Cannabis Company in SoHum Helping Community While State Fumbles Licensing
ERCP and Flow Kana collected trash today in Southern Humboldt. [Photo by Paul Turner, ERCP board of directors and volunteer]
California state law does not allow temporary licenses for cannabis permits to be renewed once their time runs out even if the company has submitted everything needed and the state agency is the one who needs to make the necessary steps for the annual license. The temporary permit for Flow Kana’s Whitethorn branch ran out on February 11.
“We received in writing that license will be awarded at some point,” Cate Powers the Vice President of Communications explained. “It’s a matter of time…We just can’t get clarity on when that will be.” She said that they had annual operating licenses for several branches “submitted with plenty of time in advance.” Last week, the Laytonville branch received its annual license, Powers said. However, she added, the state agency “has got a lot to get through.”
A bill is working its way through the California legislature to allow the agency, California Department of Food and Agriculture, to extend licenses to those who have followed through properly, but, meanwhile, Flow Kana had 12 full-time employees at its Whitethorn branch that they didn’t want to layoff.
“All of our employees are still being fully paid…including health benefits,” Powers explained. So they started “looking at ways to support our community” during the difficult down time.
The company and its employees came up with a list of community endeavors they wanted to help while they couldn’t work their own business. “We have done three so far,” Powers said.
On Monday, March 4, they helped one of their farmers, Briceland Forest Farm, weed garlic patches and create a compost pile.
Flow Kana workers help weed garlic at Briceland Forest Farm which also cultivates cannabis. [Photo by Briceland Forest Farm]
“The [Flow Kana] volunteers walked just about all the streets in Garberville picking up litter,” said Paul Turner who works regularly with ERCP to remove trash in the area. Meanwhile, ERCP worked some of the homeless camps. “[Altogether,] we got 2760 pounds of trash.”
One of the areas worked on during Friday’s cleanup of Southern Humboldt by Eel River Cleanup Party and Flow Kana [Photo by Paul Turner]
![Flow Kana employees using their "down time" while the state processes their license to help Sanctuary Forest. [Photo by Anna Rogers, Education & Development Director for Sanctuary Forest]](https://kymkemp.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/53591715_2183901004990155_2692729123456942080_o.jpg)
Flow Kana employees using their “down time” while the state processes their license to help Sanctuary Forest. [Photo by Anna Rogers, Education & Development Director for Sanctuary Forest]
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*Want to pitch in yourself? Eel River Cleanup Party meets Tuesdays and Fridays at 11 a.m. at the Veteran’s Park in north Garberville. Please bring gloves and dress for work. The cleanup usually runs three hours from beginning through the dump.
Dazey’s is a regular contributor of garbage bags for the bi-weekly cleanup.
Also, on Saturday, April 13 at 11 a.m., there will be a community cleanup meeting at the first turnout north of Garberville.
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🕯Good morning read thank you Kym.
It is nice that some people clean, where others make messes. Without an exploration of values, social issues, drug issues, or farm issues, thanks to the volunteers who clean up after the wreckage of drug use and mental illness.
If you farm in Humboldt, it is my hope that you find a way to create something positive for the region, besides just the economic considerations.
Love the new positive attitude!
👍
~ditto.
I think it’s weird that their license expired but most everyone else’s was auto extended in Humboldt by the state because they are so backlogged. Most people I know have until July now…
Humboldt isn’t the issue. Its the state. And it is a common problem. So common that there is a bill trying to fix it. https://kymkemp.com/2019/02/28/new-bill-attempts-to-forestall-thousands-of-temporary-state-cannabis-licenses-expiring/
~this calls for a BOHICA!
New rule: When using an acronym, its unabbreviated form must be shown at the end of the article or statement.
If you’re not curious enough to look it up, let it go, dude.
Bend Over Here It Comes Again – BOHICA
What I haven’t heard, Kym, is about the ‘additional 90 days’ that was offered by the state if a Temp Permit holder submitted a completed (yes, with some ‘place holder’ docs allowed) CA Annual Permit by 12/31/18. I did that, and yet my CA Temp Permit only says ‘valid till end April’, instead of ‘end of July’ which would be the case with 90 more days, since I met the deadline.
Anyone know about whether those ‘additional days’ are actually being given? Or only under some conditions?!? (Moving goal posts is common at this circus).
Have you ran your license number through the check a license in bcc website? That’s how I found out mine was extended, was supposed to expire this month, now I suddenly have until July but I didn’t get a notice, I had to run my number through the system and I noticed that the expiration date was extended, so I logged in and printed out the new license.
The state temps are valid for a certain amount of days so the people who were really on their game and got their applications in early are being punished by having their permits expire while the people who got them in right at the deadline have more time. It’s a fantastic system. Foolproof
Well said.
They should consider helping offset the clean up cost for trespass grows. Donate time or funding to those non profits. Show the community they do not like the bad side of the industry and that they are walking the walk.
The legal side is the bad side of the industry,and the politicians are the bad players,anything else is just propaganda rip off lies.trespass grows are a peice of history coming back into the future! !!!
I know an og that is replanting his old gorilla patches this season
RE: HUH Really? Flow Kana just closed a $22 million dollar deal, feel sorry & sympathetic towards a local business who needs it. All these farms & cannabis companies should be giving back to the community. I never needed a multi-million dollar deal nor PR to do volunteer work or pick up trash.
Exactly, only Rich ass people in the industry that are still getting paid would think they could send in something whiny like this and look good.
Flow Kana did not send this in. I learned about it from ERCP and thought they were making good use of down time and that the community ought to know about it.
So if it sounds whiny to you, blame me.
Humble but you are blameless. Prohibitionist nincompoops will always have a complaint. Ignore, as their narrow, small minds cause their snowflake reactions.
The Spirit of Volunteerism needs Corporate sponsors. Many local businesses have been contributing to ERP for years. Working to improve things builds solidarity. Lord knows we need more of that.
Yeah, in the same way corporate national companies like Target and the new car dealerships and insurance depots and fast food franchises are giving back to the community? Those bosses go home and smoke a phattie with their beer after a day of selling everybody garbage without giving any fucks. They pollute all kinds of ways, all day every day, for so long it’s off your radar. Choose your battles.
Yes, the State is fumbling trying to get the backlog of applications approved.
But, Hopefully someone told Flo Kana that all they needed to do was file for an “extension “ before the expiration date. That’s what our family farm had to do.
If all Flow Kana needed to do was to file for an extension, then why didn’t they do it?
Positive light
I do volunteer work for free while also working full-time, sorry I don’t applaud people that are getting paid for their “down” time and doing volunteer work to look good and boasting about it on here. Come back when your actually volunteering and your boss isn’t paying you and organizing you “volunteer” work for you. When my boss couldnt afford the final steps of legalization he left town with out paying me, I had already been cleaning up my community for years without anyone telling me too, or organizing it and I kept on doing it during that time when I was financially struggling from being ripped off. How about you still do volunteer work while you’re making the big bucks and your business is running, then it might seem impressive but honestly still just the bare minimum anyone in the industry should be doing.
Most of the folks in the pics above have volunteered in the community for decades. But there is a new economy and real jobs now. FK does not want to lose their trained employees because of the state screwing up, and they will if they stop paying them. So why not put them to work for the community? How can that be bad?
The point is that Flow Kana is paying their employees even though they are on a “break” thus still being able to feed their family, pay bills, support local businesses with their paychecks. It is not mandatory for the workers to volunteer during this time. The volunteer work was the workers’ idea, not Flow Kana’s. I commend them for their efforts! They were not seeking publicity for their actions, as stated by Kym.
And by all means, pat yourself on the back for your efforts. Now we all know that you work and volunteer.
Flowcanna has a short period of time to lock in contracts and monopolize. Right now they have the reputation of paying farming unlike many distributors. On the flip side I bet flowcanna becomes one of the most hated companies in the emerald triangle when folks realize they are burning through their $150+ million in investment money at the tune of $19 million per year undercutting their competition until the competition goes under and then they will pay farmers what they feel is fair. (ie pennies)
What you are describing is a classic strategy. Rockefeller used it when establishing Standard Oil. I had tried to point it out to people when this “legalization” was only a proposition. It’s not conspiracy theory and it’s not rocket science. Read any business article now about cannabis and nearly every article refers to “burn rate”. Those with the deepest pockets are positioning themselves to run deficits for years while they run their lesser well-capitalized competitors into bankruptcy. Then they will buy those bankrupt farms for nickels on the dollar and raise the prices of product back up to very profitable levels. This is what Corporate America does. Many will say ” well, if Flow Canna didn’t do it then somebody else would”. That is called a justification for bad behavior. It is “legal” behavior. But it will be terrible for what we had here- rural communities of self-employed and self-reliant people. Unfortunately, since we released the herb to the corporate and governmental predators we really only have one path to retain freedom- resist “legalization”. Overgrow the government and the corporate state. Keep the price on the original market lower than theirs and keep the herb free. Hopefully the flash of nice packaging, nice expensive storefronts and the vape pens will wear off and we shall see their program of domination and monopolization fail…again.
~well said. Well said!
Legal does not equal moral
The permits expiring means nothing. Most of the permitted farms I know of have no interest in the legal market and are only playing the game while they can sell black market. Same shit, different year. The county sucks for abating while allowing black market by the permitted farms. The county has done NOTHING to keep these farms from selling black market, NOTHING. Great, I get to watch my entire neighborhood blow it up again, sell thousands of pounds out of state and kick back drinking beer, knowing they can’t get busted. Is the county going to do follow ups to see if anybody is operating without a permit?? I know the answer…..NO.
Omg!! That was so well said! Right on! I feel the exact same way!!
Anytime ERCP receives help on clean up days is a positive. These guys are exhausted, wet, cold and fragrant at the end of the day. Any help is appreciated paid or otherwise. Why make this a negative? Thank you one and all.
Anytime ERCP receives help on clean up days is a positive. These guys are exhausted, wet cold and fragrant at the end of the day. Any help is appreciated paid or otherwise. Why make this a negative? Thank you one and all.
Big meeting at the mateel this Saturday It’s time to push back on this disgusting theiving county government.there running our home and the majority of us into the ground.Let’s start replacing these treasonous pigs now !!!!!!!
Yeah. Heard about the meeting. But why oh why are they not posting a notice of the gathering to RHBB??!!?
They did post a notice on RHBB, it just got buried in old news pretty quickly, as this news site is popping!
https://kymkemp.com/?s=Town+Hall
How does the CDFA temporary cultivation liscense affect Flow Kana ability to process and distribute product governed under completely different agencies that have nothing to do with cultivation?
Processing licenses are issued by cdfa
Flowcanna rips off the cannibis community, and brown noses the squares….
Sounds about right!
Same thing happened when dairy was a cottage industry. The govt wanted to make the money and “regulated” the business. Most of the regulations were beyond what Mom & Pops and new immigrants could manage, just like weed! So the large scale dairies put them out of business. Ferndale was once to dairy, like ” Humboldt” is to weed. This was in the late 1800s. But the aftermath is still in play today. The repercussions from weed will still be part of Humboldt’s history in 100 years. Like when your grandchildren’s children are in their 60s& 70s.
Yo Flow! I’m delayed with the red tape too… but in the meantime I got some burn piles and compost needing attention… oh, and doug firs are choking out some of the hardwoods @ my place… you guys busy this weekend? Beers and doobies on me, bring gloves and sharpened pruning shears, let’s get busy! Close the gate on your way up, thanks for the help!
The trash from the homeless is there because of Cannabis and the company is picking up trash from their customers. It’s the circle of life. It’s a shit show but one relies on the other.
I can hear and understand most all the commenter here and the points and opinions they are trying to eschew. In my small mind I just see people (paid or not, corporate or not ) cleaning up in our community. Now whether they are picking up detritus left behind by some of our less fortunate brothers and sisters struggling with addiction or mental health issues (but by the grace,there go you and i) or picking up beer cans and single use plastics cast aside ( by our black sheep brothers and sisters that just dont care) that would have found their way into our
Beautiful yet poor struggling abused and overused lifegiving river. It seems to me they are being of service to all of us and our community and environment.. to that end I applaud their efforts. I only hope everyone on here that has chosen to find the negative in this groups chosen action and point it out to all of us, will, going forward apply their energy to as noble of a cause rather than wasting it picking apart others efforts.. two cents, that’s all… thanks flow-kana, I don’t know you well enough to dislike you..:)
Lies
Flow Kana gives locals a full time job with benefits including dental . They have invested a huge amount of money that was spent along with their landlord locally. Carpenters electricians plumbers concrete finishers steel workers fire sprinkler guys alarm co. All local from humboldt .Most from southern humboldt. Then there is the materials 99% locally sourced. So tell me who else is hiring and investing in so hum. They have also paid for all the liquor for the Whitethorn Fire dept fundraiser. They have asked what non profits need help and they are offering their time so whats not to like ?