Cultivating and processing cannabis sustainably in Canada—one of the largest and coldest countries in the world—is no easy feat. While a lack of sunlight might seem like the most obvious challenge to growing cannabis in a more eco-friendly way, the shipping of supplies, packaging and finished product across the country can substantially increase a licensed producer’s carbon footprint.
At Rubicon Organics, home of the Simply Bare brand, CEO Jesse McConnell is focused on making sure that the cannabis flower grown in his facility takes the most sustainable path to market. When it comes to growing organic cannabis, he says the soil and other materials within which the plant is grown is of utmost importance.
“We source all of our materials right here in British Columbia, from the ocean and from the land,” he says, referring to the raw material inputs that are used in Simply Bare’s house-made living soil. These inputs include Douglas fir bark, fish meal, kelp, and other ingredients that provide cannabis plants with the nutrients they need for optimal growth and flowering.
“That’s something that’s different than the farm waste that is used by some of the other organic producers,” he adds. “We’re building and producing all of our own soils from the ground up, using very low impact techniques—not shipping compost from across the country, and we’re doing it right here, in our own backyard.”
Read more at forbes.com