Flow Kana, Large Sungrown Cannabis Distributor, Provides Veggies and Fruits Often Grown by Marijuana Farmers in CSA’s as a Perk to their Employees

Press release from Flow Kana:

Flow Kana, the leading sustainable supply chain company and distributor of sungrown cannabis products and services and number one flower brand in California, today announced the next manifestation of their mission to provide scale to decentralized producers with a commitment to community supported agriculture (CSA). Within six months of initiating their FlowCSA employee perk program, Flow Kana became one of the largest purchasers of produce grown on small farms in Mendocino and Lake counties through the MendoLake Food Hub.

The FlowCSA initiative has been an evolving vision between Flow Kana co-founders Michael Steinmetz and Flavia Cassani and Amber and Casey O’Neill of HappyDay Farms since the company’s inception. (Photo: Business Wire)

Since June 2018, Flow Kana has offered their California employees a monthly CSA box of fruits and vegetables grown locally in Mendocino, Humboldt and Lake Counties, as continued support of small food farmers, decentralized food systems and the local communities where the company operates. Flow Kana is expanding its program in 2019, by offering a similar benefit to select dispensary partners and other supply chain collaborators for their employees.

The FlowCSA initiative has been an evolving vision between Casey and Amber O’Neill of HappyDay Farms and Flow Kana founders Michael Steinmetz and Flavia Cassani since the company’s inception.

“The quality of the cannabis and vegetables produced in small batches with the love and intention of a family farm are incomparable, and we want to see a world where this type of agriculture thrives and prevails,” said Michael Steinmetz, Flow Kana CEO. “The cannabis industry has an opportunity to build infrastructure that supports all kinds of localized, decentralized, supply networks, ushering in diversified and regenerative farming practices that promote environmentally responsible agriculture. We can offer a real alternative to the big industrial agriculture models we see so prevalent in our world today, and slowly encroaching on our amazing existing cannabis community in California.”

To encourage farmers to adopt more regenerative practices, Flow Kana also funds the newly created Local Food Systems Development Program in partnership with the MendoLake Food Hub. The program is designed, in phase 1, to offer support to cannabis farmers who want to diversify their crop portfolios by providing a guaranteed purchaser of their produce via the FlowCSA program through the MendoLake FoodHub. Local produce through the Emerald Triangle and Northern California areas are welcomed from all farmers in the area, whether or not they also cultivate cannabis.

“By encouraging a decentralized production model, we can support small, diversified producers who utilize regenerative land-use practices and have the time and resources to develop beneficial methodologies,” said HappyDay Farms’ Casey O’Neill, a third generation diversified cannabis and vegetable farmer. “These farmers are uniquely suited to address climate change and feed the planet in the process. The Flow CSA and the Local Food Systems Development Program offers an opportunity and platform to do just that.”

Currently, Flow Kana provides monthly seasonal produce boxes to the company’s now more than 245 employees throughout California. Since June of 2018, more than 2,500 boxes have been purchased and distributed from the MendoLake Food Hub and HappyDay Farms.

“Flow Kana has become one of our largest wholesale buyers, and we are grateful for their continued work in supporting small farms in our community,” said Caroline Radice, Executive Director of the MendoLake Food Hub. “The MendoLake Food Hub has seen substantial growth over the past year which would not have been possible without supportive, committed partners. We are happy to be working with Flow Kana to provide year-round fresh produce for their employee CSA, and we are excited to see them continue developing this program.”

Flow Kana is a driving force in the cannabis movement to not only honor these communities and these environmental and social values, but to make this decentralized model of agriculture the gold standard for others to follow across cannabis and beyond. The company believes there is great power in coming together with careful collaboration across many operators, distributors, retailers, and brands working in tandem to preserve, protect and evolve our industry and world. You can read more on this movement here: Never doubt that a group of dedicated small cannabis farmers can change the world.

About Flow Kana

Flow Kana is a pioneer in the cannabis industry, creating the first sustainable, sungrown cannabis brand that embraces California values and the small independent farm ecosystem. Flow Kana partners with and gives scale to craft farmers in Northern California, who focus on beyond organic farming practices. With any Flow Kana or “Powered by Flow Kana” product, customers can trust that, regardless of form factor, the cannabis inside is sungrown and cultivated organically by independent craft farms. The company offers a range of distribution and white label services to a variety of licensed cannabis companies who share the company’s values to provide consumers with clean, compliant and sustainable products through delivery to licensed retail operators throughout California. For more information, please visit www.flowkana.com, www.flowcannabisinstitute.com, and connect with us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

About HappyDay Farms

HappyDay Farms is a small, diversified family farm located in the hills of Northern Mendocino County, California. At 3,000 feet on a southwest slope, their terraced gardens produce year-round. In addition to medicinal sungrown cannabis, HappyDay Farms grows produce and flowers for their Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) program and local farmers’ markets. Their unique terroir and microclimate produces small-batch, craft medicinal cannabis products from artisanal, seed-stock varietals. You can learn more here.

About MendoLake Food Hub

The MendoLake Food Hub’s mission is to increase the availability of local food and the viability of local farms by connecting growers and buyers through an easy-to-use network. The Food Hub aggregates and distributes produce from small farms around Northern California by providing farmers access to a shared sales and distribution network which serves wholesale buyers such as grocery stores, schools, and restaurants. The MendoLake Food Hub is one of a network of food hubs across California working to build a vibrant, diverse new food system where small farms thrive and the freshest, local produce is easily accessible to the community. Learn more about the MendoLake Food Hub here and connect with them on Facebook and Instagram.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20190424005897/en/