California Cannabis Industry Program Debuts Fall 2020

The Long Beach Collective Association (LBCA) has partnered with Long Beach City College (LBCC) to present the first-ever “Introduction to the Cannabis Industry” training program beginning this September.

Designed and taught by the cannabis industry leaders of the LBCA and Joe Rogoway of Rogoway Law, the bi-weekly, eight-week, 40 hour course will extensively cover the cannabis industry as overseen statewide by the Bureau of Cannabis Control (BCC) and locally under area-specific municipal ordinances, and will include:

• The science of cannabis medicine and a history of its prohibition;
• Nursery/cultivation;
• Manufacturing/processing;
• Distribution;
• Retail;
• Testing/analysis;
• METRC, California’s track-and-trace program, and its implementation at each level of the statewide supply chain;
• Waste management; and
• Workforce development.

Since 2016, when Proposition 64 legalized and regulated cannabis products, an industry entrenched in the loose, minimal regulations of 1996 Prop 215 began the transition to the new legal market. With this transition, a newly regulated workforce — with careers, operations and regulations — was created. Since 2010, the LBCA has represented the legitimate cannabis trade in the city of Long Beach and leads the way in community-based cannabis education.

“There is a community and industry need to educate the new, incoming workforce for a professional cannabis industry that can drive economic growth while serving the interests of public safety and education,” said Steve Neal, executive director of the LBCA. “The LBCA has led this fight in the years before and since Prop 64 legalization to make Long Beach a trailblazer in creating a cannabis-friendly municipal environment. Our first course at LBCC offers a sustainable and scalable academic program that can continue to meet the challenges of the industry.”

Learn more about the course by visiting https://www.lbcc.edu/post/introduction-cannabis-industry.

The LBCA is a nonprofit trade association of cannabis businesses in Long Beach, California, including dispensaries, cultivation, labs, manufacturing, and distribution. The LBCA’s mission is to provide safe and legal cannabis access for residents under California State Law and Long Beach Municipal Code by working closely with the city, Long Beach health department, the state of California, and various community organizations to ensure public safety, cannabis education, and non-invasive environment for residents.