African Gold

Dean Van Schalkwyk from Marijuana SA has been passionate about cannabis since a young age. On this episode of African Gold he shares his story, how Marijuana SA came to be, and we learn what it takes to judge a cannabis cup.

Some would call him a master grower, but Natie Ferreira hates that term. Let's just say he is one of South Africa's OG's and grows some of the best cannabis in the country.Many years experience in the landscaping and agricultural industry and Natie's passion for Cannabis has now come together in the opportunities that legal Cannabis brings to Southern Africa. Natie has an extensive network in the industry and developed valuable intellectual property around producing Cannabis in South Africa. He is also a founding partner in Qure Analytics that allows easy access to Cannabis analytics for the recreational, therapeutic and medical cannabis user in South Africa. Through providing analytical services to all sectors of the Cannabis market they provide a legal glimpse into what up until now has been a largely illegal market in South Africa. 

Today we visit The Alibi, an upmarket Cannabis Private Club in Cape Town, and chat with owner, Simon Leps, about the club model and the state of cannabis in South Africa.www.thealibi.co.za

Trenton Birch is co-founder of Cheeba Cannabis Academy, Africa's first cannabis educational institution. We sit down with Trenton as he gives us an insight into his interesting life and how his path would lead him to cannabis. We discuss how music shaped him into the person he is today and take a dive into the cannabis industry in South Africa.

With our president's cannabis comments during his state of the nation address and the recent amendments to the cannabis for private purposes bill there’s no better time to jump into this rabbit hole that is the law. Things are about to get real. So in this episode we attempt to uncloud, untangle, and understand the complex haze of our current cannabis laws. Where are we now, where are we going and should we be getting excited?

Neil Liddell is the founder of The Haze Club, one of the early cannabis grow clubs in South Africa. He also happens to be the host of this podcast. In this episode we reverse roles as African Gold producer, Rasmus Bitsch, emerges from behind the dials to interview Neil as we delve into the life of our faithful host.During the interview we make mention of a cycle trip that Neil did and promised some links. Here they are:Photos: https://www.facebook.com/h2htrip/Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mXb_cbVpXgA&list=PLuU1P9QJ2a8-wMPQ_6dKkqCA7f7aWrPwK

Tony Budden, who together with long-time friend, Duncan Parker, co-founded Hemporium, the first cannabis company in South Africa, over 25 years ago. Focusing on hemp, he has been advocating for the plant and its many uses ever since. With the recent rise of legalisation around the world, Tony was approached to move into the big business of big cannabis. In this episode we look back at Tony’s last quarter century of activism and his inner struggle of whether or not to leave it all behind.

Gareth Prince is a trained lawyer and practicing Rastafarian, and for that he has never been allowed to practice law. He has been to the constitutional court three times and the last time, in 2018, he won resulting in the privacy judgment that legalised the cultivation and possession of cannabis in South Africa. In this episode Gareth shares his story and the long and painful road toward legalisation.

In this episode of African Gold we sit down with Craig Paterson, a historian at Rhodes University and an expert on the history of cannabis in South Africa. We uncover the disturbing truth behind cannabis prohibition as he walks us through the fascinating history of the plant on the African continent.

Founder of Fields of Green For ALL, Myrtle is a major proponent of cannabis legalization and activism in South Africa. As one half of The Dagga Couple she is the driving force behind “The Trial of the Plant”, the constitutional court case challenging the current draconian cannabis laws in South Africa. In this episode Myrtle tells her story, including her arrest and the tragic murder of her partner, Julian Stobbs.www.africangold.media

Listen to the trailer for the upcoming podcast, African Gold!