
Newsletter
Newsletter – February 8, 2023

Honoring Black Leaders in the Hemp Industry
By Rachael Carlevale
To celebrate Black History Month and diversity in the hemp industry, Let’s Talk Hemp recently interviewed several Black industry leaders, entrepreneurs and innovators. While it’s a small sampling, we hope that reading about these seven Black leaders inspires you to learn more about them and the hemp industry. Please let us know if there are other Black hemp leaders we should know about.
Frederick Cawthon –-Verge Agritech
https://www.vergeagritech.com/
U.S. Hemp Roundtable Vice President for Minority Empowerment Frederick Cawthon is the co-founder and CEO of Verge Agritech, which is focused on advancing research and education, creating everyday life products, and developing lifestyle brands that transform customer experiences with hemp and cannabis. Cawthon, a counselor to the hemp industry, draws from his over 20 years of experience in program and product management for Fortune 500 companies. Inspired by the power of hemp to heal his mother, Cawthon said, “It’s not a movement, it’s a ministry” – and asked, “How can we move the ministry?”

Hemp Building Institute to Take on Codes, Testing and Education, Founder Says
By Jean Lotus
Editor and Publisher, HempBuild Magazine
A new hemp building organization launched its website late last month with a familiar face in a central leadership role. Jacob Waddell, who served as executive director of the US Hemp Building Association until summer 2022, announced a new non-profit, The Hemp Building Institute, based in Nashville, TN.
The goal of the institute will be to raise money to create codes and standards, perform necessary testing for the industry, and educate the public on the uses of hemp building materials, Waddell said. The HBI will also consult in Kenya to build the new hemp-building industry there, he said.

Hemp News Spotlight
The Scientific History of Cannabinoids
Smithsonian Magazine
USDA’s Census of Agriculture and Hemp Production: Why It Matters
Marketplace
Brands Gear Up to Work With Congress on CBD Pathway
Nutraingredients USA
Hemp’s Multiple Attributes Recognized by the United Nations
Business Cann
CBD Tends to Perplex Regulators; Hong Kong’s New Ban Reinforces Asia’s Strict Drug Approach
Time Magazine
Why Did Hong Kong Criminalize CBD?
Yahoo News
Why CBD Regulation Has Been So Tricky
Vox Magazine
Ananda Professional’s Condition-Driven Minor Cannabinoid Products Developed for Practitioner Market
Benzinga
NFL Hall of Fame Calvin Johnson Aims to Battle Post-Workout Pain With His New CBD Line
Gear Patrol
Snoop Dogg, Hempacco Enter Into Joint Venture to Develop Smokable Hemp Products
Barron’s
Dolly Parton Shuts Down Rumors of CBD and Keto Endorsements
First for Women
Can CBD Help Keep Some People Skinny?
Salon Magazine
Bulk CBD Supplier MC Global Holdings Experiences Dramatic 90% Year-Over-Year Sales Increase
The Times-Tribune
Snapdragon Hemp Opens Eighth Retail Location in Chattanooga
Times Free Press
Dr. Bronner’s Celebrates 75 Years in Business
By Snack and Bakery Magazine
Hemp Fiber Is Gaining Traction
By Specialty Fabrics Review
Spinning and Weaving With Hemp
Spin Off Magazine
Study Aligns Regenerative Farming With Human Health Benefits
Regen Friends
Podcast: Reconciling State and Federal Definitions of Hemp
Lancaster Farming
Oregon: Hemp and Marijuana Legalized on Umatilla Indian Reservation
KEPR TV
Oregon’s Tweedle Farms Expands Beyond CBD to Offer Smokable Hemp Flower
Cannabis Now
Pennsylvania Hemp Industry Council Appoints New Members
New Castle News
Texas Veterans Vow to Protect the State’s Hemp Market as One State Lawmaker Hopes to Crack Down
Click2Houston
Australia’s Avecho Biotechnology Progresses CBD Softgel Trials for Insomnia Treatment
Small Caps
New Zealand E-Motorcycle Maker Introduces Bike Body Made From Hemp
NZ Business
U.K.’s Food Standards Agency Bars More Than 400 CBD Products From Sale
HempToday
Uruguay Ships 1,000 Pounds of Hemp to the U.S. — A New Record?
Benzinga
The Let’s Talk Hemp Volume Up podcast returns with The Thai Tape series recorded in Thailand during the Asia International Hemp Expo. In this final segment, Morris Beegle speaks with Alan and Ben Dronkers, hemp and cannabis pioneers from Sensei Seeds and HempFlax.
EVENTS
2023 World Ag Expo, Feb. 14-16, 2023, Tulare, CA
Wisconsin Cannabis & Hemp Industry and Policy Summit, Feb. 15-16, 2023, Milwaukee, WI. Hosted by Indigenous Cannabis Industry Association
Canapa Mundi 8th Edition International Hemp Expo, Feb. 17-19, 2023, Rome, Italy
Will Hemp and CBD Ever Be Viable, Legal Pet Food Ingredients? Webinar presented by Petfood Forum, Feb. 22, 2023, 10 am CST
Natural Products Expo West, March 7-11, 2023, Anaheim, CA
9th Annual NoCo Hemp Expo, March 29-31, 2023, The Broadmoor Resort, Colorado Springs, CO
Growing Industrial Hemp as a Multipurpose Crop in Organic Cropping Systems, May 10, 2023, from 2-3 pm EDT. Free webinar by the Rodale Institute.
Reimagining a Regenerative World Through Cannabis & Hemp, Regennabis Live, May 11, 2023, United Nations, New York, NY
Add your event to Hemp Events, a free listing service for legitimate hemp industry events. Visit www.HempEvents.org.
TAKE ACTION
Help Rebuild Ukraine With Hemp
Sergiy Kovalenkov, aka Doctor Hemphouse, one of the world’s renowned specialists in building with hemp, is appealing to the hemp industry for help in rebuilding war-torn Ukraine, including building Ukraine’s biggest social housing project to date — a 10,000-square-foot residential building to house refugees and orphans who lost their parents to the war. In particular, the project is seeking builders, sponsors, automated block-making machinery and a hempcrete spraying system. Visit https://www.facebook.com/hempireua/ or contact info@hempire.tech or hempireua@gmail.com.
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About Let’s Talk Hemp
Let’s Talk Hemp is a publication of Colorado Hemp Company (a division of We Are For Better Alternatives) focused specifically on the subject of industrial hemp and cannabis. We present features and curate news from across the globe to share the benefits of cannabis on health, energy, manufacturing and planet (H.E.M.P.). Colorado Hemp Company also is the Producer of NoCo Hemp Expo and Southern Hemp Expo, the nation’s leading hemp conferences and expositions.
Publisher: Morris Beegle
Editor: Steven Hoffman
Web Developer: Debby West
Design: Ben Wright
Contributor: Rachael Carlevale, Jean Lotus
Production: Hope Keller
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