Your weekly weed wrap-up, Marijuana Media peeks behind the hemp headlines every Thursday at 4:20 on 95bFM Drive, thanks to The Hempstore . Hit play below to listen, and read along for all the links and references.
First up this week, ‘Welcome to the Christmas spirit, dob in your neighbours if you think they’re growing cannabis.’ That’s the message from Taranaki Police delivered into letterboxes this week (See – Newshub: Police pamphlets in Taranaki encourage people to report cannabis growers). Their plan to encourage narks and keep chasing cannabis providers follows two primetime drug documentaries which both concluded the War on Drugs was lost and drugs are the winner (Paddy Gower’s On All The Drugs, and Guyon Espiner’s Wasted).
This week saw the release of Wilhelmina Shrimpton’s documentary on a drug called Fentanyl and Today FM has been covering the War on Drugs. In an interview with Chlöe Swarbrick, the Green MP said the War on Drugs is the “greatest pro-drug, pro-drug harm movement we have ever seen.” She cited research showing investing in harm reduction delivered a $3-$7 return for every dollar, and a 34% reduction in local crime, but instead NZ currently throws four times as much at law enforcement.
After covering these issues for many years, journalist Wilhelmina Shrimpton says she now stands firmly in the camp of legalisation and regulation and is encouraging substance checking and more resources to make this available for everyone who needs it. “The bottom line is that people have and always will take drugs. So why not make it safe for them to do so?” (As a side note, The Hempstore hosts monthly substance checking clinics run by the NZ Drug Foundation. A list of upcoming dates is here or see thelevel.org.nz for pop-up clinics nationwide.) Co-host Lloyd Burr chimed in, saying the current policy is “a war fought on ideology and politics”.
Speaking of which, New Zealand’s new ban on tobacco sales to anyone born after 2008 has attracted international attention. Listed under their Nanny State category, Reason.com said New Zealand’s strategy “ignores the failures of prohibition.” Under the new law passed this week, the age limit for tobacco will rise by one year, every year. Reason says the policy will fuel a black market for the products and create new vectors for state violence against individuals.
More reportage of the study from last week which found CBD is no better than placebo for pain relief. Radio NZ interviewed study lead Dr Filip Gerdin. It’s important to note the study did not conclude CBD was ineffective, but that it was just as effective as placebo – which is itself an effective painkiller. As we said last week, endocannabinoids may actually be causing the placebo response at the CB1 receptor, and CBD could be triggering this. I also find it a bit off the study lead is shopping it around, maximising publicity while simultaneously decrying the media for only giving good news about cannabis (that’s news to me, and regular listeners of Marijuana Media!). While most media parroted their supposed role in encouraging high expectations from using CBD, the study did not actually examine changes of perception or expectations. The meta-analysis of 20 previous studies concluded media attention was “not associated with the clinical outcomes”.
Some media coverage this week of what Marijuana Media had revealed last week: NZ’s Medicines Classification Committee has recommended no change for CBD. The committee rejected a proposal from Medsafe to harmonise with Australia, which is allowing over-the-counter sales of so-called “low-dose” Cannabidiol. These are packs containing up to 150mg per day to a maximum of 4500mg per pack (which would include all CBD products currently approved in NZ). Newsroom noted “little to no recent research was considered”. Only five submissions were received, including from myself, Rua Bioscience and the Pharmacy Guild. The committee dismissed the evidence from Australia’s TGA which found CBD had a remarkable safety profile and no serious adverse effects.
Now the Aussies are coming, with their Canadian weed. MedReleaf NZ, a subsidiary of MedReleaf Australia, has been granted a Medicinal Cannabis Supply Licence from our Ministry of Health, with approval to supply three medicinal cannabis products from Canada’s Aurora. Another Aussie company, Releaf, says it intends to open cannabis doctor clinics in New Zealand soon. There are already at least 10 cannabis doctor clinics operating. They are easy to find by googling “cannabis doctor nz” or we have their details at The Hempstore.
The New Zealand Herald profiled Christchurch-based PPE glove maker Eagle Protect last Monday, and revealed one of their biggest markets is the US legal cannabis industry. The company motto is “It is hard to soar like an eagle when you are surrounded by turkeys.”
In hemp news, Stuff reports some of New Zealand’s oldest remaining woolsheds are a “trip back in time”, containing relics from New Zealand’s history including hemp bales among the weighing scales, hooks and stencils. On Radio NZ the founder of NZ’s largest (and last) clothing factory, Cactus Outdoor, wants to help rebuild the apparel eco system so our cops will wear hemp. Cactus manufactures uniforms for the police and military using imported fabric. Founder Ben Kepes says, “I would love someone to start the fabric mills, so that New Zealand wool and hemp that’s grown here could actually be made into fabric here.” They should check out NZ Yarn – it’s coming soon!
Also on Stuff this week, their Summer Festival Guide recommends Twisted Frequency, Dec 30 to Jan 3 in Golden Bay, for its “Big hemp energy all round”. Sounds good!
In worldwide weed news:
· Pot prisoner Brittney Griner freed in prisoner swap (extensive coverage in the ODT, Herald, RNZ. Stuff, 1News)· Amsterdam launches ‘Stay Away’ campaign to discourage excessive tourism (NZ Herald). Possible new rules include banning cannabis sales on weekends and banning smoking on the street. Amsterdam’s mayor, Femke Halsema, has already proposed banning tourists from buying cannabis products in coffee shops altogether. · Cannabis legalisation took effect in Missouri. NORML Chair Dan Viets noted most of the state’s 20,000 annual cannabis arrests will now stop. “Instead, adults will be able to legally possess up to three ounces of cannabis, and soon will also have the option to grow up to 18 plants or purchase cannabis products tested for purity and potency from licensed retailers.” · Connecticut’s governor announced their intent to wipe 40,000 cannabis convictions on the 1st of Jan 2023. So far, 24 states have enacted legislation facilitating the expungement of marijuana-specific convictions, wiping the records of two million people according to analysis by NORML released this week.
Tune in to bFM Drive’s Jonny and Chris Fowlie from The Hempstore on Marijuana Media, every Thursday at 4:20pm on 95bFM. You can stream or download the pot-cast for this and hundreds of other Marijuana Media shows at 95bFM.com (or via iTunes / RSS feed). Links to all the stories we discuss are posted here at The Daily Blog.
2022-2008=14. We don’t sell tobacco to 14 year olds anyway.
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