Regenerative Cannabis Farming

Why Regenerative FARMING?

Regenerative farming is more than sustainable — it helps sequester carbon and bring our soil back to life, creating healthy crops and healing the earth. This pioneering farming approach can help put carbon back into our soils, making for a balanced planet and healthy food.

While industrial agriculture has played a role in increasing global heating and destroying our once prosperous farming communities, organic regenerative farming, especially on small-scale farms, can reverse this damage, revitalizing the soil. In states where all cannabis is legal, the indoor cannabis cultivation industry is one of the worst carbon polluters, requiring massive energy use calculated to be 200 times more energy-intensive than a typical office building. We deserve better.

New York State must take seriously its commitment to reducing carbon emissions and any new law authorizing the growing of a new crop should include the provisions of the Carbon Farming Act. Particularly for indoor cultivation, one of the most energy intensive industries in the nation, the State should require that all fossil-fuel generated energy be seriously reduced and offset 100% with renewables.

CLIMATE FRIENDLY FARMING IN NEW YORK

Just because industrial agriculture is the way many farmers have always farmed, it doesn’t mean it’s the only way. Now, thanks to some amazing farmers here in New York, including our own founding member Ben Dobson, we are beginning to see new ways, including practices that help counter the serious effects of climate change.

As this new crop being grown legally for the first time in 100 years, cannabis sativa is the perfect plant to begin with. No farmers have to change their farming methods — they just need to grow right from the start. This excellent article from Grist goes into detail everyone should know about the link between how we farm and how our planet reacts.

THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN REGENERATIVE AND ORGANIC FARMING

At this point, we all know what Organic means and we’re used to seeing the USDA logo with it familiar green label on products everywhere. So what is regenerative and how is it different from organic?

According to the farmers who are now putting these methods into practice, Regenerative farming is “the result of a fundamentally different understanding of the way plants grow.” The emphasis on soil health, tilling, diversity, rotation and cover crops, water management, monitored use of livestock and fertilizers, and more. If you want to know more, we recommend checking out this fantastic video made right here in the beautiful Hudson Valley.