The passage of the 2018 Farm Bill is a game-changer for hemp in the US and globally. The multi-billion hemp industry has just begun to take hold and now the Farm Bill is expected to supercharge growth in this space. Join Offit Kurman as we host a talk with Eric Steenstra, president of the influential political advocacy organization Vote Hemp, about the impact of the Farm Bill on the hemp industry. Eric will be discussing the political factors that brought hemp legalization to the forefront in the Farm Bill, what steps various states, including Maryland, have taken to pursue hemp cultivation in their area, and what you can expect to see on the national landscape moving forward. Register to attend this exciting online webinar presented on Friday April 5th.
Guest:
Eric Steenstra is a hemp industry pioneer cofounding hemp clothing and lifestyle brand Ecolution with Steve DeAngelo in 1992. Steenstra was a founding member of the Hemp Industries Association (HIA) and served as its Executive Director from 2008 to 2016, growing membership during that time by more than 300%. Steenstra now serves as the president of Vote Hemp, the political advocacy organization that he co-founded in 2000.
Please join our host Ellis Smith and special guest Mike Leago, Trusted Global Hemp Ambassador, for a live Q&A session on the state of the international hemp market.
* Farming – Clones & Seeds
* Supply & Demand – How to find buyers for your wholesale & retail products or services.
* Technology to drive your hemp business
Guest: Mike Leago
Mike Leago is the Founder of the International Hemp Exchange, Production Specialist at HGH Seeds, Co-Founder of Zohko, Co-Founder of Mahalo Wellness and Founder of Liberty Tree CBD. |
Did you know that Maryland is opening a new round of applications for grower and processor licenses in March 2019? This is probably the last opportunity to be awarded a license under Maryland’s thriving medical cannabis program for many years. Join host Jason Klein as he walks through in detail the in’s and out’s of the upcoming application and shares insights on how to make your application stand out and win! This webinar will touch on the application scoring methodologies, the submission requirements, diversity and disadvantaged business categories, lessons learned from the last round of applications, and much more. The webinar will also feature a more interactive format to engage with the audience and maximize the learning opportunity. Please join us for this exciting topic on March 1st at 12pm ET!
Presented by Jason Klein:
Jason Klein is a business law attorney at Offit Kurman with a focus on licensing and compliance in tightly regulated markets on the east coast. Jason started working in the industry in 2011 and his practice focuses exclusively on serving direct and ancillary cannabis business clients. As one of the first attorneys east of the Mississippi to work with cannabis business clients, Jason has a track record of successfully navigating competitive licensing environments and assisting his clients to stay compliant and profitable in the face of challenging regulatory atmospheres. He is a founding board member of the National Cannabis Bar Association and a frequent speaker at local and national cannabis industry conferences.
Mr. Klein hosts a monthly Cannabis webinar with a different guest speaker each month. Topics range from “Cannabis Police and Practice in the Trump Era,” to medical cannabis for pain and the opioid epidemic (“Can Medical Cannabis for Pain Really Help with the Opioid-Dependency Epidemic?”) to cannabis insurance preparation (“An Ounce of Prevention is Worth a Pound of Cure Commercial Insurance Preparation”).
Mr. Klein holds a bachelor’s degree in physics (2002), master’s degree in public administration (2009), and J.D. (cum laude – 2009), all from Indiana University – Bloomington. He is licensed to practice in the District of Columbia and Michigan.
How we can overcome the lack of accessible germplasm resources and begin proper plant breeding programs in cannabis?
Please join our host Ellis Smith and special guests panelist to discuss one big unsolved problem in the cannabis industry; the lack of significant germplasm repositories with good databases to support plant breeding.Topics we will cover:
- * What is Germplasm?
- * Same Plant, Different Regulations
- * Public vs. Private – Can the private marketplace fulfill all critical roles?
- * The Germplasm Marketplace
Guest Panelist:
Guest Panelist: Dr. Mitch Day, Scientist and Entrepreneur Mitch is a subject matter expert on micropropagation and analysis of genetic information. Micropropagation offers two major benefits to cultivators: disease-free cloning and economical large-scale storage of cultivars for breeding programs. |
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Guest Panelist: Dylan Wilks, Founder & CTO of Orange Photonics Spectroscopy, entrepreneurship and invention are a family legacy for Dylan. His grandfather is the “Father of Infrared Technology” and one of the industry founders in the 1940’s. Dylan has led optics projects serving NASA’s Mars Rover as well as air and ground based imaging systems, specialized lighting (lasers, fiber illuminators, etc) and within the infrared spectroscopy disciplines. Dylan has also worked extensively within the petroleum industry and chaired an ASTM method. |
Nichole Galvin, an attorney at Offit Kurman, will discuss the prenuptial steps that should be taken when forming a cannabis business, and what you can do now to protect yourself and your business in a corporate divorce.
Nichole Galvin is an attorney in the Business Litigation practice group focusing on commercial and fiduciary litigation in state and federal courts. In her commercial practice, Nichole represents businesses, investors and property owners in a variety of commercial, real estate and contract disputes. Nichole has particular expertise representing clients in complex, multi-party commercial litigation disputes in federal courts in Maryland, New York, and Delaware.
New Jersey Cannabis Industry Association President Hugh O’Beirne will provide a brief history and overview of New Jersey’s medical cannabis program. He will also discuss the proposed legalization of cannabis for adult use in the Garden State. Hugh’s explanation of New Jersey’s comprehensive approach to regulating legal access to cannabis will provide a broader understanding of the evolving east coast markets for the legal cannabis industry.
Guest Speaker
Hugh O’Beirne
President of the New Jersey Cannabis Industry Association
Hugh O’Beirne is an attorney who has previously served as an Executive Vice President and the Chief Legal Officer of a publicly traded real estate investment trust. Prior to that, he practiced corporate and securities law with two major national law firms. Mr. O’Beirne is a long-time advocate for the legalization of cannabis and is an experienced investor in the medical marijuana industry on the east coast.
Sean Murphy, the Director of Hemp Analytics, will discuss the state of play of hemp and CBD markets.
Sean Murphy
Director of Hemp Analytics
Sean Murphy is the founder and publisher of Hemp Business Journal, the hemp industry’s premiere publication for market research and intelligence, and the Hemp Summit, an annual event for investors, operators and executives. In early 2018, Hemp Business Journal and the Hemp Summit were acquired by New Frontier Data, a leading provider of cannabis data and market insights.
Sean is a frequent speaker at hemp, cannabis and natural product conferences and source to the media, including Forbes, New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Rolling Stone and Entrepreneur.com. He has spoken across the world including such venues as Hebrew University, Silicon Valley, the White House, Paris Climate Summit and the Vatican.
Learn how to be successful in new cannabis markets! The diverse group of industry experts at Canna Advisors and Cannabis Trainers have teamed up to share insights and tips for cultivators, processors, and dispensaries. Learn how to get started in the key areas of business development, staff sourcing, brand development, and licensing applications from industry pioneers and trusted advisors who have been successful in national and international markets. Gain insider knowledge about the application process, regulations, location selection, financial modeling, community outreach, brand identity, essential roles, and staffing and training.
E-Commerce sales are estimated to reach a whopping 4.4 trillion dollars by 2021. These digital platforms present a myriad of opportunities and challenges for direct and ancillary cannabis businesses looking to take advantage of the benefits of increased brand awareness and customer access. Matt Alexander, General Manager of Leafly Holdings, will be discussing the intersection of cannabis e-commerce and retail, working with third parties to optimize your online store, how to avoid industry-related restrictions on social media, and how to effectively reach your desired customers with a concept that works in tightly-regulated marketplaces.
Guest Speaker:
Matt Alexander – General Manager for Leafly
Matt Alexander is the General Manager for Leafly, the world’s largest cannabis information resource, in Maryland and Washington DC. Alexander develops relationships and business with licensed medical marijuana dispensaries in the region. Previously, Alexander was District Sales Manager at Toast and Regional Manager at OrderUp.
Eric Schlissel, the CEO of GeekTek, will join Jason Klein of Offit Kurman, to instruct on the changes cannabis operators can make right now to their IT that will result in measurable competitive advantages. Building a resilient and scalable IT ecosystem is critical as you plan, build and expand your cannabis operation.
Subjects covered will include:
• Best practices for physical and digital access controls
• HIPAA compliance concerns for medical operations
• Data breach prevention and response planning
• Unique security concerns in the cannabis industry
• SOPs for day-to-day technical operations
• Cybersecurity best practices
Eric Schlissel, CEO of GeekTek
Eric Schlissel is the CEO of GeekTek, a national managed IT/cybersecurity firm headquartered in Los Angeles, CA. Widely recognized as a thought leader in the IT industry, he has spoken extensively throughout the country as both a panelist and moderator on data security issues facing the cannabis industry. He has been widely published and quoted in The LA Times, Wired, CIO Magazine, ChannelPro, InformationWeek, InfoWorld, the CCIA, NACB Insights and other leading publications. Possessing 20 years of entrepreneurial and investment experience, Eric is also a travel
