James Yodgee is the General Manager of Partnerships at Biortica Agrimed, along with Matthew Turner who is the co-founder and Chief Global Officer of the organisation.

Biortica Agrimed operates one of Australia’s largest cultivation operations in Australia with greenhouses in Victoria and New South Wales along with a library of over 1,000 cultivars through Canadian-based Apollo Green.

In this episode:

Matthew’s pathway to cannabis/the start of Green Farmers (2:30)

James’ pathway to cannabis (11:00)

Matthew’s relationship with cannabis (14:00)

James’ relationship with cannabis (16:00)

Apollo Green Australia (21:00)

-pheno hunting

-breeder cuts

-global scaling

-LaValle University

-research and development

How do you decide what cultivars are worth your time? (32:00)

AI assistance (35:15)

Pioneering efforts in Canada (39:00)

Green Footy Quiz (45:00)

The state of Australia (51:30)

Cannabis around the world (58:00)

Pauls of Wisdom (61:45)

Visitwww.greenfarmers.com.au

Visitwww.giveandtoke.com.au

Follow @giveandtoke onInstagram

Email[email protected]

Kate Avruch is the founder of Operator Academy and is a seasoned expert in the cannabis industry having dedicated her career to scaling business operations in Massachusetts and beyond. With a unique blend of technical expertise in facility design, cannabis chemistry, and extraction methodologies, Kate brings a holistic understanding of the industry’s complexities.

In this episode:

Is The Town the best Boston movie? (1:00)

Pathway to cannabis (3:45)

Growing up with conservative views (19:00)

Relationship with cannabis (23:15)

Cannabis in Massachusetts (26:30)

Quick wins in Massachusetts (35:00)

Could Federal legalisation improve things in Massachusetts? (41:45)

Hotbox Quiz (46:30)

Operator Academy (48:30)

Pauls of Wisdom (70:00)

Visitwww.operatoracademy.org

Follow Kate Avruch onLinkedIn

Visitwww.giveandtoke.com.au

Follow @giveandtoke onInstagram

Email[email protected]

Sara Payan is a cannabis educator, public speaker, policy advocate, and the award-winning host of the Planted with Sara Payan podcast. She’s an expert in consumer trends, product development, and building relationships in the cannabis industry.

Sara has trained cannabis professionals, consulted for brands on product development and marketing, and worked with various committees, including the California Cannabis Advisory Committee and the San Francisco Cannabis Oversight Committee. She also co-chaired the San Francisco State Cannabis Legalization Task Force.

In this episode:

Personal Relationship with Cannabis (6:00)

Colon Cancer Treatment (9:00)

Does legalisation impact medical patients? (19:45)

Finding effective treatments (29:30)

Busting Myths: Terpenes (36:45)

Podcasting (38:00)

The politics in the cause (48:30)

Cat Talk (54:00)

Podcast Highlights (56:30)

Hot Box Quiz (65:15)

The State of the Nation: USA (67:00)

Connecting with others through consumption (71:30)

Budtender Problems (77:15)

Pauls of Wisdom (83:00)

Listen to Planted with Sara Payan

Follow @plantedwithsara on Instagram

Visit www.giveandtoke.com.au

Follow @giveandtoke on Instagram

Email [email protected]

In this episode of Give & Toke, we sit down with Victorian MP Rachel Payne, for an insightful conversation that marks two years since entering parliament along with 50 episodes of this show.

We discuss the transition from Dan Andrews to Jacinta Allan and what it means for cannabis reform (3:00). We talk about the recent win for Victorian patients who drive (5:45), before looking back at two years of navigating hemp reform, pill testing, relationships, compromise, and the importance of evolving and letting go (15:00).

We dive into the critical topic of housing affordability and the other challenges facing her electorate of over 600,000 South-East Melburnians (28:00). Rachel highlights the importance of giving a voice to underrepresented groups and how this informs her work in office (33:30).

The conversation also turns to the impact of social media and shadow bans on modern politics (37:55), before turning to Fiona Patten’s return to the scene (41:50). We play a quick quiz entitled Rachel Profiling (45:00) before diving into the big issues on the horizon for 2025, including personal use and workplace drug testing (50:00).

Rachel also touches on the role of medicinal cannabis companies and their social responsibilities (60:00), as well as how she maintains motivation in the face of political disappointment (66:00). Finally, we wrap up with some listener questions where we learn what type of cannabis product David Ettershank would be (71:00).

Visit www.rachelpayne.com.au

Follow Rachel on Instagram @rachelpayne_mp

Follow Rachel on Twitter @rachelpaynemp

Visit www.giveandtoke.com.au

Follow Give and Toke on Instagram @giveandtoke

Email Us [email protected]

Matthew Dent is the Director of Cultivation at Wangara Cultivation Co. With a boutique indoor grow operation in Queensland, their mission is to produce craft quality cannabis for Australia’s local market with a focus on terpenes and the wider entourage effect.

In this episode:

Connect with Matthew Dent on Linkedin

Visit www.giveandtoke.com.au

Follow @giveandtoke on Instagram

Email [email protected]

Get $10 off accessories with the code ‘CATCHUP’ at giveandtoke.com.au

The Catch-Up is a collaboration between Give and Toke and AusCannaReviews. Paul and Christina come together monthly to explore what’s happening in Cannabis in Australia and around the world. 

In this episode:

@AusCannaReviews on SubStack, Instagram and Twitter/X

Email [email protected]

Visit www.giveandtoke.com.au

Follow @giveandtoke on Instagram

Email [email protected]

Sacha La Forgia is the co-founder of Golden Days Cultivators, a South-Australian based indoor cultivator and supplier of medicinal cannabis born out of prior experience in South Australia’s world-renowned alcohol industry.

With a Bachelor in Viticulture from the University of Adelaide, Sacha founded and managed 78o Distillery in Adelaide Hills prior to Golden Days before inertia kicked in in 2022, and a change was needed. As global trends in alcohol consumption continue to decline and the health benefits of choosing cannabis over alcohol become more apparent, Sacha founded Golden Days with business partner Ewan Brewerton with the aim to make the world a better place.

In this episode:

Ditching booze for buds (1:40)

Our cultural relationship with alcohol (7:30)

Making smarter health choices (12:35)

Transferring skills to cannabis (17:20)

South Australia’s cannabis culture (21:00)

Booze History Quiz (24:00)

The state of Australian cannabis (28:00)

Personal relationship with cannabis (30:15)

Golden Days (32:30)

Growing indoors with renewable energy (38:00)

What’s next for Golden Days (41:00)

Pauls of Wisdom (48:45)

Connect with Sacha La Forgia on Linkedin

Visit www.giveandtoke.com.au

Follow @giveandtoke on Instagram

Email [email protected]

Talmage Herbert began working for RUA Bioscience in 2021. With strong familial ties to RUA’s growing region, he first started as a cultivator and is now managing supply chains and partnerships. 

RUA Bioscience supplies GMP-certified medicines to expanding markets including Europe and Australia backed by its centre of excellence where they incubate superior genetics including exclusive legacy genetics, sharing New Zealand’s rich culture with the world. The company's mission is based on their founding principes of integrity, innovation, health and collaboration. RUA is unique in prioritising community well-being with tertiary scholarships, community tours and compassionate access.

In this episode:

Pathway to cannabis (3:45)

New Zealand’s cannabis culture (11:40)

The failed referendum (18:45)

How do Kiwi’s access cannabis? (28:50)

Cannabis and politics (33:00)

The importance of people (35:00)

UFC Quiz (42:45)

What is RUA? (48:45)

Preserving legacy genetics (51:00)

Community enhancement (63:30)

What’s next for RUA? (67:00)

Pauls of Wisdom (68:30)

Visit www.ruabio.com

Visit www.giveandtoke.com.au

Follow @giveandtoke on Instagram

Email [email protected]

Get $10 off accessories with the code ‘CATCHUP’ at giveandtoke.com.au

The Catch-Up is a collaboration between Give and Toke and AusCannaReviews. Paul and Christina come together monthly to explore what’s happening in Cannabis in Australia and around the world. 

In this episode:

Kamala Harris and federal legalisation (1:55)

Cannabis users skipping work (5:00)

The Dispensed Dilemma (7:30)

Releaf in trouble? (19:30)

New compounding rules (23:00)

Roadside testing in South Australia (27:00)

Hot Tokes (33:00)

What’s Up (40:00)

@AusCannaReviews on SubStack, Instagram and Twitter/X

Email [email protected]

Visit www.giveandtoke.com.au

Follow @giveandtoke on Instagram

Email [email protected]

Michael Sassano is the CEO and Chairman of SOMAÍ Pharmaceuticals, a leading European vertically integrated company with a global footprint of distribution. SOMAÍ is building a leading global brand with a robust pipeline of innovative cannabis-based therapeutics. They envision a world where people live a healthy lifestyle empowered by natural cannabis medicine.

SOMAÍ owns a state-of-the-art manufacturing facility and indoor cultivation in Lisbon, Portugal, and has global sales teams in the largest medical cannabis markets.

In this episode:

Pathway to cannabis (2:00)

Relationship with cannabis (9:00)

Sharing the secret sauce (13:30)

What is SOMAÍ? (19:00)

Excitement in global markets (29:15)

Monaco Quiz (41:30)

Australians are the winners (45:45)

Pauls of Wisdom (54:45)

Visit www.somaipharma.com.au

Visit www.giveandtoke.com.au

Follow @giveandtoke on Instagram

Email [email protected]