Meramec horticulture students working in the program garden on the west side of the Meramec campus.
By Don Corrigan
Missouri’s marijuana industry has flourished with the voter approval of recreational pot in 2022. Missouri already ranks fifth in pot sales among states with adult-use programs. It surpasses older markets like Colorado in sales.
Nothing shows the industry’s gone legit more than its acceptance among those in higher education. Close to home, St. Louis Community College at Meramec in Kirkwood now has one of the best horticultural programs in marijuana cultivation in Missouri.
One sure sign of its prominence came on Oct. 10 when the St. Louis AgriBusiniess Club met at Meramec and marijuana growing was atop its agenda. The club is regional and covers five counties in Missouri and eight in Illinois.
A three-person panel at the club’s luncheon explained their take on one of the fastest-growing crops and businesses in Missouri. Ryan Schepers, an assistant professor of horticulture at the community college, explained his focus on cannabis and its varied uses.
Ryan Scheppers is a Meramec faculty member who teaches courses in the area of marijuana cultivation and on cannabis industry trends.
“As we move away from the stigmatization of this product, we see more and more curiosity as to what the different strains can do,” said Schepers. “And we get questions as to what kind of ailments can be treated with what kind of strains.”
With hands-on experience in urban agriculture, environmental control, biotechnology and invasive plant management, Scheppers offers students valuable insights into the real world applications of their Meramec studies.
Panelist Brian Riegel, owner of Riegel Dairy Inc. and South Point Hemp Inc., has built a career at the intersection of traditional farming and the expanding hemp industry. Riegel said he was attracted to hemp, in part, because of his personal use of the product for pain management.
“Getting into this as a dairy farmer has been pretty amazing,” said Riegel. “What’s also amazing is to see the changes and to get a handle on just what’s happened with marijuana over the past 10 years.”
At South Point Hemp, Riegel said he pursues high quality standards with a vision to produce pharmaceutical-grade cannabinoid products. He also seeks to support college research programs across the country, including collaborations with Saint Louis University, Washington University and Meramec.
Panelist Chris Chesley serves as a retail operations advisor at Proper Cannabis, which has a growing facility in Rock Hill. He is a cannabis industry leader with a track record in business development, regulatory compliance and government relations.
Cannabis Coursework
According to Meramec’s Scheppers, the horticultural program at his school is among the first in the state to offer a certificate of specialization in Cannabis and Hemp Production. The certificate has the approval of the Missouri Department of Higher Education.
Among the certificate courses are: HRT135, Introduction to Cannabis; HRT136, Cannabis & Hemp Cultivation; and, HRT137, Cannabis Extraction. The hands-on nature of the courses, along with hemp plants grown on site for use in lab classes, sets the learning program apart.
With almost 200 students in Meramec’s horticultural studies, the program awards more degrees annually in horticulture than all other two and four-year schools in the state.
Chesley told Scheppers that cannabis is still a misunderstood product by many Missourians and Americans generally. He said cannabis is over-regulated and still under attack as a narcotic in some states even where it is legal.
“It’s great to see a certification program like this that shows this new industry is being taken seriously,” said Chesley.“And we need graduates who understand the terminology and understand the regulations.”
Scheppers pointed out that the over-regulation is unwarranted. He stressed that no one has ever been killed by ingesting cannabis, and yet businesses in hemp are burdened by excessive rules and restrictions.
Twenty-four states and Washington, D.C., have legalized recreational marijuana. Medical use is more accepted and marijuana for such use is allowed in 40 states and Washington, D.C., including 17 states where it was approved by voters.
Despite voter approval, Republican legislatures in those states continue to battle medical marijuana and are seeking to overturn the will of their voters. Reasons for the pushback are attributed to the belief that marijuana is a dangerous drug.
Many opponents note that the federal government continues to classify marijuana as a dangerous substance on par with opiates, heroin and LSD. Some legislatures seen intent on taxing marijuana out of business with extremely high state taxation.
Cannabis Taxation
The panelists at Meramec praised Missouri for not going overboard in taxing what apparently is a popular product in the state. According to Riegel and Chesley, when taxes get prohibitive, it simply drives customers to the illicit market to get product.
Panelist Riegel advocates for sensible marijuana regulations, and opportunities for hemp growers and their businesses. He serves on the Missouri Hemp Trade Association Board, where he helps shape industry standards.
Panelist Chesley is president of Occidental Group and has secured multiple dispensary licenses in Missouri. He has managed compliance and media relations, and overseen license sales. Chesley is involved in advocacy and education, serving as a representative on the Missouri Cannabis Trade Association’s Dispensary Committee
Chesley has contributed to the drafting of Missouri’s adult-use cannabis legislation, and teaches cannabis fundamentals as an adjunct professor at Saint Louis University.
Prior to shifting into academia, Meramec College’s Scheppers worked at Bayer Crop Science as plant biologist. He has a bachelor of science degree from Cleveland State University in environmental science and a master’s degree from the University of Missouri-St. Louis in cellular and molecular biology.
Environmental Echo 