The Emerald Cup is a cannabis The event takes place in Northern California. If you ask the organizers, this is a celebration of cannabis. Participants in the competition will say that it is the last ring. Ask anyone else and they will tell you that this is really the right time.
For the first time in their eighteen-year history, a new event will precede the Emerald Cup and highlight the small cannabis plantations. Announcing the Emerald Cup harvest ball. If you are twenty-one or over, consider yourself invited.
What is the Emerald Cup?
Usually a two-day event, the Emerald Cup hosts a cannabis competition, market, trade fair, and social gathering. On top of that, there is live music, expert panels, good food, and many opportunities to sample the products. The competition is world famous and very intense, with judges selecting winners in over forty categories. The competition will open in mid-December and the date of the award ceremony has not yet been announced. In the meantime, there’s a pre-party event that has a big reason behind it.
Flashback to the Emerald Cup 2018 with Craig Ex from Expert Joints
Emerald Ball Harvest Cup
Set at the Sonoma County Fairgrounds and Flamingo Resort in Santa Rosa, the Emerald Cup Harvest Ball is about connecting the cannabis community. Between entertainment, social accommodation and a direct market for consumers, this event focuses on creating good vibes and the kinship of cannabis. It provides all the fun and festivity of a competition but the spotlight will be on the small cannabis growers. To support local farmers, the event organizers created the Small Farm Initiative Program. Thanks to this new program, more than thirty cannabis farms will receive free exhibition space, special promotion and support.
“These small farmers are the true roots of our industry, so it means a lot to me and all of us at the Emerald Cup being able to help them succeed as our industry advances into a new era of cannabis production, sales and consumption.‘,” says Emerald Cup founder and CEO, Tim Blake.
Emerald Cup Small Farms Initiative Program – Supporting Small Farms
The first list of program participants has been announced (scroll to the bottom of the full list of selected participants). For those selected, this includes a sponsored entry for a premium placement, a discounted franchise arrangement, and increased brand promotion. In addition, each farm is given the opportunity to present three SKUs for a special sales promotion. The goal is to connect the consumer directly to the farmer and help foster win-win relationships.
Program Eligibility
After each farm was accepted into the program, a lottery was held to select thirty farms for the Harvest Ball. According to the event organizers, eligible farmers are expected to:
- Holds a valid cannabis cultivation license for the State of California
- The maximum farm size should be 10,000 square feet
- Practice sustainable agriculture and/or participate in third-party certification programs such as OCal, Sun + Earth Certification, Clean Green Certification, Regennabis, Envirocann, etc.
“These small farms have been struggling for years with complex regulations, onerous taxes, limited access to retail and a volatile market,” says Michael Katz, president of the Small Farms Council. “We are pleased with the group of participants in this program, the opportunity to support farms already in the licensed consumer market, as well as those who are only participating for the first time.”
If you’d like to go, the event will take place December 11-12, 2021, and is open to anyone age twenty-one or older with a valid photo ID. For more information on The Emerald Cup Events or to obtain tickets, click here.
Want to check green gold being cultivated? Arranged by province, below is a list of farms selected for the Emerald Cup Small Farm Initiative Program.
Humboldt Valley
Lake District
Mendocino County
Nevada County
Santa Cruz County
Sonoma County
Trinity County
