Can you use the term “craft” or “legacy” if you can’t define it? Those words are used frequently; it’s quite the thing, but what do they mean? Is it based on a set of conditions? This seems a meager basis for discussion to me.
It seems that growing cannabis is a craft of experience and time, of learning to grow a quality product. Experience and technique are viable farm definitions. By the nature of “craft,” such a product surpasses all the corporate run-of-the-mill products. In short, the small farmer is a craftsman who expresses an “attitude” as an expert craftsman. Attitude is what you make it, and that attitude is hard to duplicate, but it is core to what a craftsman is.
Beware when someone uses the term “craft”; it’s used too many times, and the term loses its true power. As a customer or retailer, don’t just assume; reach out to the producer and verify – it’s a phone call away.
Origins Council, the California 501c4 nonprofit education, research and policy advocacy organization dedicated to sustainable rural economic development within cannabis producing regions, who are doing great work moving cannabis forward, is as prone to this as anyone else. The next thing you know, “craft” will be in the law, with a list of conditions that each farmer must meet to be considered pure enough. This is not the plan we want.
You may remember when “organic” first came on the market; it was a “way” to grow food, and people flocked to the idea. Then that term was co-opted, and now, if you are not licensed to be “organic” and pay the regulatory price for the privilege, then you are limited in what you can offer. This is true even if you truly do follow “organic” practices. So, now let’s try “sustainable,” “artisanal,” or “soils-based” as, and I will say it, a marketing gimmick.
As a customer or a retailer, you must look past the gimmicks and search the attitude that makes for truly great pot. As others have said, it is all in the details and craft farmers are into the details.
Consider the profound difference “hand-made” as a term makes in your perception of a product. So, there is no question of the value of a craft product, but how does the customer find out? I say only the craftsman can tell that customer about his craftsman-made product. Be authentic and real; your customers will want to know more about you – they will find you at fairs, at private parties, and at presentations.
This goes for the dispensary as well; if you want to ride this wave that is coming, then you will have to embrace craft as a better product and give it the respect it is due. I know it is hard; in the end, your business is to make money, and you might wonder if supporting craft is worth it.
It is.
It is really about education; if people don’t know what they are missing, they won’t ask for it. What is “soil health”? What is Integrated Pest Management? Our customers need to know why they care, and we need to tell them as often as we can.
You want to be on the right side of this; ‘cuz the customer knows what they want. Why don’t we get together and enjoy a craft pairing?
Listen to Steve as he hosts The Cannabis Show on KMUD Community Radio. The show airs every Monday from 5 to 6 PM Pacific, and it is archived at kmud.org.
Photo credit: Steve Dodge
