A<\/span>laskans looking to support their state\u2019s local cannabis industry will have a much easier time now that the state\u2019s official \u201cMade In Alaska\u201d logo will be available to cannabis businesses with products that are at least 51 percent Alaskan in origin.<\/p>\n This is a major advancement \u2014 at least symbolically \u2014 for cannabis businesses seeking a foothold of legitimacy in the still developing legal market.<\/p>\n A report from the\u00a0Juneau Empire<\/a>\u00a0quoted industry leaders, who were uniformly optimistic about the continued normalization of cannabusiness.<\/p>\n From the Empire:<\/p>\n Cary Carrigan, head of the Alaska Marijuana Industry Association trade group, said the \u201cMade in Alaska\u201d decision matters because it\u2019s a sign the state is continuing to normalize its attitude toward marijuana and treat marijuana businesses the same as others.<\/em><\/p>\n But while normalization is a key component of advancing the legal cannabis industry, it can only go so far when the weight of federal law is holding down the growth of that industry: The only reason these businesses can participate in the \u201cMade In Alaska\u201d program is because it operates at the state level, completely independent of federal funding.<\/p>\n That same legal framework is why you won\u2019t be seeing \u201cAlaska Grown\u201d cannabis any time soon; that program does<\/em> receive federal funds.<\/p>\n And while all sources interviewed were positive about the development on balance, one expressed concerns about the broader issues facing the industry.<\/p>\n From the Empire:<\/p>\n Jennifer Canfield, one of the owners of Green Elephant Gardens in Juneau, said the state\u2019s decision is good news, but marijuana businesses still face obstacles that other businesses don\u2019t, particularly in the way that they\u2019re banned from the federally regulated banking system.<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s always good news when we gain opportunities that any other business has access to, but unfortunately, I can\u2019t even take a \u2018Made in Alaska\u2019 certification to the bank,\u201d she said.<\/em><\/p>\n That broader obstacle \u2014 the lack of traditional banking options<\/a> for cannabis companies \u2014 is one of the main issues facing the growing legal cannabis industry in the United States.<\/p>\n This lack of banking options means instead of the U.S. being an example to the world, it\u2019s a mess of cash counting machines\u00a0<\/a>\u00a0and half-baked cryptocurrency schemes<\/a>, which is allowing other countries to surpass the states<\/a> in the global market. Without the stability and safety of basic banking services that other industries take for granted, growth will remain stunted.<\/p>\n But for cannabis businesses looking to identify their product as local and set it apart, the \u201cMade In Alaska\u201d recognition could go a long way towards developing a positive brand identity. In fact, the possibility of attracting business from tourists may improve with adoption of the logo.<\/p>\n From the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner<\/a>:<\/p>\n Kim White, owner of Smilin\u2019 Moose Gifts in Delta Junction promotes made in Alaska [sic] products to her local and global clientele and locally to Rika\u2019s Roadhouse near Delta.<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cIn fact, our customers have told us that the tour bus drivers tell them to select Made in Alaska products to be sure they are getting a real Alaskan-made product,\u201d she said. \u201cWe are seeing this happen more each year with our customers from France, Germany, the UK, Australia and elsewhere.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n TELL US,\u00a0<\/strong>would you be more likely to purchase certified local cannabis products?<\/p>\n The post Official \u2018Made In Alaska\u2019 Cannabis Is a Thing Now<\/a> appeared first on Cannabis Now<\/a>.<\/p>\n
Normalization of cannabis commerce is crucial to the long-term success of legalization, and official state recognition is a big deal. Without real progress on the banking front, it\u2019s a largely symbolic advancement, but one with the potential for real benefits moving forward. Alaskans looking to support their state\u2019s local cannabisContinue Reading<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"false","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[403,290,50,80,170,725,417],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19312"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/11"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=19312"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19312\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":19313,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19312\/revisions\/19313"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=19312"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=19312"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=19312"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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\nRead More: Official \u2018Made In Alaska\u2019 Cannabis Is a Thing Now<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"