By Morris Beegle
Photo credit: Margaret MacKenzie
Howdy folks, welcome to my first blog in a very long time. We’re putting the final touches on launching registration for the 4th annual NoCo Hemp Expo and I thought it would be a good time to reflect back on what has transpired since the beginning of April. For those of you that attended NoCo3, you know it was pretty epic, and some might say Pure-Hemp-Epicness! One thing it was for sure, was an excellent gathering of smart, passionate, forward-thinking individuals who are out there fighting the good fight. The movement is alive and we are now in the final days of hemp and cannabis prohibition. How the chips fall over the coming months and years is not for certain, but what we can say for sure is that prohibition as we’ve come to know it, is almost finished. And it’s our job, all of ours, to finish it. If we end up with a president Trump, disregard any and all predictions I make within this article. Prohibition will be the least of our worries.
Since NoCo3, all things hemp have kicked into overdrive for farmers, processors, entrepreneurs, associations and ancillary businesses entering into this exciting industry. People and companies are committing serious time, energy, and capital into building business relationships and infrastructure to grow. We have been gathering at industry-specific functions locally and nationally, working together state by state to pass meaningful legislation, all the while pushing Washington DC to pay a little bit of attention to our industry. We’ve had missteps along the way, we’ve had little victories and big victories, DEA, FDA and USDA interference to varying degrees, and we have more work to do.
Speaking of industry gatherings, this summer kicked off with a slew of Hemp History Week events followed up in July with the Science of Industrial Hemp Conference in Denver and Hemp On The Slope in Collbran, CO. August gave us The NoCo Hemp Village at the Arise Music Festival with Ziggy Marley, Jurassic 5, Papadosio and 100 other acts at one of the top-conscious festivals anywhere. If you’ve attended Arise you know what I’m talking about, and if you haven’t, you need to attend. This last week from September 18-20, the 23rd Annual Hemp Industries Association Conference came to Westminster, CO and provided a truly exceptional forum for industry professionals to interact and do business. There was a nice blend of old school and new school hempsters participating in panels and presentations, exhibiting, networking, and having fun. The way it should be.
The Road to NoCo begins early October with the launch of sponsor and exhibitor registration. We’re truly excited for NoCo4 which takes place again in Loveland at The Ranch Events complex on March 31-April 1, 2017.
Moving on, Friday October 14th we celebrate with the 3rd annual Hemp Harvest Party happening at Globe Hall in Denver. This is an industry focused networking party and concert, featuring great Colorado acts including the Taylor Scott Band with special guest Dave Beegle, Rob Drabkin and Rob Trueblood. We pay homage to hemp farmers around the state and country for the work and progress they’ve done throughout the 2016 growing season.
Late October brings us to the 3rd Annual Colorado Hemp Symposium and Legislative Workshop on October 26th in Loveland. This event is hosted by Congressman Jared Polis and more information can be found at Here.
In November we head on the road to Adams State University in Alamosa for the inaugural San Luis Valley (SLV) Hemp Symposium taking place on Saturday November 5th. This is a smaller trade show and conference that will feature 25-35 hemp companies with the educational LET’S TALK HEMP sessions going on throughout the day. Please contact us if you are interested in joining us. More information on this event can be found at www.slvhempsymposium.com.
That’s it for now. I hope to start blogging a little more frequently going forward and share information that seems to get lost along the way. Feel free to reach out to me at hemp@coloradohempcompany.com with any comments, thoughts, or blog topic suggestions. Thanks for reading.
