself, “Is there a skill that I have that I can take into cannabis and join what’s going on?”

While it may not be known to many, the truth is that Cannabis, also known as the Marijuana plant, has been cultivated for its medicinal, physical, and psychoactive properties for thousands of years.

Old records say that the first medicinal use of the cannabis plant could date back to 2000 BC when the then emperor of China Shen Neng drank marijuana tea to treat various ailments like poor memory, gout, malaria, etc. 

Many years later in the 19th century, William Osler, considered to be a “Father of Modern Medicine”, stated that he believed that the cannabis plant could effectively treat migraines. 

And in 1940, Dr. Roger Adams and his team at the University of Illinois discovered the miracle potion – CBD. But the criminalization of marijuana in the US in 1969 halted the research work on the plant and its medicinal uses. 

Anyway, the good news is that some countries around the world and some states in the US are on the verge of decriminalizing its use, owing to the medicinal benefits of cannabis that have recently been discovered through various research. 

And after a lot of focus on THC, attention was finally paid to CBD – something that doesn’t get you high and yet makes you feel better. 

How Does CBD Work In Our Body?

The marijuana or the hemp plant are the sources of deriving cannabis. According to research, three types of biomolecules are present in cannabis: terpenoids, flavonoids, and many types of cannabinoids. Cannabinoids are active chemical compounds found in cannabis plants. 

Cannabinoids derived from plants like hemp are Phytocannabinoids. It can interact with our body’s natural systems and bring about a healing effect. Cannabinoids that are synthesized on demand by the human body are endocannabinoids. 

Both phytocannabinoids and endocannabinoids influence the cannabinoid receptors in the body to maintain a balance. There are over 100 phytocannabinoids present in cannabis plants. 

But the two that are most abundant are cannabidiol (CBD) and tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). And while THC does not have many therapeutic properties, some research shows that CBD has anti-inflammatory, analgesics, and soothing properties. 

It has also been noticed that THC induce adverse psychoactivity if the dosage is too high, whereas CBD can reduce the psychoactivity caused by THC. CBD works by not interacting directly with the ECS (Endogenous cannabinoid system) and establishing a minimal binding affinity to CB1R (CNS-cannabinoid receptor) or CB2R (peripheral cannabinoid receptor). 

However, it does influence some endocannabinoid molecular signaling systems, ion channels, and receptors. 

The body metabolizes CBD through hydroxylation to form acidic metabolites. This ensures that CBD can be administered in high doses without any side effects.

So, while CBD and THC are both phytocannabinoids, there exist a few major differences between the two. Here’s a list.

• THC is the phytocannabinoid that can cause a high. But CBD does not have any euphoric side effects. It is also free of side-effects and thus, suitable for people of all ages.

• THC binds with the brain’s receptors (CB1 receptors). But CBD does not bind directly to any receptors in the body.

• CBD does not have any side-effects, even when administered in large doses. But THC has temporary side effects, like increased heart rate, red eyes, memory loss, etc.

Both CBD and THC are effective in treating various medical conditions. But many prefer CBD over THC because it does not give you a high and is free of side effects as well.

Can you Build Tolerance On CBD?

Many drugs can often become dangerous over time because the body builds a tolerance to them. 

But no, that is not the case with CBD. 

You must be wondering why…well, we are here to answer this question. 

Well, before we discuss CBD tolerance, let us understand why tolerance happens. 

Tolerance happens because of the brain and the liver – the brain receptors that are involved decrease and so does their ability to bind efficiently. And the liver has to work harder to metabolize that particular substance each time it is consumed. 

But CBD does not bind directly to any of the receptors in the body, and so, the users do not build any tolerance. 

CBD is known to have reverse tolerance effects – which means that over time, you might feel like you need smaller doses of CBD, but still receive the same benefits. 

Addiction and Overdose

The little study that has been conducted on CBD states that it is not toxic and has very little to no side effects. 

So, CBD is completely safe to use. 

A recent report of the National Cancer Institute states that it is impossible to overdose on CBD. The report states, “Because cannabinoid receptors, unlike opioid receptors, are not located in the brainstem areas controlling respiration, lethal overdoses from Cannabis and cannabinoids do not occur.” 

Also, to date, there have been no known reports of death caused by an overdose of CBD products. 

The National Cancer Institute report also states that CBD products are also way less addictive than many other drugs, including prescribed ones available in the market today. 

However, it is recommended that you take only the amount prescribed in the CBD bottle. 

Does This Mean CBD Is Safe?

Feedback from CBD users and studies show that CBD is non-toxic and safe to use. It does not have any mind-altering effects and also does not have the serious side-effects of THC and other drugs. 

Perhaps that is the reason why the FDA has approved two pills made with Cannabinoids that are used to treat seizures and for nausea and vomiting caused by chemotherapy. 

However, taking too much CBD than required can cause nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, dry mouth, and various other symptoms, which might not be life-threatening but can cause temporary discomfort. 

It is also important to buy original CBD products from reliable brands that provide third-party test results, the ingredients used, and their manufacturing process details.

Always select organic CBD products that are free of additives, pesticides, synthetic components, and other harmful ingredients. 

This way you will not only be able to reap the benefits of CBD but also know that your product is absolutely safe for consumption.