IF YOU LOVE CANNABIS, THIS ARTICLE IS IMPORTANT TO YOU.
The cannabis industry in the United States faces several hurdles and a multitude of road blocks that are changing the very foundations of the industry overnight. Much like the gold rush back in the 1800's, the actual money to be made was not in hounding for gold, but in extortion of the miners themselves. unfortunately, this pattern of proprietarization has been a pattern in our agricultural industry for decades; with corporate giants like Monsanto racing to scoop up patents on their "intellectual knowledge" in order to monopolize the industry.
Today the Cannabis industry faces similar opposition, and is at risk of being monopolized. Currently, there are dozens of pending patents stating ownership over various strains of cannabis and processing techniques that would render anyone currently wanting to grow or use them illegal on the terms of patent infringement. As seen throughout history, master patenters are typically more successful than master inventors.
Nikola Tesla
So what does this mean for Cannabis? And how exactly does this impact the average weed smoker? Andrew Jones has been in the Pacific Northwest Cannabis for some time and has an interesting history. Starting when he was a young teenager, Jones was introduced to the Cannabis black market and quickly took the role of someone willing to take risks in the then illicit market. By the time he turned 15 he had been involved in a shoot out with Police during a raid of their home, leaving Jones shot and wounded in several places. Jones spent several years in the prison system until he was released and starting his campaign to secure what he thought would truly be the governing factor of the entire emerging Cannabis industry; Patents.
It is important here to realize that hydrocarbon extraction systems have remained un-patented by the original inventors for years and seen as public knowledge until 2017, when the government issued a series of patents granting explicit rights for processing Cannabis through hydrocarbon extraction systems. Ultimately, the patent is so broad that anyone in the Unites States currently or planning to extract Cannabis oil is in all likelihood liable for patent infringement. This has come to quite a shock to the new multi billion dollar industry, who as of now need specific permission to continue doing what they have been doing for years.
In the video above, Drew Jones explains to all existing and would be cannabis manufactures exactly the position they are in, and what their options are. Ultimately Jones states that he is keeping these patents as a favor to us to "keep foreign entities from taking over"... Which is a noble thought aside from the fact that open patents are widely regarded as more favorable in terms of progress and competition, as well as low budget start ups. At the moment a Mr. Extractor will cost you a hefty $10,000, the bulk of the value being in the patent rights that allow you to process Cannabis legally.
In the end, with the processing capacity totally regulated by this man. He essentially governs the price, availability, and quality of all Cannabis extracts in the entire United States. With the system ripe for extortion and with thousands of Cannabis extract companies unknowingly operating illegally, the very fundamentals of the emerging industry will change in the coming year.
Andrew Jones posing with the "Mr. Extractor" in Tualatin OR.
"If I have seen further than others, it is by standing upon the shoulders of giants"
-Isaac Newton
All images are acquired via google images and Connoisseur Concentrates website