Denver—July 17, 2018—PRESS RELEASE—The Cannabis Certification Council in partnership with Denver’s Cannabis Sustainability Work Group is presenting the third annual Cannabis Sustainability Symposium. Early bird tickets are available now through August 30 for $85. After August 30, regular tickets will be $105.

The Symposium has become a leading platform for top industry executives and sustainability experts to convene, learn and network. Attracting attendees and speakers from across the cannabis industry both domestically and abroad, the 2018 Symposium will feature two tracks: Optimizing Cultivation and Business Management and Policy. All content is geared towards helping operators anticipate changes in technology and regulation, and to help improve their bottom line by becoming more efficient and sustainable.

The Council has announced that LED light manufacturer ProGrowTech has agreed to become the Sustaining Partner for the 2018 Symposium. “Becoming a part of the Symposium and working with the Council is important to our business and core to our values of promoting energy efficiency and clean and ethical production,” said ProGrowTech CEO Andrew Myers.

The Symposium has become a touchstone event in the cannabis industry convening executives and experts alike to share findings, network and discover new ways to drive efficiencies and improve bottom lines for operators.

Sponsorships and speaking opportunities are also still available.

The Cannabis Sustainability Work Group is organized by the Denver Department of Public Health and Environment and members include representatives from Boulder County Public Health, Cannabis Certification Council, The Cannabis Conservancy, The Clinic, Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, Denver Office of Marijuana Policy, Denver Relief Consulting, Energy Outreach Colorado, Good Chemistry, Grasslands: A Journalism-Minded Agency, Integral Consulting, L’Eagle Services, National Cannabis Industry Association, Native Roots, Needle Consultants, Oak Services, Organa Labs, Scale Microgrid Solutions, Surna, Sustainabis, Vicente Sederberg and Waste Farmers.

Right now, Oakland levies some of the highest local taxes on cannabis in California: 5 percent for medical cannabis and 10 percent for recreational pot. In both cases, the tax is applied to every activity in the industry's supply chain, including cultivation, manufacturing, delivery, testing, and retail sales.

Cannabis industry leaders have warned the city's policymakers for over a year now that its taxes are too high compared to other jurisdictions. This is especially true now that the state is also levying taxes on cannabis. The result is that weed is one of the most taxed industries, and in cities like Oakland, a business has to be doing exceedingly well just to survive.

These days, not a lot of cannabis companies are doing so well, though. A few big operators are thriving, but the middle has been squeezed out, and lots of consumers have shifted back to the unregulated markets to buy pot due to the price spikes on the legal side.

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SALEM — The Oregon Liquor Control Commission was inundated with 1,001 applications in the in the lead up to a temporary hiatus on processing marijuana business licenses that was intended to allow the agency to work through a backlog of applications.

On May 30, the agency announced it would set aside any license applications received after June 15 in favor of first tackling a backlog of 1,423 license applications. The influx of applications adds more work for 13 commission employees who were already overwhelmed by the workload.

"We expected there would be a surge of some kind," says Mark Pettinger, an agency spokesman. "We didn't know how much or how great."

The workload includes applications for new licenses, renewals and changes in ownership or other aspects of existing licensees.

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It wasn't on sale this Prime Day, but one day the CEO of cannabis delivery company Eaze thinks Amazon will be in the weed business.

“I think there’s no doubt that eventually Amazon will get into this business. The question is, is that five years, 10 years, or 20 years,” says Eaze CEO Jim Patterson. “I think it will be a bit longer for them … until there’s much more clarity at the federal level.”

With laws changing around the country, legal sales of marijuana are expected to more than double in the next five years. Venture capital has taken notice with a reported $700 million worth of investments. Eaze is one of the most highly funded cannabis startups, delivering products in major cities across California.

Patterson says the company leverages technology to create easy access. “Instead of having to go to a store, a dispensary, you can download an app, or go to our website, and you’re able to shop the products from a local dispensary, and then have those products delivered to you.”

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Top photo courtesy of Adobe Stock