Real Estate Show Southern Oregon Hemp Co-op

Real Estate Show Southern Oregon Hemp Co-op

Full Video Transcript Below

[00:00:00] Alice Lema: Well, good morning, Southern Oregon. And welcome back to the real estate show. I am Alice Lema. I'm a broker here in beautiful Southern Oregon, with John L. Scott real estate. So happy to have you join me again for another edition of the real estate show today. We're going to be talking to the founder and president of the Southern Oregon hemp co-op Mark Taylor. We like to have him on every so often to bring us updates and bring us up to speed about what's going on in the local. Industry. And, you know, there's been a lot of, a lot of changes with the laws. There's been some, some run-ins with the different county agencies. We have water going on and, you know, farming in general is not always the easiest in Denver, but Mark's in the thick of it.

[00:00:58] And he's going to kind of bring us up to speed about everything hemp that's going on in Southern Oregon and also noteworthy Southern Oregon hemp is award-winning. And there's also a lot of medical benefits that come from that, a hemp product, the CBD oil, and there's there's new, new things going on with the science of all that.

[00:01:18] So Mark Taylor, Southern Oregon hemp co-op will be joining us today. Cannot wait to hear all that. He wants to bring us up to speed on speaking of bringing up to speed, the local housing market is still chugging along. Then it's been kind of a bumpy week. The world events are starting to weigh heavy on the economy's definitely overseas.

[00:01:42] There's nervousness over here. And then in Southern Oregon, we still have people that need to move. With all of this going on, it is starting to affect the local market. The interest rates are definitely up. There may be more interest rates between now and June. We'll have to see, I know the feds make the predictions and sometimes they follow through and sometimes they don't.

[00:02:03] But. There's enough changes going on right now that they're starting to readjust the predictions for spring and summer housing markets in 2022. Now, what that means is over the next few weeks, we're going to be talking about what might be different. Because if the prices start going up again, we need to change our strategy, whether we're buying or selling.

[00:02:26] If the inventory, the supply of houses continues to go up, we need to change our strategy, whether we're buying or selling. So we want to keep an eye on all those reports. We'll be bringing them to you every week. It's why we have a weekly show here in Southern Oregon so that you can be good consumers and fully informed.

[00:02:43] So with that said, we do need to take a quick break before we start our interview with Mark Taylor of Southern Oregon hemp. Co-op. We're brought to you by John L. Scott, Ashland and Medford. We're brought to you also by Guy Giles of mutual of Omaha mortgage and our local real estate association, the rogue valley association of realtors. Thank you so much, everybody for sponsoring us. We'll be right back.

[00:03:09] Well, welcome back to the real estate show. Everybody I'm Alice Lema, broker John L. Scott here in beautiful Southern Oregon, and so excited to get, to get caught up with Mark Taylor of the Southern Oregon hemp cooperative. Welcome back, Mark. We haven't talked to you in forever. How are you doing?

[00:03:29] Mark Taylor: Doing real well, Alice. Always really appreciate being on here.

[00:03:33] Alice Lema: Well, you always you know, you've got your finger on the pulse of all things happening locally. So why don't you just, I mean, we haven't been able to really chat since COVID I think, how did things work out for you and the other farmers with that.

[00:03:50] Mark Taylor: Oh, they were I think they were demented. It was a challenge. I don't think any business escaped the drags of a COVID and you know, we're, we're part of the market, agricultural market. And I don't care if it's trucking supply chain issues. It was just really you know, the market retracted and, and on top of all the other things that hemp farmers face from legislative issues.

[00:04:14] Through the weather to the general challenges that we went through with COVID and we're still not quite out of COVID, others are some positive indications on the horizon, but I really felt for our farmers and I guess that's why I'm a. One of the members here of the co-op. I hope I can help.

[00:04:29] Alice Lema: Yeah. Yeah. Well, you are super active with all those folks. So now that we're like, sort of have COVID behind us, or at least we learned how to deal with it. A lot of the marketing has changed and the world is certainly different. I don't even know where to start except how, how are the farms going?

[00:04:52] Mark Taylor: Well, can I answer that question and maybe kind of a long, cut me off, but let me get you kind of an update on what I believe and where we're at in the hemp market today. At least in Oregon we have several large issues that I think the government or local government and the administrative authority code enforcement would I don't know if they'd appreciate it, because I have a kind of a negative view of our government and how they have attacked the hemp farmers and those at least the land, especially the elderly.

[00:05:21] Well, that being said, we've really have hurt a number of farmers. And I say we I, in the past, I've never had a builder as you know, Alice and cosmically. I've never had any problem with code enforcement, but our farmers, they, especially those lease the land or rent to a, another farm, maybe that farm, isn't a totally above board, that person isn't.

[00:05:42] And I I'd like to use your format to warn those that would like to lease or rent their property out to be very, be aware, be very aware of the huge punitive penalties that government is imposing. And I, in no way, I think it should be education first. And I gotta say I know there's many, many good people that work in the bureaus at our local governments.

[00:06:05] And they mean well, but this heavy handedness where they've got the state police coming out, many of the people Alice, that lease their farms are elderly people by just the the basis that they own their, they own their land and they've retired now. But they're looking for an income. And what happens, especially if we look at the cartels and there are number of cartels operating here apparently in the valley.

[00:06:31] And I think that's been proven. They send a person that's very polished to an elderly person, a strongman, I guess you could say. And that person does have a substantial amount of money in relation to what you could rent the property for, for hay or cattle. And elder people say, gosh, you know, a gift to help supplement my retirement that is down.

[00:06:51] And I know of two particular farms that have a really a horrible fines laid upon them. And this is kind of what I'm forming my viewpoints are upon. And so the person takes that money. And they are and the two case of there are at least 77 to 80 years old. One's a single lady that owns some property in Ashland, and the other one owns some property in the Eagle point area.

[00:07:14] And the next thing, you know, code enforcement showed up and one of the farms got levied a $300,000 fine. These people were going through health problems. So of course they needed the money. One, the wife had cancer. I know that she was a survivor. Thank goodness. And the other and the husband went through a heart operation major for four bypasses during the leasing where these four other, these people were leasing the property.

[00:07:37] My point is these folks had no way to review what the farmer was doing as far as electrical code and as far as building code Alice. So it was a gotcha moment for them because I don't, I don't resent anybody that arrives at 80 years old and has a beautiful home. I think this was a 90 acre ranch, and I believe that the government is going after certain people that have the means, they believe have the means to pay those kind of exorbitant fines.

[00:08:06] And so if that, if that message resonates with any of your viewers and I hope it does, if you're considering renting your property, leasing your land to a potential you know, A farmer who wants to utilize your, your fine property here in the rogue valley, be aware.

[00:08:23] So I don't know if you have any comments on that or have you heard of what's happening to, you know, some people they get caught literally not knowing, you know, it is ignorance. You should become more informed as a land owner, but the government, if you live here in the rogue valley, I've asked both the DEQ when it comes to how to dispose of the hemp that goes hot.

[00:08:45] This was a couple of years ago, but I've reached out to government and and I'm just wondering why they couldn't do PSA's and work with local people. These are people that are not criminals. These are people that just own some property and wants some extra income and don't know the laws. And and there is some confusion out there because even law enforcement will make that statement that they can't tell the difference between hemp and marijuana.

[00:09:08] So you can imagine an 80 year old person going through health problems. How are, how are they going to know what a farmer and these are large ranches. So there's sometimes a half a mile, a quarter mile away. They can't bring their scooter chair down there and monitor all this. And by the way, both of these parties use professionals, attorneys to write up contract agreements. And so, yeah, it wasn't like they were trying to you know, circumvent any of the laws. So it's already happened to those folks. I don't know how it will work out, but I really appreciate your format to tell other folks don't endure this kind of pain. Be very aware.

[00:09:45] And and either be able to almost, I can say this either be able to go down and monitor and know a little bit about code, which is I'm a builder and sometimes code enforcement on structures will take an hour, hour and a half to look at everything. So I can't imagine how the elderly are going to get educated, to understand what all the codes are.

[00:10:06] It can be done. I'm not saying that, but I sure would appreciate it if a code enforcement would reach out to organizations such as the Southern Oregon hemp, co-op the OHF area, which is the Oregon industrial hemp farmers association. And and we, we, we're glad that you hold media so they can share this information with our local community and those who would appreciate legal operators and and not get hit, thus, maybe not get hit with such exorbitant fines that they can't pay.

[00:10:33] Alice Lema: Well, and that's kind of, the problem is we do have a good people operating correctly and you know, everybody's kind of getting caught in the same net. So the the, the raids, if you will, in the code enforcement, are they going after hemp people or cannabis?

[00:10:51] Mark Taylor: Well, they're going after a hemp people initially. And and there lies the problem. Those that are leasing there, there are, now remember we are the Southern Oregon hemp co-op. So all's, I'm aware of is as hemp farms and we did not have any marijuana members but you, in our past. Podcasts that we've done, we spoke about some of the confusion between the Delta nine, the limit that it defines hemp and what then breaches over and is called marijuana, the cousin plant of the hemp plant.

[00:11:24] And sometimes I think once again, as you know, Alice, we as good professional farmers, I'll get a C strain. And it becomes marijuana and the government is already, or the OTA is already really harsh even within that limit. It's it's pretty much that you you know, have to dispose of it.

[00:11:43] It's not usable. And thus a farmer loses. Loses, maybe half of his crop, because some seed strains will go hot. The what, what the the, the local code enforcement and ODA and Jackson and Josephine county, they're saying this problem is really severe, probably because we're close to the California border.

[00:12:01] And when I say severe, I'm talking about malcontents, those that want to operate illegally coming up. And I hope this answers your question coming up and making a presentation to whoever owns their farm. But many times they are elderly. And they'll say, Hey, we'll offer you this much money, which sounds great to the land owner.

[00:12:18] And they take it. And their intent all along more than likely is to reach over and grow marijuana. Although they're telling the they're telling the the landowner that they're growing hemp. that's a, really a tough, because, because like this one gentleman, he wouldn't know, you know, a pie, a pine cone from Tricom and consequently, their that's not their business.

[00:12:43] They just, and a lot of elderly people are trusting. That's why that's why there's elder abuse laws when it comes to renting and them writing contracts with them. And I wish code enforcement would understand that. And by the way, folks code enforcement is so strong that they have totally eliminated strong in their, in their enforcement that they've eliminated your ability to go to a jury trial. You're not entitled to that under code enforcements. They have the, and they do, they have the judge, just a few doors down. They they referenced the fine, you will more than likely pay that fine.

[00:13:20] I don't know anybody or any way to get out. So that's too heavy-handed I did not know in Oregon, that code enforcement really could could bypass that constitutional right of a trial by jury. Because that is one of our great freedoms, but, and especially when the fines are so high, it breaches over from just code enforcement. Like generally, if we do something wrong in the building, we'll get a $500 fine something isn't corrected and, and I've always corrected any problems.

[00:13:49] I can't imagine a good builder not, but you get my point $300,000. That's that's just a little bit like almost taking the person's farm away from them. Egregious fines as far as I'm concerned and not on par with the crime or with the, they don't even call it a crime, they just call it a you know, a code violation.

[00:14:08] So anyway, it's been a, it's been scary for for our industry and, and rightfully so it should be because it's it's something that could literally, you could lose your farm if if you're not careful.

[00:14:21] Alice Lema: Well, and I'm wondering if there are you know, when these violations are reviewed, if the fact that the, the owners were elderly and maybe they were under a misrepresentation situation, if that will play into it at all. And, and hopefully things will work out better for them.

[00:14:40] Mark Taylor: Yeah, I hope so. The attorneys that were good notable attorneys, I know both of them. And it really revealed to me that not even the attorneys know what is happening within hemp law. And we're probably a little bit naive on some of the once again, the bad players that are coming across the border and coming up to our region to try to operate in the world's greatest place in the whole face of the earth to grow hemp.

[00:15:05] And they understand that. Sadly enough. When I say hemp they do a plan on breaching our laws and and the other thing that code enforcement doesn't do real quickly, Alice's they don't chase down the perps. In this case, one of the principal law enforcement officers told this one elderly gentleman, the reason we turn the sirens on and and come in you know, guns, ablazing, so to speak is a scare off all of the migrant farmers because that imbues too great of a response financial responsibility, on the county workforce, if they have COVID or if they have any health problems and just the documentation required, if they're illegal to send them back.

[00:15:43] Alice Lema: Oh my goodness. Well, we've got a quick break coming up. Folks. We're having a really interesting update with Mark Taylor southern Oregon hemp cooperative. Looks like he's the hemp castor now, and you don't want to miss another minute. We'll be right back after a quick word from our sponsors.

[00:16:00] Well, welcome back to the real estate show folks. Alice Lema here, broker John L. Scott, having a super, super informative conversation with Mark Taylor, Southern Oregon hemp co-op and right before the break, Mark and sorry that we had to like get through that so quickly, but we have sponsors and we were just wrapping up how how hard it is on some of the land owners, especially the elderly ones that didn't quite understand, you know, kind of the misrepresentation of some of the people that wanted to lease their property. And now they're now they're in a world of hurt with code enforced.

[00:16:31] Mark Taylor: Yes. And I think I was, we were talking at the break that it's a good idea to reach out to your co-op so the Oregon hemp co-op, I sure can help now armed with the knowledge of what's happened this past year. And some of the hurt that I've seen firsthand are I'm very clear to not offer legal advice, but to make sure I cover the points that I think that people want to hear and how to, how to underwrite a lease safely and and properly.

[00:16:55] And and give them give them direction to maybe go to the Oregon industrial hemp farmers association because Courtney is an attorney as well as Greenlight law group. So yeah, by all means, I want to direct people to the to the right folks that can avoid having them experience the same thing that a couple of our our local farmers experience that was extreme fines as we were talking in the previous segment. And really some really some heartache. And and as I say, really hard to get out of because code enforcement is so so limiting as to what your options are and you basically have to pay the fine.

[00:17:28] So, and then. Talking about Senate bill 1564, that I have a lot of information on because that is the bill that affects new farmers and those let their license lapse, Senate bill 50 and 64 is my understanding passed. It looks like it'll be Jackson and Josephine county that enforces that provision because for all the ethics I've heard, they believe that we were really experiencing a lot of unlawful activity with some of the some of the bad players that would come across the the border and approach people and take advantage of them and then convert to marijuana.

[00:18:04] And so all indications are that Jackson, Josephine county are going to enforce the moratorium limits of Senate bill 1564, which includes for those farmers that are concurrently a farm because they had last year a license at a license last year, they have to farm on the same footprint as they farm last year.

[00:18:23] And of course, I believe that. Yeah, I believe that's bad.

[00:18:27] Alice Lema: That's really hard on the soil, isn't it?

[00:18:29] Mark Taylor: It is. It is. And I, I was reached out to, by of course there was many farmers that know much more than me. They are the, the hands-on folks and many of these farmers, even in our valley. And we have a number of members from Northern California and Eastern Oregon.

[00:18:45] They're fifth and sixth generation farmers out. So they really know that to be true. And they were really quite irate that the ODA, no, it didn't consider good farming practices. And what that means as far as crop rotation and not after two years, I believe it is three years. You're supposed to rotate, move your crop.

[00:19:03] And and this actually helps the soil kind of cure and heal. And then you go back again, crop rotation. And so, and, and to that note, kind of a tie in is that the ODA invited as sent out a request for professionals and and farmers to be on the new hemp board here in Oregon. And I, I, for one just very disappointed with the ODA, we submitted people like Courtney Moran and Matt Cyrus from Eastern Oregon farmer's association, amongst many others that I probably shouldn't have named those two because they're all equal and in knowledge and and really have passion for the hemp industry.

[00:19:43] And out of all of those people, I think 15 or 20 some of them here with the co-op only one was chosen. And from my understanding, I'm going to sound biased, but from my understanding of the rest of the appointees were all bureaucrats people that that were in government in some form or another.

[00:20:01] And I just think that that's a very inefficient, I know that government didn't themselves they'll find it to be true., They did themselves a disfavor because our farmers and our business professionals are for equitable, good legal growing in the greatest, you know, the hemp capital of the world Southern Oregon.

[00:20:19] And then again, why would you have a moratorium on hemp in Oregon? At least some counties are going to enforce that. And then you have to have other states Idaho, as you probably heard, opened up the hemp production this past year. So if we have that designation, which we do, have the greatest growing hemp environment in the whole world, why would you want to degrade that and limit Ariel ship and the growth of this you know, very much a commerce sector that we can use in the rogue valley.

[00:20:50] I don't know if people are aware how much money that hemp pumps into this valley, but it's the form of everything from materials to soil, to pipe, to rock, to building material, to supporting stores and hardware. So we we felt like ODA made a rash decision. And the reason real quick to people ask, well, why the moratorium? It wasn't so much of the, the oversupplied, because note that our, our farmers pretty much had to handle that brutal fact is that we did oversupply and by the, our own ODA numbers we reduced capacity or growth by about 80%.

[00:21:28] So we're down 20% in numbers, but the reason that ODA did it was they want to hire more policemen and more enforcement in the coming years. And now that we're down 80%, I really don't, I really don't see the the reasoning behind that, because all it will do is increase costs. You know, fees are going to go up to pay for that.

[00:21:47] And you know what they're doing is driving small business, out of the hemp industry.

[00:21:53] Alice Lema: So if it becomes too burdensome to be in that business, then are you saying that it's, it's this the little guy's going to get kind of elbowed out and it's going to just be kind of the more institutional farmers.

[00:22:05] Mark Taylor: Yes, I am. I'm saying that this is clear and I can say it is that if you follow any industry, I don't care if it was tobacco or cotton or even our oil industry, the turn of the century or the auto industry, the turn of the century, there was most of the, most of our burgeoning industries, including farm and agricultural were controlled by small business. And after so long, Primarily the nature of commerce, but a large business has the capital and now they're really the ATM's and the Pfizers and and I found out Nestle is now into it.

[00:22:36] Alice Lema: Oh, is that right?

[00:22:37] Mark Taylor: Yeah. Yeah. It just came from a pretty reliable source. That Nestle is, I don't know if they have farms as of yet, but they're putting out information that they're going to start putting it into their, into their you know, retail products. And that's really going to be hard, you know? I went on a local radio talk show.

[00:22:53] I got to add this in. And I talked about the poor farmer. They got hit by the fines. I thought it would be 100% Alice that our local community would support the I'm not saying that everybody, that that's an elderly as naive and don't understand, but I can only refer to these two cases and the calls are actually about 30% in favor of the government.

[00:23:15] More regulation. These hemp farmers are out there to showing our valley and its appearance, these hoop houses and and there's some negative that I'd like to speak to that real quickly. But it was really harsh and so much as. You know, if you look at anything in the valley, whether it's building happened after the fire was what they've done out there in the Phoenix, Talent area, those government looking trailers up all the same color, all talk about devaluing it and hurting their real estate business.

[00:23:43] I feel no one wants to live next to that. That was just really a fast and furious plan. That's no good. Undoubtedly, since hemp was legalized here in Oregon there has been a fast and furious kind of idiom in this whole growth. And I would agree with a more stronger structures on the hoop houses, clean cleanup policy, things that could be addressed with just simple ethics and laws.

[00:24:06] And and, and I asked rogue valley residents to give us some time. This is kind of the third year of of growth in the hemp, I guess it's going on the fourth year. And right now the good news is the farmers may many, a mom and pop farmers to overcome the overcapacity, the water, the poor water year, or the legislative issues.

[00:24:25] We have moved into making some of the finest products, oils, creams, doggy treats, hair care products. If, if the valley residents would realize that we, as small businesses could turn into job producers and make something that has efficacy for the body, helpful. If in other words, the hemp farmer doesn't do everything right.

[00:24:47] We don't do everything right. But we mean to, we are lovers of the land. We've made some mistakes, but I think through once again, the Southern Oregon hemp co-op and having community meetings, we would like to get better, but of all things, we've got the government on our backs away.

[00:25:01] It is we need the support of the community and with the support of the community. We will turn this into family wage jobs and and produce some really fine retail oils and products at the CBD, from the hemp plant can, can help us help us in our health too.

[00:25:18] Alice Lema: Well, and it's very mainstream now. It's, it's in the local drug stores, the creams and the salves. People are giving it to their pets. People are using it. The blood pressure, glaucoma thing. So it very quickly was adopted by mainstream and is so commonplace now. You know, I guess it's a little surprising that the industry is still, you know, getting kind of beat up, so to speak.

[00:25:48] Mark Taylor: Yeah, we're really getting beat up, not just oversupply, but it was a bad water year, as you know, and then, then there was that horrible water year and we still have the mites and the little, all the little things that the farmers have to fight from nature.

[00:26:01] And then now more legislation again, you know folks, if you want to establish an industry, if you don't like our industry, then we're not going to make it, cause we're already fighting. And I'm talking directly to the Rogue Valley residents. But once again, if you'll just give us a foothold, who do you want to buy your products from?

[00:26:17] You always want to go to Walmart and buy your products. That's up to you, but I'd love to see small farms be able to do, help with their mortgage payments or their expenses, and be able to develop a little retail online stores for this fine, fine CBD oils that has been proven to be so helpful to our bodies.

[00:26:35] You, you heard what Oregon state university study came out with the fact that now CBD and CBG specifically the, a element of our plant as they have been deemed to be a COVID blocker. Did you hear that news?

[00:26:50] Alice Lema: No, I did not. That's incredible.

[00:26:52] Mark Taylor: That's from Oregon state university. So naturally we want some help from the FDA to be able to list that on our packaging, that it is a immune support system for COVID and this was a PhD study.

[00:27:04] And so that that's really going to help many of our farmers that produce the CBGA and the CBD a elements of the plant.

[00:27:12] Alice Lema: Wow. So how is that effort going with the FDA?

[00:27:17] Mark Taylor: Well, that was a, that was a prior bill, the Senate bill 1564. I think that was a statutes within the ODA and the package and the mixing and the formulations did not come out to the farm to the farmers favor. And I say this once again, with that bent in mind that large corporations can underwrite anything with labeling. They've got attorneys they know how to do it to to protect themselves. And I understand as you do Alice, that there has to be rules and regulations to how you represent your product.

[00:27:46] But once again, I can just tell you. Our farmers and our farmers that are making retail products, they're not into doing it wrong. They would just like a little bit of help, maybe an advisory board within the ODA. So in the FDA. Yeah, because we got we've got programs for small business administration. I wish they would open up the ag departments would open up helpful helpful programs to support our small business farmers.

[00:28:11] Alice Lema: Yeah, that's a great idea. We've got to take a quick break for a word from our sponsors. We're talking to Mark Taylor Southern Oregon, hemp cooperative, also known as the hemp caster lots and lots of new things happening in the hemp world. We'll be back in a quick minute. We're brought to you by john John L. Scott, Southern Oregon, Guy Giles mutual Omaha mortgage, and our local rogue valley association of realtors.

[00:28:36] Well, welcome back to the real estate show folks. Alice Lema, broker, John L. Scott, and what a great, great conversation we're having today learning so much from Mark Taylor, Southern Oregon hemp co-op and right before the break, we were kind of talking about some of the benefits and how mainstream the the hemp products are and also how great Southern Oregon for an environment to be growing that so much. So you have a local, is it a contest, a competition?

[00:29:06] Mark Taylor: I, I like to call it a hemp business promotion. It has all things hemp and we expanded it this year to include the golden grow award. This is the third annual, this was the third annual time flies. It was just a month ago in February.

[00:29:20] And it was just a great show with great energy in an environment that was about 77 participants and folks that showed up. So we had a great crowd, got to give a kudos to the Ashland Hills and they did a wonderful job and feeding us and supporting the event. And, yeah, it's just a beautiful venue over there at the Ashland Hills Inn.

[00:29:39] And we really enjoyed it and we expanded it this year to include the hemp trade show. Yeah, we tied in with some great people there to prosper the products that were mentioned in the last segment. I'm really impressed. What literally what ma and Pa Farmer retailer product makers can do. They they get together.

[00:29:58] They find a good bottle in a pump bottle or pour bottle. They label it beautifully and they turn into the complete business person so to speak. In other words they, they have it in their field. They grow the they grow the best. Its grown right here in Southern Oregon. And then they transitioned that into a product that you'll see on your shelf or be in Ashland, a food co-op or wherever they are on online, a webpage and a store.

[00:30:23] And so I'm just really impressed. We had about 12 exhibitors over 13 exhibitors, everything from. Yeah, it was 12 tables and people, I think a lot of people really came because they wanted to see what are our farmers are making. It really, really well-received. We have some of the top speakers. Alice, I forgot to invite you, or I wish I wish you could have came because I know you care about any kind of commerce and industry in the valley here.

[00:30:50] And just, yeah, we had to from CPA firms to legal firms to talk pharmaceutical those that grow and have a background in pharmaceutical. That's wonderful. Yeah, it was it was, I was just really impressed with the, with all the folks that were presenters and and speakers,.

[00:31:05] And also here's the exciting news, although it bears kind of a sad background story. Sarah Wood was a young, beautiful lady that lived here in our valley and sadly enough she contacted brain cancer at, hope I pronounce it right that glioblastoma. And yeah, it was really quite a touching story. And I hope in the short time that I have, and I can, I can give her her due. Sarah contacted it, I believe at 17 years old, her father, Eric got involved. Course any father would. And, and he started looking for after seeing what conventional medicine was was doing, it was not helping her. And by all means, I realize everybody has a choice to make when they're faced with that life and death type of a prognosis. But he said it was like an individual was very spiritual that he kept running into people that said, try CBD.

[00:31:57] And I wish Eric you know, was on here with me. So as he tells a passionate story on, on, he tried it, you know, and and even though the ultimate was the ultimate into the story, it was not what we wanted that for her to live on even by Doernbechers. And I want to make sure this quote is accurate.

[00:32:17] The medical professionals at Doernbechers said that she is their miracle because she went on to live five years and initially they gave her a 13 months prognosis with the severity of her disease. And now her father is such an advocate for CBD that just this year and at the third annual golden grow, we now have the Sarah Wood Memorial award for those that are the strongest advocates for hemp throughout the year.

[00:32:46] And so I'd like to you know, revisit your show again, and it'll show you the trophy and the beautiful picture of Sarah. So she'll live on infinitum as a is that an award will never go away as long as hemp is planted on this planet. And so that's some of the excite not excitement, but that's the good that comes out of good people getting together. And of course honoring those that are better advocates, but also uplifting the family that knows that their daughter's memory will go on forever as a Sarah Wood Memorial.

[00:33:19] Alice Lema: Oh, that's fabulous. That's fabulous.

[00:33:21] Mark Taylor: Yeah. Great. So again, I invite anybody to go on to the Southern Oregon co-op webpage, and you can see a, more of the story and, and then get a review of the third annual golden grow and the hemp trade show.

[00:33:33] And maybe next year we'll, we'll really pack it and get more people.

[00:33:36] Alice Lema: Yeah, yeah, yeah. That would be awesome. So are there awards also given to farmers in different kinds of hemp?.

[00:33:43] Mark Taylor: Oh, yeah. So I am glad , you asked that question. We judge on four different categories in judging our farmers and the fine hemp that they produce. We judge on turpines, we've got judges choice. We've got CBD. We've got top northwest farmer and I'm sorry, there's one other overall appeal or something like that. But a gentleman from Horn Creek farm, I got to mention his name. He has won the Northwest top farmer, two years in a row.

[00:34:11] Paul Murdoch a well-known business person in our valley. And again, another person that that believes in CBD cause Paul fell off. The reason he got into it, he's, he's close to 60 years old. He fell off his roof. He was a builder and he fell off a roof and broke his ankles. And got arthritis in both ankles and he had no relief whatsoever.

[00:34:31] And he'll tell you, it has only the CBD oil that that helps him with his extreme pain and his bones in his ankles and his feet.

[00:34:38] Alice Lema: Wow. That's remarkable.

[00:34:40] Mark Taylor: Yeah, I have a lot of stories like that. And it's why I'm so passionate. And I think, you know, my background, I, I'm not a, I grew hemp for two years and I don't have a green thumb.

[00:34:49] Apparently it didn't work out that well for me, I seen another way to help hemp prosper this beautiful plant. So. I helped found Southern Oregon hemp co-op, but I really I really do hear great stories of helpful benefits of this hemp plant, the CBD and the CBGA. And remember, we're just on the cusp of it.

[00:35:07] We've really only been growing as a as an educated group for about four to five years, 2017. The USDA pass the hemp farm bill. And so we have with, with technology and young people, I'm trying to program hopefully someday get into the high schools and the junior colleges and and really hopefully they'll get excited about, about hemp.

[00:35:27] It's a legal product. I wish our educational facilities would realize what it, what it can do to prosper young people and give them a possible little revenue and, and the experience of being a farmer. And so I hope that we can make some inroads there with our educational institutions.

[00:35:44] Alice Lema: Well, and I think that's happening.

[00:35:45] I think the younger people are super excited and, and they receive the benefits and the idea of local hemp you know, more readily than some of us older people did.

[00:35:58] Mark Taylor: No. That's right. And I have to add, I got a call from a high school student with the FFA and he was asking questions. Was I just welcome on the hemp being a type of bedding material that they could encapsulate in a in a blanket and put hemp in it for their lama.

[00:36:15] Yeah I thought so and so, yeah, that is starting, it's starting right now. And so I'm just going to keep asking our community to bear with us. And, and by all means, if you see something out there in the community that bothers you in regards to a hemp, farm or ranch, you're welcome to reach out to the Southern Oregon hemp co-op and, and hopefully I can mitigate or explain to you the condition to, you know, make the aesthetics and make the visual of our valley. It truly is a beautiful valley.

[00:36:41] Alice Lema: And it's a great thing that you're doing with the Southern Oregon hemp co-op. We're just about out of time and yes, absolutely, mark Taylor. We want to have you back for another update on what's going on, Mr. Hemp caster. Thank you so much. The show will be rebroadcast tomorrow at six o'clock. Have a beautiful weekend. We'll catch you next time, folks. Bye now. Thank you.

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