Flow Kana Closes Trimming Operations in Whitethorn Facility
Flow Kana workers in July of 2019. [Photo by Emily Hobelmann]
Flow Kana is keeping the lease for other purposes, she said. And, they may reopen it as a trimming facility eventually.
Earlier Chapter: In Response to Market Pressures, Flow Kana Cuts Workforce But Keeps All Whitethorn and Laytonville Employees
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Duh – people don’t move to southern Humboldt to get a real job.
Its either the weed game that drives them there or that they are hiding from law enforcement, or both.
Too bad, its one of the most beautiful places I have ever been and it has so much potential.
But its industry, its people and its leaders determine its fate.
Serious question: potential for what? It seems to me that those that moved up in the 60’s and 70’s realized its potential. Southern Humboldt’s and Northern Mendo’s potential lies in its remoteness and absolute beauty, which was realized some time ago. Any attempt to realize some other “potential” could ruin that.
And one could argue it has.
Flow Kana brokered a deal with Estelle and Rex to monopolize Humboldt distribution then move operations south. The goal is to gut Humboldt so all profits flow to Bay Area billionaires. Bay Area billionaires wrote our local cannabis ordinance. Humboldt is for sale and our resources are being plundered by these billion dollar corporations who only take and then leave.
That’s funny. What benefit would Estelle or Rex see in that move?
They’ve messed us up, estelle more than rex, but not to fulfill some scheme.
They are trying to comply with walkingwoods messed up lawsuit and dfw strongarming.
The screw up is that environmental goals can be met without driving gramma out of her house. And its happening all over sohum.
Once again, I am asking, to borrow, everything. Bernie 2020
Reading everyone’s comments I see exactly why a company would leave. A bunch of lazy, entitled conspiracy theorist bums that believe in socialism and ohh the corporate boogie man is here to steal our industry aka we’re too lazy to do it ourselves. Now you have zero jobs.. congrats. Oh and Bernie is a joke
The biggest reason I lost my job today is that people in this community have no interest in working at a regular job. Trying to find employees who show up, sober and rested, who want to learn and move forward was almost impossible. If the facility had been fully staffed we would not have closed, but a 5 days a week job is too fucking much for most everyone around here. People all over the world have to bite the bullet and get a job, but not here. This community just lost a huge buyer of weed, a progressive generous employer, and probably a few locals that will have to move away to survive. RIP SoHum.
FlowKana to make Billions!
https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.marketwatch.com/amp/story/guid/A38B6342-04AF-11E9-848F-FA09D31FAF58
I never knew you were looking or that you were even there so not everyone is lazy
That’s my thought. There are a lot of people who would have snapped that up. There’s a paper, a radio, and this outlet, in addition to the book of faces.
Something doesnt add up
Yep. A lot of unemployed trimmers in this area. And if they were paying $15 an hour they could easily have hired more of them. What’s up? Were they paying less? Like minimum wage?
Yep. Sober employees in sohum is like finding a needle in a haystack.
The hippie back to the land movement in the 70s and 80s seeked the potential of this area and for the most part they conquered and succeeded.
Their children on the other hand, well…..
I feel like it wasn’t gonna last because they chose to ignore applications from people that wanted the job and had many years of experience, so they can hire the young, inexperienced, “trainable” people when they first opened, and then some of their business dealings within the small community jaded people into not wanting to work for them once the young and inexperienced ones moved on. Just one observers opinion.
Why didn’t they post help wanted ads on Craigslist? My partner has been looking for that type of job for months. Sheesh Blame the worker. Maybe there should have been a greater outreach by management. Were they paying livable wages? That’s also important seeing as the cost of living is super high here.
As a business owner, craigslist is the worst platform to find employees.
Craigslist jobs are always working for the most low-quality employers…
Flow Kana wants the most qualified and youngest low-paid employees they can find. Cannabis Jobs are among the lowest paid positions available in CA, often paying less than minimum wage. Cannabis testing labs want PhD chemists for $18/hr!
Working in the Cannabis Industry is guaranteed to be as good of a job as working at McDonalds.
What did they pay?
I think 15/hr
They were takers not buyers let’s be clear.
I would rather compost every gram of weed I grow than give it to big tobacco (FLOW KANA). I hope they close all there doors and loose all there cancer money
The huge buyers of weed does not come from flow canna. Ask any “white” market or traditional market grower. It comes from black market buyers still flooding humboldt for tax free killer bud. The way I see it, nothing has changed but a better price! Sorry for your lose of work, but your right, the people around here are still killing it on all fronts of the weed game. From tax free trim jobs to “middleing” lbs to indoor grows to old school shade patches. This county and the people involved in “the game” are still crushing it. No need for a minimum wage 5 day a week job.
Yeah right. Trimming weed, a job with a future!!
More like gutting fish.
Word, my friend.
Your labor pool’s on its third generation of people who never had to work a straight job. Hell, they’ve hardly ever had to work for people who weren’t friends or family. That’s why the transplants are eating your lunch.
Bingo!
Scooter, I’ve lived in Humboldt all my life and have never heard of Flow Kana. Were they working with Dark Staffing to hire employees? Cuz I know plenty of people looking for jobs; some of whom may not have long resumes but are certainly willing to work.
Ghetto country …
Your right on the money 💯
And @scooter
Your right On too!!!
Country Ghetto I find your comment distasteful. Not all of us moved to So. Hum for the weed. I moved here because of the ocean and I wanted a safe place to raise my kids plus I thought it would save my marriage. And yes, I have legal jobs; grantwriting/research, gardening, housekeeping, taking care of pets and soon baking. I am like a combination pizza. But I will say there were times I would have like to learn to grow and how to trim. Some of my work is extremely hard and I am not getting any younger. Plus the economy has changed drastically. I am grateful for the work in Shelter Cove and overall So Hum has given me. One more thing. Living here and access to services is difficult. An example: I worked at Redwood Rural and Eric Fimbres, the ED was a saint to me. Samantha had to ride the school bus from Whitethorn to Redway School. I took my breaks when she arrived at Redway. Eric then would let her sit in the conference room and she would do her homework. Then back over to Shelter Cove. We wouldn’t get home until 7:30pm. When Eric left RRHC the new ED said no. Redway school saved me with their afterschool program along with other Mom’s here in the Cove helping me. Just to let you know there is no childcare here in the Cove and sometimes your partner says that he will help out when you take a job and then he blows you off. Oh, and phone service is imperative! Kids get sick or the bus doesn’t come thru. Emergencies do occur.
disagree… pay a livable wage and you’ll have plenty of excellent local employees.
Let’s pretend we didn’t see this coming.
40 hrs a week trimming ? If they offered part time they may have had more applicants. The credit union had to learn this the hard way
That type of work should offer maximum flexibility for schedules as it is not desirable at all and very tedious.
Right, I mean come on. Working a full time job? That is insane! How does one do that!
I dont think your hands could hold up to 40 hours a week, year round.
That is very true WELL…
Oh wow.. didn’t they just sink a bunch of money into this facility, and like Brag loudly about it on a previous article?
Oh no, no more picnics !!
Did you see the Men’s Jounarl story? king Of Cannabis? That’s a bold statement for an outsider to make in the Emerald Triangle. Looks like the King just lost SoHum. No Picnic 🤣 Who went to that anyway? Did you ?
I think the King of Cannabis thing was from some super obscure site called like “Northern California Jewish News” or something. Still embarrassing as fuck.
I think the headline writer might be to blame. I don’t see any indication Steinmetz called himself that. In either of the two articles https://www.mensjournal.com/features/michael-steinmetz-new-king-of-weed-flow-kana-cannabis/ or https://www.jweekly.com/2020/02/21/king-of-weed-meet-the-jew-at-the-top-of-the-cannabis-market/
THE BOOM IS BUSTED. Corporate and state and county got greedy… now we’ve got all the big city problems of major crime, a coarsening of life…traffic jams,innoutchipotle with zombies in the streets…needles…trash…excrement….murder…. drugs…
But hey…great job incumbents!
🕯🌳I’ll second that. 👍🏽🐸
The Whitethorn location is frought with difficulties unless you’re living in Whitethorn. $15 an hour to drive long distances pretty much bites. For those married with children and have school delivery bites harder. Open trim facility in Redway and likely it’d do better.
Yep. Location, location, location.
Cannabis is legal.
FlowKana is a shitty employer, that’s why the employees don’t come back. The Mendo facility is like working with ex cons and the supervisors are perverts looking to hire hot girls. Same old Cannabis cliches with a fancy candy coating. Might as well stay black market the pay is better.
Scooter you are spot on ! Sorry you lost your job but to think the lazy dope grower community would go get a real job was a fantasy dreamed up by some nitwit at flow kana. I look forward to all growers leaving and a return to real farming. Bring back a wool industry up here.
J. Edgar Hoover: is that you?
A billion dollar corporation in Whitethorn? There isn’t even a decent road to Whitethorn!
I do enjoy the concept of white lab coats and black gloves…
When I think of the average SoHum character, I do not picture a person who is willing to show up at 0730 and work until 1630, 5 days a week, but hey, even SoHum Health knows better than to drug-screen it’s employees…
At SHCHD, a person who can’t show up sober or work full time, will be fired. Failure to commit!
I personally think that Flow-Kana is about the same as working for Procter and Gamble, and FK, they don’t care about Humboldt, they just want that good shit tied up in a contract!
FK is a vertically integrated, buy and sell for profit company, and, they are not doing too well, financially. Anyone who thought they had a career-level position, in Whitethorn, was lied to, completely deceived by evil businessmen! I think they just wanted those photos of the stainless steel equipment and the lab-coat-black- gloves, and, the rest was simple lies!
These are not nice people, but then, look at where they tried to do this…
You have all been had, and when the company can produce flower, more cheaply and closer to the market, Flow Kana will forget about Humboldt, and everyone who lives in Humboldt…
Have a good day! And go over to Quest Diagnostics, if you want to experience an evil-empire corporation that KNOWS what it is doing…
A lot trimmers here worked 12 – 16 hour days with minimal breaks in rooms with no windows, no ventilation, little heat and no AC in torturous chairs. Now, some of them are still doing so for less than minimum wage. Others are out of work as the exchange rate for people from places like Argentina make low pay worth while for some trimagrants. Some growers expect the same perfect trim jobs but lessen the price paid pr lb drastically. And some, when the work is finished, do not pay their workers.
I know people who moved to Oregon to work $15 hr above board trim jobs 9 – 5. I know there are people still here that would do the same. They didn’t advertise much, and/or, as one person suggested above- maybe they didn’t hire anyone over 25 or something.
You have no idea whatsoever what a working person in the weed business does, gets paid or how many hours they work.
Have the sense to never judge a group of people by the loudest flashiest ones among them. When you do, it says more about you than about them.
If you trim weed for a living, I wish you well. I worked at Jerold Phelps and saw the injuries people got from trimming… You can meet people from Kona to Arizona who tell stories about working with pot farmers around Garberville! Don’t tell me what I know…
Farm work is demeaning, physically destructive, and, when you are in your 60’s, you will remember why your hands don’t work, and everything is painful.
Stay in school, look for a decent employer, and don’t take drugs!
Namaste.
Another one of Estelle’s empty promises/lies. On the next episode of as the economy crumbles!!!!
Let’s try some new representation next week, local and state .our elected Representatives have betrayed and FAILED us miserably!!!!!
BY BY CORPARATE THEIVES AND SLAVE WAGER’S
BY BY PAYING FOR GOOD FOLKS TO BE EXTORTED AND VIOLATED
BY BY CORPARATE THEIVES /GREEDY CEOS TRYING TO GET RICH ON THE BACKS OF OTHERS!!!!!!
FLO ON DOWN THE ROAD FLO CANTA
It ain’t over they will just merge. Hopefully the investors get tired of losing money.
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-02-23/pot-investors-beg-executives-for-some-humility-cannabis-weekly
15 per hour for manicuring is nothing, and 40 hours per week is a pinner showing, lol
Most trimmers I knew worth their Costa Rica vacation could do 10 to 12 hrs a day for 5 to 6 months more or less, averaging about 30 per hour.
If a strait job is not on a career path, it’s unfortunatly a stupid job.
I’d guess it’s easier to be homeless in globalisms new order, considering all the openings in the homeless industry🎻
Having problems selling on the legal market is more like it….
Bingo !!!
Not enough legal dispensaries and too much legal weed. “Black Market Matters”
I agree with this. I’m a Single mom and to be completely isolated from my kids was not an option for me. ( no phone service, had to be there by 8:30am) Plus $15 an hour plus gas puts you right at the National poverty level for a family of 3. Not to mention California’s much higher cost of living… not worth it for a non living wage…
Flow Canna has problems? Lets count the many, many ways.
https://mjbizdaily.com/california-marijuana-tax-issues-loom-high-on-the-agenda-for-cannabis-industry/
Flow Canna has shown itself to be devoted to the rape, pillage and plunder of the North California Cannabis Cultivators. They’ve lied at every turn of events.
Spectacular results afforded by the “legal” from within the fraudulent $64.
Welcome to the new world order
1. Abolition of private property and the application of all rent to public purpose.
2. A heavy progressive or graduated income tax.
3. Abolition of all rights of inheritance.
4. Confiscation of the property of all emigrants and rebels.
5. Centralization of credit in the hands of the state, by means of a national bank with state capital and an exclusive monopoly.
6. Centralization of the means of communication and transportation in the hands of the State.
7. Extension of factories and instruments of production owned by the State, the bringing into cultivation of waste lands, and the improvement of the soil generally in accordance with a common plan.
8. Equal liability of all to labor. Establishment of Industrial armies, especially for agriculture.
9. Combination of agriculture with manufacturing industries; gradual abolition of the distinction between town and country by a more equable distribution of the population over the country.
10. Free education for all children in government schools. Abolition of children’s factory labor in its present form. Combination of education with industrial production.
Karl Marx
Wow. You read a book. Now take a look at what the GOP has done to the Bill of Rights and what corporations are doing most of what you claim on your little list, and tell us WHO exactly they are owned by!
OR, you could continue to parrot maga clowns from Fox and ignore the fact the Sanders has served for DECADES, honorably and without corruption. So meanwhile, YOU are positive after all that, he is going to immediately declare the nation a communist state, come and take all your money and make a giant commune? Jesus, you really dont think things through do you? Heres a tip: FOX LIES.
But hey, keep supporting a bunch of billionaire racist con-men who have committed TREASON against our nation, have a ‘leader’ who has been impeached and leads (after 14,000 lies and counting) the pack for ‘most corrupt administration in American history, insults and alienates our allies while he “loves and respects” men like Putin and Kim Jong un.
Yeah, keep drinking that son.
Triggered?
There are plenty of old hands (and young) around here who can make $300 or a lot more for a 10 or 12 hour day at piece work rates, but the only ones who are going to do it for $15/hr are the ones being stopped at the Southern border.
where are the business you are talking about?
Glad Flow Kana is closing. I don’t want corporate sponsored distributors financed by the same people investing in Marlboro or Monsanto in my community.
There are a few truely local distributors. Locally owned and locally staffed. Humboldt growers should be promoting those companies not out of the area ones that are here to fleece the profits.
I hope all their facilities go bankrupt
Good riddance to a bad company.
The only people making money on the cannabis now is the county and the large lic distributers and growe4es who paid off rhe humbolg co council members to make it impossable for the rest of us to affored to do this legally .clorado doesnt have these issues neiher does oregon and everybodys making money there .colorado is givibg homeowners severance checks back on there property taxes instead of trying to take it all fof themselves and stealing peoples property cause the pillars of this community are bigger theives then the criminals ,cops included ,so that wat makes the most beautifull place i ever lived also ghe ugliest place i ever lived
Once again how can the supervisors who have personel interest in the cannabis industry in Humboldt County be holding onto, and tightening the reins on this business?? I see a huge conflict of interest here. It’s so wrong. I believe the word is MONOPOLIZE.
The same way our God damn President can rent out rooms in his hotels to the God damn Secret Service paid for by our God damn taxes. This is America: Love it or Leave it!
It’s sad to see so many of my friends and neighbours loosing out on such an easy way to make a living, especially way out in the rural areas. The writing was on the wall several years ago but very few took notice. The most successful ones were the ones who invested in other things while the money was rolling in.
Today, one of my successful friends (at this occupation) has trouble recruiting labor. The deal is work for four days per week, ten hours per day, for six months. The pay is about $40,000. This pay scale works out to nearly $40/hour. I’m told the best workers are from other countries. The anglo workers from here (I can say that; I’m white) have to be watched all the time, and they complain constantly about the work. Leaving them to work on their own isn’t good, as they “slow bell” and don’t get much done. My friend has to work alongside them to keep the work going. My friend hires people because my friend doesn’t want to work 14-16 hours per day (getting older I guess).
Perhaps this isn’t the norm everywhere, but it seems to be here. It’s sad, but there you are.
I guess he can’t afford to pay every week. Nobody wants to front work anymore, unless they trust you AND it’s a partnership..
It was maybe 15 years ago when a wonderful organic bagel factory opened in down town Garberville. They sold their product throughout the county. They paid their workers a good wage, had a understanding boss who gave them flexibility with scheduling, and the working conditions were good. In the two years they were open they went through 60 people and finally closed because they couldn’t keep help. When I asked her why, she said two reasons. One, she couldn’t pay what the trimmers were making tax free and two, she simply asked people to show up on time and they were required to stand on their feet behind the counter for 8 hours a day helping customers and they couldn’t hack it.
A friend of mine was building houses 12 years ago and was offering $20/hr. for unskilled labor (good money back then). Cleaning up the job site, helping move materials, holding the end of a piece of wood. He went through 6 people before he found one that lasted more than half a day.
I can sympathize with FK though I was always puzzled by the business logic of putting the facility in Whitethorn.
Not surprised. The caliber of individuals in Humboldt is generally pathetic…at least those my age. I have a BS in Geology and I was able to acquire the skill of trimming because I love cannabis. You’re kidding yourself if I trim for less than $150/lb. Any decent trimmer can do 2 lbs in a 12 hr day if the material is alright. I’ve never encountered such backwards, weirdly entitled individuals as I have in Humboldt, Northern Mendo, and Trinity counties. Not even at top private schools!! It is a sad thing. Paradise lost to say the least.
As a home owning resident of shelter cove i could not afford to work for $15 a hour. If you have a full time job making that you have to pick up extra work on the weekends.
I was told to work for flow cana and my response was ” yeah, but how would i afford food”?
Hello Lost,
How do you like living in Shelter Cover? Is there a since of community involvement? It’s a beautiful place to live. My husband and I visited once already in 2016. I would love to hear from someone who actually lives in Shelter Cove instead of a holiday maker.
Thanks