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In this educational episode of the Legacies Podcast, hosts Tom Ritchie and Wesley Bowles discuss the regulatory outcomes of Florida’s vote to remain medical-only, and analyze the environmental impact of sustainable vape hardware introduced by Aveo Vapes. They evaluate the launch of 61 Charlie’s Go Bags sublingual oral pouches on Mendo Medical, and review Tom’s experience with Mendo Select’s Purple Mountain Majesty 1:1 craft strain. They also share insight on business agility, scheduling pivots, and the importance of meditation for personal balance. Finally, they welcome back Kevin Varner of Royal Harvest to discuss craft cultivation practices at Westbridge, British Columbia, navigating the legacy-to-legal transition, and his new collaborative music project “To The Top” featuring Jennifer Hershman.
Tom Ritchie Says: Hey, what’s going on, everyone? Check out what’s coming up this week on Legacies.
Kevin Varner Says: This is truly my passion and my love. I feel driven by something greater than myself to create positive change and bring good energy to the entire industry.
Tom Ritchie Says: You’re popping sublingual pouches top and bottom—double deckers!
Tom Ritchie Says: Hey, what’s going on, everyone? Welcome to Legacies. I’m your host, Tom Ritchie, joined by Wesley ‘The Wizard’ Bowles. Morning, Wes.
Wesley Bowles Says: Good morning! What a morning and what a night.
Tom Ritchie Says: A reminder that Legacies is powered by Breadstack. Retailers, upgrade your e-commerce platform and streamline your multi-store retail tech with Breadstack. Rishi is currently down in the US for MJ Unpacked and MJBizCon capturing drone footage and connecting with operators.
Tom Ritchie Says: The major headline today is the US presidential election with Donald Trump winning the presidency. As Canadians working in this sector, everyone is watching what this means for US federal cannabis reform and global trade.
Tom Ritchie Says: Mike Elkin sent me the overnight election results from Florida. Amendment 3 failed to hit the required 60% supermajority threshold, meaning Florida remains medical-only for now.
Wesley Bowles Says: That failure caused cannabis indices to take an immediate dip this morning.
Tom Ritchie Says: I’m moderating a panel at the Elevate Retailer Summit next week with Marisa, Katy Perry of Toke Cannabis, and Sara from Oak Analytics. Marisa was in Florida with cannabis dealmakers and predicted it would fall short. While Trump has signaled support for state-level cannabis autonomy, federal reform will likely take time.
Tom Ritchie Says: I had an inspiring conversation this week with Jonathan Garfield, founder of Aveo Vapes. Keith Ba connected us, and Jonathan’s commitment to sustainability is incredible.
Tom Ritchie Says: When Aveo couldn’t source truly sustainable materials for their hardware, they formulated a proprietary hemp-based composite plastic that biodegrades within three and a half years. Their modular Earth hardware allows batteries and internal components to be disassembled, sanitized, and remanufactured rather than ending up in landfills.
Wesley Bowles Says: Single-use lithium-ion disposables create massive environmental waste. Hardware innovation that combines superior anti-clogging ceramic technology with circular recycling programs is exactly what the industry needs.
Tom Ritchie Says: In major product news, Six One Charlie officially launched their Go Bags on Mendo Medical today!
Tom Ritchie Says: Go Bags are full-spectrum sublingual oral pouches placed between the cheek and gum. They launched with Cool Mint and Honeydew flavors, dosed at 10mg THC per pouch. I took one while doing yard work on Sunday; the onset began in 10 to 15 minutes with full effects settling in by 30 minutes.
Wesley Bowles Says: That rapid buccal absorption is a game-changer. For medical patients and military veterans managing acute pain or PTSD, waiting 60 minutes for a standard edible isn’t always practical. Sublingual pouches provide fast, smoke-free, highly discreet relief.
Wesley Bowles Says: Last night, after smoking pre-rolls for weeks, I pulled out my dab tool to try a mystery live rosin sample we received in a compression-sealed container. The depth of the high and full-spectrum terpene expression reminded me why solventless extracts are in a class of their own.
Tom Ritchie Says: If you give out product samples at industry events, always make sure your branding, cultivar name, and extraction details are clearly labeled on the jar!
Tom Ritchie Says: My hunt for premium 1:1 THC:CBD flower brought me to Mendo Select’s Purple Mountain Majesty (Blueberry Muffin x Trainwreck). Jason Schwartz sent over a 7-gram bag of dense, crystal-coated buds. Balanced 1:1 cultivars often yield small popcorn buds, but these are massive, perfectly cured nugs bursting with blueberry pastry aromatics.
Tom Ritchie Says: Alongside Clemon Co’s Apricot & Cream and Simply Bare’s Harlequin, Purple Mountain Majesty is cemented in my top three 1:1 strains.
Tom Ritchie Says: We had some last-minute studio schedule shifts today. Sy from Aspire Infusions was feeling under the weather, and Graydon Welbourn from White Ash Group caught an emergency flight to Halifax. Instead of scrambling, we connected with our friend Kevin Varner, founder of Royal Harvest in BC, who just dropped an incredible new music single!
Tom Ritchie Says: Welcome back to Legacies, Kevin Varner of Royal Harvest!
Kevin Varner Says: What’s going on, brother! Everything is firing on all cylinders right now.
Tom Ritchie Says: We just played your new track, To The Top, featuring vocalist Jennifer Hirschman. Tell us how this project came together!
Kevin Varner Says: I used to rap years ago on the East Coast. With all the economic gloom in the sector, I wanted to create something purely positive. I reached out to my friend Sean at Keffe’s, connected with Track Studio in Vancouver for the beat, and wrote the first verse on a two-hour ferry ride with my dog in the back of the truck.
Kevin Varner Says: Big Red Productions connected me with Jennifer Hirschman. She laid down gorgeous vocal hooks expressing our shared love for cannabis, nature, and positive movement. When I finished recording, I realized I hadn’t used a single curse word—it came straight from the heart.
Kevin Varner Says: Cannabis is a healing plant that comes from the earth. When I was 16, watching families use it to heal themselves, I knew it was special. Over 37 years of growing, through all the heartbreaks and regulatory hurdles, my goal with Royal Harvest is to leave a legacy that gives back to the community.
Tom Ritchie Says: You are the Tony Robbins of the cannabis industry, Kevin! Your positivity is infectious.
Tom Ritchie Says: Congratulations on taking 3rd Place for Frosted Fruitcake at the Grow Up Conference awards!
Kevin Varner Says: That award was a miracle. Those mother plants were trapped in 4-inch nursery pots for nearly seven months during a facility transition. We loaded them into sterile trucks, drove across the snowy Coquihalla Highway in minus-eight temperatures, waited overnight for the ferry, and finally flowered them out. To take home 3rd place after that ordeal proves the resilience of sacred genetics.
Tom Ritchie Says: You shared microscope footage with me this morning of your upcoming cultivar, Red Velvet.
Kevin Varner Says: Red Velvet is a special Red Velvet Runtz phenotype. I gave 100 grams of fresh cured flower to Bubbleman (Marcus Richardson) to test wash in ice water, and it dumped nearly 30 grams of pure resin heads. The trichome gland size and density are phenomenal, and we are entering breeding collaborations with elite seed makers.
Kevin Varner Says: Moving from legacy to the legal market taught me tough lessons. Micro-cultivators cannot afford to rely entirely on third-party processors who take heavy margins. We took over our own pre-roll manufacturing, packaging, and provincial distribution submissions to keep our operation lean.
Kevin Varner Says: I visit peers like Dylan and the Pistol and Paris crew, Kip over at VCC, Antidote, and Sweetgrass. When craft growers collaborate, share supply chain contacts, and streamline costs, everyone thrives.
Kevin Varner Says: In early history, lobster was considered poor man’s food until people recognized its culinary value and it became a luxury delicacy. Right now, high-quality cannabis is undervalued because of excessive excise taxation and price compression. As consumers experience the difference between mass-produced flower and true craft cultivation, premium craft flower will command the respect and value it deserves.
Tom Ritchie Says: When consumers buy craft, they aren’t just buying THC percentages—they are investing in the passion, curing discipline, and genetics of dedicated growers.
Kevin Varner Says: You can give the exact same clone to ten different growers and end up with ten completely different profiles. A master grower dials in environmental micro-climates, lighting schedules, and curing conditions like a musician playing a fine instrument.
Tom Ritchie Says: Cannabis is a living biological asset. Expecting every harvest to be an identical industrial clone misses the beauty of artisanal expression.
Tom Ritchie Says: Where can listeners find your new track?
Kevin Varner Says: To The Top is streaming on Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube Music, and Instagram audio. Don’t limit yourself—follow your heart and keep pushing no matter how steep the climb.
Tom Ritchie Says: Kevin, we love you, brother. Thank you for bringing so much heart and soul to Legacies!
Kevin Varner Says: Love you guys! Keep shining!
Tom Ritchie Says: A special shoutout to Andrew Barkham at Levant Therapeutics. Their gorgeous digital magazine featured a Q&A with Wes and me in the November issue—check out Levant’s platform to read it.
Wesley Bowles Says: Tonight we are heading over to the Tether Holiday Market in Dundas to connect with budtenders and independent retail owners.
Tom Ritchie Says: Check out Breadstack to upgrade your dispensary e-commerce, stream Kevin Varner’s new track, and we’ll see you next week on Legacies!
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Founder
Kevin Varner founded Royal Harvest in British Columbia, bringing legacy growing experience from Nova Scotia into the licensed micro-cultivation market and building one of BC's most community-oriented craft cannabis brands.
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Micro-Cultivator
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Learn More About Partner ↗Florida's adult-use legalization amendment (Amendment 3) required a 60% supermajority of votes to pass. It failed to reach this threshold, meaning the state's cannabis access remains limited to the regulated medical marketplace.
Aveo Vapes has developed a custom biodegradable, hemp-strengthened plastic formulation that fully decomposes within three and a half years. Their Earth cartridge design is engineered to be disassembled and remanufactured with new batteries, minimizing electronic and plastic waste.
Go Bags are full-spectrum oral pouches (10mg of THC per pouch) that are placed between the gum and cheek. They offer a discreet, smoke-free consumption method with a rapid onset time of 10 to 15 minutes, which is faster and more consistent than typical ingestible edibles.
