Farmers who grow marijuana for Colorado's legal market are running into problems as they try to control mildew and pests. Because of the plant's illegal status at the federal level, a main source of agricultural guidance isn't available to pot farmers.

Attempts to regulate marijuana production often hit another problem, as the plant's wide range of uses sets it apart from many traditional food crops.

"You don't smoke tomatoes, you don't smoke grapes," John Scott of Colorado's Department of Agriculture tells the AP. "You don't extract those into oil products that'll be either used through dermal products, through lotions, or infused into other foods."

Discussion of marijuana in the public space has come a long way since Bill Clinton famously claimed he didn't inhale in 1992. We've even come quite a way since Barack Obama said he definitely inhaled because, "That was the whole point," before saying in the same breath that he'd made a lot of mistakes in his youth. The moment that Rand Paul, Cory Booker, and Kirsten Gillibrand introduced the CARERS Act in the U.S. Senate, marijuana and its legal status was catapulted from a state to a national stage. In fact, Paul's widely publicized campaign for president -- including fundraising during the National Cannabis Industry Association conference in Denver -- is one of the many factors that will make marijuana legalization a front-and-center issue in the 2016 Presidential race.

Marijuana’s prolonged illegal status continues to impede on the growth of the industry, even in states that have already legalized pot for recreational use, such as Washington and Colorado. Due to a lack of reliable research on the cultivation of marijuana crops, growers are struggling with which pesticides, fungicides, or herbicides to use without compromising the safety of a product many Americans use.

Any Italian will tell you: pasta is healthy and makes you feel good. But what about spaghetti made from cannabis?

Farmers from southern Italy presenting their wares at a London food festival this week say their hemp pasta, oil and bread won't get you high, but do provide a healthy, tasty alternative to the traditional, wheat variety.

"Hemp food is truly organic," said Marzio Ilario Fiore, 30, whose farm in the Molise region produces hemp oil and flour. "Hemp requires no pesticides, no fertilizers, and only moderate amounts of water." Cannabis is most often associated with the psychoactive effects of marijuana, but some strains of the plant can also be cultivated for food.

Humans are lazy thinkers. Although the brain comprises only about 2.5 percent of our body weight, it generally uses 20 percent of the body’s energy. That’s why the human learning machine prefers to operate in a low gear—on autopilot—as much as possible: It’s a conservation thing. As Nobel laureate and behavioral economist Daniel Kahneman puts it, “Laziness is built deep into our nature.” So (your slothful brain is probably thinking) what’s wrong with that? Well, the big problem is that business has taken the “laziness model”—aka operational excellence—as far as it can go.

BALTIMORE — A state panel charged with regulating Maryland's new medical-marijuana industry announced an agreement Tuesday for Towson University to serve as a consultant on applications from entities seeking licenses as cannabis growers, processors and dispensers.

In its agreement with the Natalie M. LaPrade Maryland Medical Cannabis Commission, Towson's Regional Economic Studies Institute, or RESI, will provide oversight in developing applications and assist in managing applicant evaluations, according to a news release issued by the commission.

The panel anticipates that applications and instructions for prospective growers, processors and dispensers will be available on its website in September.

IVXX continues to expand California presence

Conventional pesticides used to protect crops could pose a health threat if used to safeguard cannabis crops, experts have warned.

Part of the problem is the gradual industrialisation of cannabis cultivation. When it was grown illegally in small quantities, bug infestation was a nuisance which had to be dealt with.

But with the crop moving from the basement to massive greenhouses, the financial consequences are potentially catastrophic.

Like any other crop, marijuana is vulnerable to bugs and mildew, but because it is smoked, at least one commercial fungicide is known to be dangerous when heated.

It is difficult to pick up a major business publication today without reading about venture capitalists (VCs, defined as professionally-managed VC limited partnerships that invest in early-stage ventures), about their skills in finding great investment opportunities, and about the ventures they fund. And lately in states like Minnesota, it is also about how they can create jobs if the governor would speak favorably about the need for VC and offer some state pension money for them to invest. And since we all like to talk about our successes, the stories are about how entrepreneurs secured VC and soared to wealth in a very short time via an IPO or a strategic sale.

Investors and financial institutions have shown great interest for publicly traded cannabis companies, but many are afraid to invest in them because most trade on the over-the-counter (OTC) exchange. The OTC exchange, also known as the Pink Sheets, is comprised of startups, defunct public shell companies, scams, and a few good companies.

There are more than 300 publicly traded cannabis companies, but only a few trade on an exchange regulated by the SEC. The cannabis stocks that trade on a national exchange have outperformed the market during 2015 and we attribute some of this growth to the lack of investment opportunities available for investors and institutions. The cannabis related companies that trade on a national exchange include, but are not limited to the following: