Asheville Dispensary opened in October 2018, just before Congress passed the Farm Bill. Within a year, the city had 12 dispensaries.
Jeffrey Billman
Jeffrey Billman is a politics and law reporter for The Assembly. The former editor-in-chief of INDY in Durham, he holds a master's degree in public policy analysis from the University of Central Florida.
Posted inBusiness & Economy
Q&A: Les Stewart, Trophy Brewing
With federal law changing in November, Trophy expects to shut down production of its THC seltzers in the coming months.
Posted inBusiness & Economy
Q&A: Garrett Perdue, Naternal
The Morrisville-based company made waves last fall with an ad featuring the CEO’s mother—who just happens to be a former North Carolina governor.
Posted inInvestigations
A Scientist’s War
Shortly after Congress legalized hemp, toxicologist Michelle Peace started a private drug-testing lab. Then she bit the hand that feeds.
Posted inInvestigations
Hemp Investigation: Our Methodology
Our reporters purchased hemp products from N.C. convenience stores and dispensaries, and had them tested at the Laboratory for Forensic Toxicology Research.
Posted inInvestigations
Downstream Testing
Not satisfied with our official lab testing of hemp products, our reporter conducted a urine test on himself after drinking a THC beverage.
Posted inInvestigations
What Else Is In My Weed?
Our tests found dozens of chemical compounds in hemp products that were not cannabinoids—including some that might surprise you.
Posted inInvestigations
What’s in My Weed?
Our investigation found many hemp products for sale don’t have the THC levels they claim—but do contain bacteria and other contaminants.
Posted inInvestigations
Barely Legal: An Assembly Investigation Into N.C. Hemp
N.C. created what one industry insider called “the best recreational cannabis state in the country” in legalizing, but not regulating, hemp.
Posted inBusiness & Economy
Q&A: Q. Nicole Vanderhorst, WH Farms
The business, which cultivates industrial hemp and makes CBD beauty and wellness products, seeks to “amplify access to this plant medicine.”
