Set in the grounds and halls of the National Agricultural and exhibition centre product earth is developing into an event of real significance. Aimed at the CannaCurious, Product Earth is a blend of exhibition and after dark festival. The vibe is chilled and aimed firmly at the cannabis community It is a very different audience to Cannabis Europa which the Extract reviewed.
The fact that an MD of a major UK Cannabis clinic described Cannabis Europa as a meeting of smart suited drug dealers really shows how far things have to move. Have you been to a pharmacy show? it’s all about the drugs! The comment seemed very harsh but what would they make of Product Earth? The show is a real mix of grow your own solutions from seeds, obviously for display purposes only, to the latest vaporisers and bongs via medical cannabis clinics. This was the standout fact this year, the presence of two medical cannabis clinics. Lyphe Groups, The Medical Cannabis Clinic and Integro’s clinic. Integro even had a prescribing Doctor onsite providing information about the criteria to access medical cannabis. These clinics are leading the way in developing new bridges to make sure the regulated cannabis industry will become a bigger and bigger part of Product Earth in the future.
This is what will make Product Earth an even more interesting event, it is developing a space where the whole cannabis community and the industry can come together to meet, share ideas and in the after dark zone dance the night away.
Product Earth’s blend of part exhibition part late night gathering is really unique and offers a real safe space. The event has so much to see from Glass blowing to a demo skate park by way of the seminar zone.
The seminar zone it’s a great place to find out more about cannabis and listen to informative discussion around all aspects of cannabis affecting users, patients and business. Topics range from holistic caring to plant science through the impact of use. The real thread that runs through these talks is about all this with an understanding that diversity needs to be front and centre of the developing industry.
It is worth noting that the majority of the visitors to Product Earth are mainly white yet the people who actually get jailed for cannabis crimes are primarily Black! Just another of strange facts that needs addressing as legislation around cannabis develops. This is why the industry and community need to stand together so we create an inclusive and diverse industry. The seminar Zone even highlighted this.
This year even had a cooking demonstration on how to effectively use cannabinoids in recipes for the best effect.
The one thing that is always said about Product Earth by some in the industry is it is too recreationally focused, and the regulated industry needs to avoid it.
This will not build the consensus we need to make sure the cannabis industry regulation will build sustainable change for the future. The Cannabis movement has always been people-powered, those that have stood in the face of draconian laws to stand up for their rights are the very reason the regulated industry exists today. The whole medical cannabis industry in the UK and its legal status are built on the foundations of these patients who had to break the law to achieve acceptance from wider society.
The problem is lots of the industry exists in silos and won’t stand up or don’t look over the top to see the wider Cannabis opportunity. It was disappointing to not see any more exhibitors from the hemp side of the industry but again this is probably down to the perception that hemp companies don’t want to attend a rec cannabis exhibition, this is disappointing because the real advantage of the cannabis economy is when all aspects of the cannabis plant are harnessed, we will create the change that the world needs to thrive in the next decades. That said, it is by working together across all aspects of the cannabis industry with community participation that we achieve the fastest route to wider regulated access.
The facts are, prohibition has created many of the issues that have led to plant breeding focusing on stratospheric levels of THC to ensure maximum high for your pound. The consequence of this is that in most cases we are reducing the beneficial terpene profiles that plants create.
We see that in many of the seeds for sale at Product Earth it is all about the THC levels. The advantage that Product Earth has is the building of bridges between the science and informed use.
Product Earth is really looking to move to the next level and as much of the world is changing its regulation on Cannabis the UK will follow suit and Product Earth will ride the wave of ever-increasing acceptance that these new regulatory changes are creating.
Looking forward to 2023
