“This division, at once under- and over-regulated, is not the cannabis and cannabinoid industry that any of us need.”
By Adam Smith, Marijuana Policy Project
This week, Chris Lindsey, a former Marijuana Policy Project (MPP) staffer and now vice president of the industry association American Trade Association for Cannabis and Hemp (ATACH), published an op-ed in Marijuana Moment criticizing MPP for an alert we sent to our followers in support of a federal extension for hemp-derived cannabinoids before a near-total ban takes effect.
The bifurcation of hemp and marijuana (they are the same plant, cannabis) is a difficult and problematic issue. And I should note that we agree with a number of the concerns that Chris raises.
While I have only been running MPP for a year, I, like the organization, have a 30+ year background in drug and cannabis policy reform. I understand the concerns about poorly regulated products, which the extension legislation does not address, and the potentially deleterious health impacts of synthetics, which the extension legislation does address, if inadequately.
I also understand and empathize with the consternation of those on the licensed marijuana business side who are locked into an absurdly restricted system built to accommodate
Read full article on Marijuana Moment
