The marijuana industry has clearly reached a new level of mass commercialism and I fear we’re in danger of creating a “Marijuana Industrial Complex” that involves venture capitalists, Wall Street traders, pharmaceutical companies, celebrity branding, government regulation and even mainstream media catering to the marijuana industry.
In September 2015, Snoop Dogg, world-renowned entertainment icon and unofficial representative of all things weed, took the stage at Tech Crunch to announce the launch of his very own lifestyle media company, Merry Jane. In August 2016, it was reported by Politico that groups in California are moving to change the laws surrounding distribution, setting a dangerous precedent that will likely crush the independent grower and dispensary system; in fact, there is legislation in the pipeline to legalize marijuana for recreational use. According to the Los Angeles Times, California voters will most likely legalize recreational marijuana this November. There are tons of marijuana or, sorry, cannabis investment venture capitalist firms looking to capitalize on investor’s curiosity.
What about the individual grower? You know, the individual that wants to grow his medicine or his recreational drug like he or she would tomatoes in the garden? Our startup company, Cloudponics, is looking to do exactly this thing; in fact, check out their hilarious video about “growing tomatoes from your couch” at www.cloudponics.com. We want to empower individual growers who don’t exactly have a green thumb…or not from growing marijuana anyway.
Presently, individuals are forced to deal with the emerging mass retail and distribution system that controls the quality, quantity and specific growing protocols of various strains and products. Our company wants to democratize the growing community.
Of course, this has very wide implications for the politics, law and commerce surrounding marijuana and marijuana growers around the world. What would DIY, at-home marijuana growing boxes controlled from the grower's smartphone mean for the emerging Marijuana Industrial Complex? Are the Powers That Be willing to relinquish control over their growing influence over policy, price, distribution and even the public debate on the subject?
We have dreamed up and built what could be called the ultimate app for marijuana consumers who want to grow their own supply? If you don't really need to have a green thumb to grow your own marijuana, and the price of these types of DIY solutions becomes popular, what happens to the industry? What happens to marijuana shops and dispensaries? What happens to big pharmaceutical companies that are presently licking their chops over the emerging recreational drug industry? One striking chart shows why pharma companies are fighting legal marijuana.
At Cloudponics (www.cloudponics.com), we want to empower the individual to “grow their own tomatoes” without government and corporate regulation, without the influence of powerful lobbyists and Wall Street executives and venture firm capitalists.
By the way, the video on the home page is truly hilarious -- http://www.cloudponics.com
Value is the only commonality in an increasingly complex, challenging and interdependent world.