This Trenton, NJ native is opening his town’s first adult-use cannabis dispensary later this year.
“My parents have literally seen all three of their sons be arrested for cannabis before … just to be able to change this whole dynamic of what cannabis means for my family and the area is such a blessing.”
Tahir Johnson
After receiving more than 1,000 applications across all license types, New Jersey’s cannabis board awarded its first 11 conditional adult-use retail licenses on May 24th, 2022 — and one of those licenses went to entrepreneur Tahir Johnson. Tahir won a conditional license for his business, Simply Pure Inc., which is located in Trenton, New Jersey.
Tahir also helped lifelong friend and fellow social equity applicant John Dockery receive his own conditional license approval to open a second location. Tahir, who had cannabis-related charges prior to applying, had been closely monitoring the New Jersey Cannabis Regulatory Commission for updates on social equity applicants and prospective business owners.
He also consistently advocated for equity in the space. As Tahir was pursuing his dream of becoming a dispensary owner, and while he had his conditional license, he built key relationships and support as he continued to raise capital.
NASA‘s recent collaboration with the International Space Research Consortium to launch a mission testing the cultivation of cannabis in the microgravity of space has stirred a whirlwind of interest and controversy across the globe. This initiative aims to unravel the mysteries of how low-gravity environments affect plant growth, with cannabis serving as the pioneering subject. According to Dr. Alfred Terra, the esteemed lead scientist spearheading the project, the conditions in space present an “unparalleled opportunity” to push the boundaries of our understanding of botany and its applications in medicine and agriculture beyond Earth’s confines.
This ambitious endeavor aims to shed light on the potential for utilizing space-based agriculture to support long-duration space missions and future colonization efforts on other planets. The choice of cannabis as a research subject is particularly intriguing due to its complex biochemical makeup and its increasing use in medicinal therapies on Earth. Insights gained from how cannabis adapts to space’s harsh environment could lead to breakthroughs in growing food and medicinal plants in extraterrestrial colonies.
Despite the scientific excitement surrounding the mission, the announcement has been met with its share of skepticism and criticism. Some members of the scientific community and the general public question the allocation of resources toward cannabis research in space, arguing that more pressing scientific and exploratory questions merit attention aboard the International Space Station (ISS). These critics call for a focus on projects that directly contribute to our understanding of space travel’s impacts on human physiology or further our knowledge of the cosmos.
However, the space agencies involved have been quick to highlight the broader implications of this research. They argue that studying cannabis growth in microgravity could offer invaluable insights into plant biology, stress responses, and the possibility of cultivating a variety of crops in space, which are crucial for the long-term sustainability of space exploration and eventual human settlement on other planetary bodies.
Amidst the debates over the mission’s merits and the speculation spurred by its announcement date—April 1st—lies a deeper curiosity about the future of space exploration and the role of innovative agricultural research in that journey. The timing has led some to question the announcement’s authenticity, pondering whether it could be an elaborate April Fool’s Day jest aimed at sparking discussion or simply a coincidence that has amplified the public’s fascination with the project.
Whether viewed as a bold step into the future of space agriculture or a controversial choice of research focus, the mission symbolizes a growing intersection between space exploration and the quest to understand and utilize biological processes in unprecedented environments. As the launch date approaches and preparations continue, the world watches, eager to see what insights this venture might unfold about cannabis, plant science, and the potential for life beyond Earth.
The global cannabis conversation reached a new frenzy last weekend with the 10,000-person Spannabis festival in Barcelona, Spain.
Top-ranked packs like Dying Breed Seeds OZ Kush, Peach Ringz, and Z 3.0 fetched 500 euros for 12 seeds. We’re busy adding dozens of new cultivars to the database. Watch along for more Day 1 and Day 2 highlights straight from the event and recorded live above Las Ramblas.
More industry tips for decisionmakers
Cultivar news for store buyers
Z strains dominated flower and hash competitions. Wizard Trees’ booth was so packed you couldn’t get near it. RS-11 is hot. Zoap is hot. Leafly’s Strains and Products reporting is right on the money.
The hash type of the moment is called piatella— a delicate, gooey solventless hash that is maximally terpy.
Legal market progress
California’s legal providers now serve 47% of that market, according to leading cannabis economist Beau Whitney. New York is at an appalling 4% penetration, which matches Spain under prohibition. Vangst releases the 2024 Jobs Report by Whitney and Bruce Barcott in two weeks.
Global market outlook for business development
Thailand is tightening back up after rapid commercialization engendered a backlash.
Germany is red-hot with decriminalization and medical advancements.
Judging from vape supply sales at Abstrax—markets that are warming up include Japan, South Africa, Australia, Mexico, Ecuador, and Argentina.
Prohibition markets are contributing as well. Britain and Italy are making names for themselves in hash and seeds ahead of legalization. It’s not binary. You have to be part of the underground now if you want to compete above ground later.
Cannabis is a field of infinite possibilities.
DJ Muggs, Cypress Hill, at the International Cannabis Business Conference
Global marketing
The cannabis genetics conversation is global and social. Hash trends circle the world in 30 days, due to social media, and the ease of shipping seeds or clones or counterfeiting a brand.
What’s your global marketing strategy? It has become table stakes for major flower and seeds brands to conduct international marketing campaigns. You’re either trying to keep pace with brands like Doja Pak, Terphogz, Alien Labs, and Mills Nutrients, or you are eating their dust.
Living soil in cultivation
Living soil is a wave. Jeff Lowenfels presented the latest research showing 40% of plant nitrogen coming not from the soil or bottles, but from cannabis plants cultivating and consuming bacteria. It’s called rhizophagy. A future of strain-specific beneficial bacterial inoculants is coming.
Spannabis ran three days March 15 to 17 in Barcelona, Spain. (David Downs/Leafly)
Seed technology
Seeds are getting easier. Regular male and female seeds are being replaced by feminized, autoflower, triploid, and stabilized lines. If you are in cultivation or extraction and don’t have a plan to take advantage of that technology—you will be outcompeted.
Meet the GastroBros
We learned the term “GastroBro”—a stoner who is also a big foodie. True marketing wins will fuse cannabis and culture like food, art, and music.
420 is going to be big in New York. The Astor Club is working with Archive Seeds on an awards show—The Billies—headlined by rapper Larry June. ‘How much did Larry June cost?’ we asked. “A lot. A lot.”
“Cannabis is a field of infinite possibilities. It’s a struggle—a battle. It is what it is. Don’t be a little b*tch. The strong will survive. It’s not just get rich quick— those people will not survive.”
California’s millions of weed smokers should see test scores come down a noticeable amount this year. But fear not—the weed remains as strong as ever.
State officials have begun reigning in the pernicious practice of “THC score inflation” in 2024 all across the state. In January, the Department of Cannabis Control started enforcing new rules that make all labs test the same way. So no more suspect “40% THC” scores on flowers, and that’s a good thing.
You can already start to see the more accurate THC numbers hitting shelves. Instead of a “35% THC” or “30% THC” on a jar, you might see “25% THC” or “20% THC.” Since the turn of the year, there has been a noticeable dip at the retail level. Most of the stuff that still has crazy numbers is the leftovers from the tail end of 2023.
State inspectors are visiting labs, and about two dozen labs follow the new standard. The others need to shape up, the DCC told Leafly.
At least for now, the numbers are coming back down to reality.
Josh Wurzer, Founder, SC Labs
“There are currently 23 labs that can test for flower and non-infused flower products. The Department continues to actively review verification reports for labs that want to come into compliance to be able to test for flower and flower products,” The DCC told Leafly in a statement, “Laboratories that test flower and have not had their verification report reviewed by the Department will be considered non-compliant and may be subject to disciplinary actions.”
One of California’s oldest labs, SC Labs, is approved to keep testing. SC Labs’ President and Cofounder Josh Wurzer once bristled at the new rules, but now sees their upside: less malarkey in the market.
“When DCC announced this method, I was initially against it just because I still see a million ways that a lab was looking to inflate THC could still inflate values even using the DCC method,” Wurzer told Leafly. “But, you know, just from what we’ve experienced since the first of the year, it seems like maybe at least for now, the numbers are coming back down to reality.”
Potency inflation had gotten out of hand
(H_Ko/AdobeStock)
False information on legal cannabis labels undermines the voters’ intent for legalization. People want purity and accurate potency scores—not games. But games is what Californians got when legal sales began in 2018.
Growers regularly reported a THC arms race as competitors “lab shopped” for the highest scores to stick on bags.
SC Labs’ team has heard about a lot of that happening in recent years. It started with a few people skewing high and a couple of labs doing it, and everyone was whining about it.
“And then over the last year, it’s just gotten to a point where it’s just, straight up, I hear stories about salespeople at some of the labs that will just be like, ‘Hey, what numbers do you need on these?’ And it’s hitting that number,” Wurzer said.
If we can’t trust, the basic number that we’re looking at, the concentration of THC, that’s one of the major selling points of getting a consumer to enter the regulated market.
Josh Wurzer, Founder, SC Labs
SC Labs alleges bad labs giving out fake high scores drove some honest labs out of business in California. Consumers had to see a score above 25 or 30% THC or they weren’t buying it.
“It’s gotten to the point where only a handful labs that aren’t doing this stuff are around,” Wurzer said.
Related
How to order weed delivery online with Leafly
How California cleaned up its labs
The effort to clean up California’s cannabis testing goes back to 2021.
The Office of Administrative Law approved the Department of Cannabis Control’s regulations standardizing cannabinoid testing methodology in July 2023. That includes the same testing method for all licensed testing laboratories in California.
The rules cover everything from the size of the bottle of solvent labs use to really basic language changes like “have to” to “shall.”
Sample prep is more precise
The biggest difference is it’s much more specific in the way labs do the sample prep.
“They’re very prescriptive on the sample weight, so they make us weigh out exactly .2000 grams, and we’re like okay, well, what’s the plus or minus on that? Obviously, you can’t lay out every time exactly point .200 grams. Do you know how long it’s going to take to pick a little grain of bud off of there to get back to three zeros? And they’re like, ‘No, no, that’s what it says,’” Wurzer said.
In addition to the challenge of getting those perfect sample sizes quickly, the extraction process can force you to do extra testing. Wurzer said the method makes it hard to measure the whole range of minor cannabinoids that are there less than 1% and then the ones that are there in high concentrations all in one pass.
“Just because of some of the different volumes and dilution factors they picked, so it’s just kind of some nitpicky things,” Wurzer said.
For example, the issue with measuring minor cannabinoids has impacted growers and sellers of specialty strains high in THC-V in January and February.
Double the testing time
Wurzer says between the supplies rules and the labor time they are spending almost twice as much per sample. He’s talked to other labs and they are saying it’s about the same for them too.
We asked Wurzer if it felt kind of wild to watch the state double the base costs for him to do business. He was hopeful the results will be worth it.
“If it manages to rein in the potency issue, which I see is like sort of existential to California cannabis things that sort of delegitimizes all the quality control testing we’re doing,” Wurzer said, “If we can’t trust, the basic number that we’re looking at, the concentration of THC, that’s one of the major selling points of getting a consumer to enter the regulated market.”
So if the goal is reigning in THC inflation, Wurzer doesn’t mind the increased costs.
Enforcement also ramping up
After the rules came out in summer 2023, there was a lot of mystery as to how heavy-handed the enforcement would be on this major transition for the industry.
The regulations went into effect in October and then became mandatory to be compliant on New Year’s Day.
Wurzer said there weren’t any insurmountable hoops or hurdles. It was his understanding a lot of people just weren’t taking it seriously, “they thought it wasn’t gonna happen or weren’t paying attention.”
The new wave of 24 compliant labs in 2024 had already been following the new rules.
Wurzer says the methodology alone won’t stop THC score inflation, but the flashes of enforcement we’re starting to see from the state will help the cause. The tricks some labs use include things like weighing extra material to give people the results that they want. Labs can also purely falsify results, but the inspectors are at least watching now.
Recalls also show the system working
A California Department of Cannabis Control recall image from January. (Via X)
Wurzer also pointed to the recent recalls of products by the DCC as further evidence of heavier compliance. In California, a recall is called an embargo. Wurzer thinks it seems like they’re potentially kind of cracking down on some of those kinds of things shady operations would do a lot. Wurzer believes there are a bunch of factors in play, but the biggest one is that that new methodology moving forward.
Next up: Cheaper and faster lab accuracy
The rules can be further refined as well down the road. Wurzer says there’s a faster, cheaper way to test accurately, but he’ll accept the new regime.
“I think people can still cheat, but so far, it seems to be having some effect and so I’m not going to complain about it right now,” Wurzer said.
Expect more labs to come back online for the California cannabis industry in the weeks and months ahead.
