GCNC World View: The Global Cannabis Business Podcast

GCNC

Stories about the people, businesses, and countries changing the global cannabis footprint. Join us for each episode as we talk to executives and people influencing the decisions worldwide, making the cannabis industry possible.

  1. 1d ago

    Decoding the Plant: The Science Behind Cannabis Genetics | The Cultivator's Edge

    Strong genetics are the foundation of everything downstream, from medicinal and recreational products to industrial uses like textiles and building materials. In this episode of The Cultivator's Edge, host Tim Gordonsits down with two leading voices in cannabis genetics, Dr. Anna Schwabe and Dr. Alicia Holloway, to unpack what genotype and phenotype actually mean for growers and consumers, why the industry's obsession with high THC may be doing consumers a disservice, and what it will take to breed for quality instead of just potency. Panelists: • Dr. Anna Schwabe, PhD in Cannabis Population Genetics; Zenetics (tissue culture) and Founder of TrueCut (genetic verification & provenance) • Dr. Alicia Holloway, PhD in Evolutionary Biology; Phylos (F1 hybrid seed genetics and rare cannabinoid breeding) 3 top takeaways: 1. High THC isn't a proxy for quality, and the industry created that expectation: Cultivators and C-suites chased THC percentage and yield because it commanded higher prices, training consumers to equate potency with quality. In blind sensory tests, regular cannabis users actually preferred a balanced 1:1 THC:CBD variety over 30% THC options, suggesting the market may be ready for more diversity than it's being offered. 2. Marker-assisted selection lets breeders screen for traits before committing resources: By genotyping large plant populations and correlating DNA markers with measured traits (like "washability" for live rosin), breeders can identify likely winners early, growing only the plants worth taking to maturity instead of raising an entire population to find a few good ones. 3. Genetic verification is becoming essential infrastructure, not a nice-to-have: With strain mislabeling, piracy, and hop latent viroid all threatening product integrity and yield, verified provenance, tissue culture "cleanup" of infected mother stock, and genetic banking are emerging as critical safeguards, both for protecting a cultivator's IP and for ensuring consumers get what's actually on the label. The conversation also digs into how environmental "terroir" (growing medium, watering regime, harvest timing, even curing conditions) shapes a plant's final chemistry regardless of genotype, the case for F1 hybrid seed as an alternative to maintaining mother rooms, and why rare cannabinoids and a fuller terpene/ester profile may matter more to the consumer experience than THC alone. Part of The Cultivator's Edge, a GCNC WorldView content series.

  2. Sep 30

    Contamination, Compliance & the Cost of Getting It Wrong | GCNC's The Cultivator's Edge

    A failed test at the finish line can wipe out an entire harvest, and pathogens don't always show symptoms until it's too late to save the crop. In this episode of The Cultivator's Edge, host Tim Gordon talks with Jill Ellsworth, Founder & CEO of Willow Industries, and Melanie Nash, CEO of Tumi Genomics, about building pathogen prevention into cultivation as a proactive process, not an emergency fix. Panelists: Jill Ellsworth, Founder & CEO, Willow Industries (ozone decontamination and biomass infusion technology)Melanie Nash, CEO, Tumi Genomics (pathogen diagnostics and rapid on-site testing)3 top takeaways: Decontamination is insurance, not a rescue plan. Willow's technology was built as a "kill step" positioned at the very end of production, right before testing and packaging, to catch mold, yeast, bacteria, and more without meaningfully degrading cannabinoids or terpenes, so a crop that's already been fully invested in doesn't get lost at the finish line.Most pathogens enter through genetics, and testing once isn't enough. New genetics should be quarantined and tested at least two to three times over a couple of weeks, since threats like hop latent viroid can test negative early and still turn up positive later.Speed changes what's possible. Tumi's on-site testing tool delivers lab-grade, PCR-equivalent results in about 90 minutes with no lab training required, letting cultivators make same-day decisions about which plants to clone or cull instead of waiting days for results.The conversation also covers why fusarium may be an even bigger threat than hop latent viroid (its spores can survive extreme conditions and hide out in HVAC systems), the real difference between legitimate technology and DIY workarounds (from off-the-shelf ozone generators to homemade infusion rigs), and what's coming next: next-generation sequencing for full pathogen panels, AI-powered colony counting, and expanded fusarium testing on the horizon. Part of The Cultivator's Edge, a GCNC WorldView content series.

  3. Sep 23

    Smarter Light: Data, AI & the Future of the Grow | GCNC's The Cultivator's Edge

    Lighting is often the last thing cultivators budget for, and one of the biggest levers for profitability. In this episode of The Cultivator's Edge, host Tim Gordon talks with Mikail Segal, CEO of TSR Grow, and Zach Taylor, Head of Cultivation at Bountiful Farms, about how centralized, data-driven lighting is changing what's possible in commercial cultivation, from cutting energy costs to boosting rosin yield.Panelists:- Mikail Segal, CEO, TSR Grow- Zach Taylor, Head of Cultivation, Bountiful Farms3 top takeaways:1. Crop-steer your lighting like you crop-steer fertigation: By centralizing drivers and ballasts away from the fixtures, TSR Grow's platform lets cultivators build and repeat precise lighting "recipes" for each strain, rather than applying one law-of-averages setting across an entire room.2. The right spectrum can move the needle on your most valuable metric: Zach shares that under-canopy lighting boosted plant mass while cutting labor hours, and dialing in far-red spectrum pushed rosin yield up as much as 1%, a small-sounding number with outsized ROI at commercial scale.3. AI is a tool, not a decision-maker: Both guests are clear that AI is powerful for spotting patterns, compiling data, and reducing risk (like auto-dimming lights when HVAC systems are stressed), but the "art" of cultivation, and the final call, still belongs to the grower.The conversation also digs into why lighting, HVAC, and fertigation all need to "talk" to each other for a system to actually work, how tightening margins are forcing cultivators to optimize for efficiency rather than just maximum production, and why building a data-backed growing "recipe" is becoming essential as global compliance standards like GACP demand documented consistency.Part of The Cultivator's Edge, a GCNC WorldView content series.

  4. Sep 17

    Minor Cannabinoids & the Pharma Frontier | GCNC's The Cultivator's Edge

    THC and CBD built the cannabis industry, but the real frontier might be everything else in the plant. In this episode of The Cultivator's Edge, we examine the race to unlock CBG, CBC, and THCV for pharmaceutical use, and why THC might be the one thing standing in the way. Panelists: Gustavo Escobar, CEO, Clever LeavesNisha Whiteley, COO, Credo Science3 top takeaways: Non-psychoactive cannabinoids open doors THC keeps shut, especially in pharmaceutical markets like Brazil and Europe.Supply is still the industry's biggest bottleneck, and it's harder to solve than you'd think.High THC was never a quality signal. The industry taught the market to believe it was, and it's time to unlearn it.Also inside: Colombia's brutal genetics import gauntlet, an ALS drug in active development, and why real pharmaceutical-grade cannabis is a decade-long bet few are willing to make. Part of The Cultivator's Edge, a GCNC WorldView content series.

  5. Sep 10

    Scaling Without Breaking | GCNC's The Cultivator's Edge

    Scaling a cannabis operation internationally is easy to get wrong — and expensive to fix once it breaks. In this episode of The Cultivator's Edge, hosts Wally Daniel and Tim Gordon sit down with Cory Drippon (Garden Gems Drop N Grow) and Ash Ganley (Cannabis Global Consultants) to talk through what actually holds up when cultivation operations grow from one room to many. 3 top takeaways: 1) Scale in modular units, not undifferentiated space. Instead of treating a large facility as one big domain, build it from repeatable, self-contained units (like standardized 16-light rooms) using identical equipment and digitized SOPs that replicate cleanly room to room. 2) Updating craft experience with repeatable process. Oral history and artisanal methods don't scale. Data-driven, professional SOPs keep quality consistent even when training local talent with no prior cannabis experience. 3) Size your HVAC and dehumidification for the plant load — and keep humans out of the room. Properly sized environmental systems and minimized human interaction are two of the most effective safeguards against microbial risk as you grow. The conversation also digs into the real difference between GACP (cultivation) and EU-GMP (post-harvest processing); why they demand fundamentally different infrastructure, hygiene protocols, and business models; and, where the panel sees the industry heading next, as advanced environmental control tech gets applied beyond cannabis to other high-value medicinal and nutraceutical plants. Part of The Cultivator's Edge, a GCNC WorldView content series.

    Scaling Without Breaking | GCNC's The Cultivator's Edge

  6. Sep 10

    Million-Dollar Mistakes: What Every Cultivator Should Avoid | GCNC's The Cultivator's Edge

    The economics of cannabis cultivation keep shifting, and last year's smart decision can quietly become this year's costly mistake. In this episode of The Cultivator's Edge (GCNC WorldView), host Tim Gordon and a panel of cultivation experts break down the real, often expensive lessons learned building and scaling facilities — from HVAC and financial modeling to genetics, AI, and surviving price compression.Panelists:Wally Daniel, Green Garden ConsultingDaniel Craveiro, Camaraderie TechnologyGabriel Londono, Harbor House Collective3 Top Takeaways:1) Match your systems to your actual goal: Size your HVAC, controls, and infrastructure to your real end product — under- or over-building both lead to expensive do-overs.2) Don't let data lag blind your decisions: Slow feedback loops mean you're planting your next crops "blindly" before you've learned from the last one.3) Review your P&L with the whole team. Getting owners, investors, and staff in the same room surfaces the unused subscriptions and unnecessary costs nobody's watching.Part of The Cultivator's Edge, a GCNC WorldView content series.

  7. Apr 28

    GCNC WorldView: Boveda Launches Vivi Rebrand

    How do you evolve an industry icon? In this episode of GCNC WorldView, we go behind the scenes with Emily Standbrook and Kate Holste to explore the strategic transformation of Boveda’s cannabis line into its new identity: Vivi. In this episode: -- Sales & Marketing Handshake: A rebrand lives or dies by the alignment of these two departments. TK and YK explain how they bridged the gap between creative vision and bottom-line reality to ensure Vivi hit the shelves with momentum. -- Re-Education: Strategies for pivoting a loyal audience toward a new brand identity without losing legacy trust. -- Global Playbooks: Navigating the complexities of brand presence across diverse international markets and shifting regulations.

  8. Feb 11

    Cannabis By The Numbers: What Progress Is Cannabis Making... And What Are We Doing About It?

    Welcome the GCNC Worldview’s Cannabis By The Numbers podcast series: in partnership with Whitney Economics and Verdant Strategies: two leading international cannabis business consultancies.In this final episode, the trio have a frank and insightful discussion about the current US and international cannabis markets, pondering what rescheduling means, and what the knock on effects will be.Tune in to hear more about: How regulators need to step upThe challenges facing US cannabis operators in a national and international marketplace Why some operators are discussing acquisition ahead of reschedulingStandardisation and quality control#podcast #cannabis #business #economics #finance #hemp

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Stories about the people, businesses, and countries changing the global cannabis footprint. Join us for each episode as we talk to executives and people influencing the decisions worldwide, making the cannabis industry possible.

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