News and Events

Since mankind first used cannabis it has always been considered as a holy or spiritual plant, thanks to the altered state of consciousness brought on by its consumption. For many religions, sects and creeds across the globe, the cannabis plant has become integral to the way rituals are celebrated and to the observance of religious tradition. We hope you enjoy this Alchimiaweb blog article where we'll take a look at a some of the most prominent religious, spiritual and traditional uses of cannabis.

Jamaica, Rastafarians and Cannabis

The Rastafarian faith began in Jamaica during the 1930s, created partly by Leonard Percival Howell who is considered the first Rastafarian in history. It was born partly from a social movement on the part of Jamaica's black working-class in rejection of the dominance of the white colonists and the middle-class, serving, in particular, to give pride back to the black people of Jamaica, the descendants of the slaves brought to the island.

The Rastafarian doctrine is not particularly strict and its followers often adapt it depending on how they personally perceive it. Some Rastafarians believe that Jesus Christ came back to Earth, reborn in the form of Ethiopian Emperor Haile Selassie I and as such consider him a representation of God (Jah) on Earth. The Rasta doctrine promotes or praises a return (spiritual or physical) of all black people to Africa and believes that Ethiopia represents Mount Zion or the Promised Land.

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This committed marijuana seed bank has been performing breeding work for many years, and it’s a pioneer in the Spanish cannabis scene, and more specifically in the city of Barcelona, home of Oldman Green, Old School Genetics soul and breeder. Recognized by many as one of the first breeders to preserve genetics, his collection consists of a large number of strains selected between the end of the 80’s and all throughout the 90’s.

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The international cannabis community is in mourning this week after the sad news of Subcool’s passing. He was one of the most influential and highly-respected breeders on the scene, creator of legendary genetic lines such as Vortex, Querkle and Jack The Ripper, among many more. The brains and driving force behind TGA Subcool and later The Dank had for years been suffering from a rare hereditary disorder, to which he finally succumbed this past weekend.

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Panakeia, 18% CBG and 0% THC

Research and Development in the field of cannabis breeding have accomplished a new achievement thanks to Hemp Trading, a Spanish company that recently introduced a new strain high CBG content and free of THC, the main psychoactive component of cannabis. This new strain has been developed in collaboration with the Universitat Politècnica de València (Technical University of Valencia), and for the time being, it will only be distributed in US territory.

Listed as a hemp strain high in cannabigerol (CBG), the launch of this new specimen is a step forward in the field of medical cannabis, as this cannabinoid offers a great number of therapeutic properties that could be useful for a large number of patients. And thanks to the introduction of this new strain, CBG research will also be strengthened, as securing a large amount of this interesting compound for its study will be much easier.

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Thanks to modern mobile phones, we now can enjoy a wide range of applications and games compatible with our smartphones, some of them related to cannabis. This is because smartphone software developers (and also, as we will see, for other platforms like PC) have seen a gold mine in the marijuana world, as thousands of users are downloading their apps on a daily basis.

Whether they are games, cannabis seeds and strains encyclopedias, or applications to help growers improve their results, this type of apps (many of them free) are flourishing, given their success among the public. Today we are introducing you to some weed-related games for mobiles that you can easily find in the net; they will help you pass the time this summer between dives!

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Subcool - from TGA Subcool to The Dank

Subcool, the legendary American breeder and co-founder of TGA Subcool seed bank, is back with a vengeance after suffering the loss of his home, his crops, and all his genetics on October 8th 2017, due to the wildfire that ravaged the forests of Northern California. This blow, both on a personal and on a business level, would knock any of us down, but "The Weed Nerd" has managed to rise from the ashes and transform his misfortune into a new opportunity, relocating himself within the sector, changing his strategy, and returning with a commendable mindset.

Before all this happened, his life was already changing due to a divorce, which also impacted the seed bank TGA Subcool, currently in possession of his ex-partner, and the creation of "The Dank", a cannabis conglomerate focused on offering cannabis seeds and producing premium quality flowers and medical-grade resin extractions, while striving to provide free information about cannabis growing.

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Here at Alchimia, the team especially appreciate that moment at the end of the day, when we can relax while consuming our favourite Indica variety, as we prepare to watch a movie or a series on our streaming platform of choice. And if we're fortunate enough to immerse ourselves in a good story revolving around our favourite plant: Cannabis, then a good night can turn into an exceptional one.

Bearing in mind that the range of films and series offered by these video-on-demand services is regularly extended, and also that the content may vary from one country to another, in this article we've selected the series and films available for viewing on some of these platforms that are related to cannabis in one way or another. We're hoping you enjoy a good cannabis TV session as much as we do, smoking comfortably in the company of Netflix, HBO, Amazon Prime...

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In Barcelona during the weekend of 15-17 March 2019, the 16th edition of Spannabis took place, without a doubt the most important cannabis fair in Europe. For three days, the Fira de Cornellà expo centre in Barcelona became the centre of the global cannabis industry, where more than 300 exhibitors came together, including the market's foremost national and international brands, with more than 4,000 accredited professionals dedicated to the multitude of uses that the cannabis plant offers.

Spannabis is considered a benchmark for cannabis expos worldwide and this was reflected by this year's new record in attendance. As reported by the organization itself, more than 25,000 people visited Spannabis over the 3 days of the expo, enormously exceeding the success of previous editions.

For this edition, Spannabis increased its capacity with the addition of a new pavilion and expanded the exhibition area and food trucks. On the opening day, the expo was treated to an appearance by the artist and singer Damien Marley (son of the legendary Jamaican artist Bob Marley), who was there to call for the "legalisation of cannabis and its industry."

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Expogrow: Much more than a Cannabis Fair

This past weekend, from 14 to 16 of September, the 7th edition of Expogrow was held in the Basque Country, an absolutely un-missable event for the cannabis community.

Once again, the Ficoba exhibition centre in Irún hosted the fair, with a considerable increase in the space for stands: 5,000m2 spread over 4 pavilions for exhibitors and professionals from the cannabis sector, as well as a large outdoor area of 7,000m2 for leisure activities, chill-out areas and food trucks, alongside numerous fun things to do.

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Ganja, Collie, Kiki, Sinsemilla...cannabis has plenty of different names, especially in Jamaica, a small Caribbean island known around the world for its long relationship with this plant.

Indeed, Jamaica is a true place of reference with regard to cannabis cultivation for smokers worldwide. Its tropical climate and fertile soil are ideal for the cultivation of cannabis plants, especially Sativas. Moreover, it is also the place where the Rastafari movement was born, which promotes a religious use of ganja and has a large number of followers in the island. Still, the use of cannabis is widely spread among all social classes - not only Rastafarians - and is doubtless one of the most popular crops in the island. In this article we'll tell you more about the relation of cannabis with this small Caribbean paradise.

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What is the Emerald Triangle?

The Emerald Triangle refers to an area located on the northwest coast of the United States (northern California) and comprised of Mendocino, Humboldt and Trinity counties. To be delve into the origins and traditions of cannabis cultivation in this region, we must go back to the 60s, during the Summer of Love in San Francisco. During the second half of the decade, and with the hippie counterculture as a backdrop, a good number of growers settled in this area in search of a place that would meet the ideal conditions for the outdoor cultivation of cannabis, namely isolation and a privileged climate. Since then, the Emerald Triangle has been one of the main sources of cannabis supplying California. As of 1996, and after the approval of California's Proposition 215 for medical cannabis, the production in these three counties shot up due to the increase in demand, reaffirming the Emerald Triangle as one of the main producing areas of the country.

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Every year in the weeks around Spannabis, the Catalonian city of Barcelona plays host to a multitude of events, competitions, workshops and seminars as the great and good of the global cannabis scene flock to the city to enjoy the company of like-minded folk from around the world. This year one of the biggest events of off-Spannabis was the Masters of Rosin competition organised by one of the top clubs in the city HQ Barcelona and hosted by solventless pioneer Nikka T of Colorado's Essential Extracts.

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The most important fair in the European cannabis sector - and the most visited cannabis event around the world - will be held this coming weekend at Fira de Cornellà, Barcelona. During 3 days, tens of thousands of professionals and visitors meet at Spannabis to know about the latest marijuana strains, nutrients, growing systems, smoking accessories, vaporisers, climate control units, lighting systems...Also, and following the trend of the past years, it'll pay special attention to one of the most widely used cannabinoids in the medical field - cannabidiol or CBD - as well as cannabis resin extracts and concentrates.

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In the space set aside for the Cannabis Box Forum at this past Expogrow 2017 in Irún we interviewed Guillermo Moreno, pharmacologist, neuroscientist, who since 2008 has been in the USA obtaining a doctorate in Cannabinoid Pharmacology at the University of California and working in the laboratory of Dr. Daniele Piomelli, a pioneer in the knowledge of endocannabinoid pharmacology.

In this interview for Alchimia, Guillermo Moreno talks about his experiences in the USA and the various current issues on medicinal and recreational cannabis, scientific advances and marijuana legislation.

Here's the video of the interview (you can change the language of the subtitles by pressing config-->subtitles)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hG1ho6ZHSO8

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III Fresh Cup 2017

This past 24th June we travelled to Zaragoza in North-Eastern Spain to attend the third edition of the Fresh Cup, organised by local cannabis association Nuestra Señora del Agua and sponsored this year by Spanish seed bank Diamond Seeds. The “Cannabis Cup of the Summer” took place in a leafy, tranquil corner on the outskirts of the city, away from prying eyes in a walled garden divided into three zones, firstly the main stage area with shaded seating and a bar, then a fantastic chill-out area complete with swimming pool, bar, snack and juice bar and plenty of trees to provide shade and lastly a rooftop area to host the the “Battle of the Crews” and stands where we could check out products from many exhibitors from the cannabis industry.

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The Weedkend 2017

This summer, one of Spain’s greenest corners became a shade greener when last weekend, on the 10th June and for the third consecutive year, the beautiful seaside town of Gijón hosted The Weedkend 2017 (previously Asturcannabis), a diverse and popular cannabis event, expo and competition.

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