Vancouver's Kwantlen Polytechnic University to teach cannabis cultivation and sales

It's official: you can now learn to growing weed in a school setting. To help aspiring cannabis producers navigate the various legal pitfalls, Kwantlen Polytechnic University (KPU) in Vancouver, British Columbia, will be offering a 14-week online course this autumn of‘Introduction to Professional Management of Marijuana for Medical Purposes in Canada.

Jim Pelton, the University's Director of Programs, told VICE: «There is in fact a huge lack of knowledge about the basics of this industry, so this course will cover that need.» The program will be separated into 4 modules:

• Plant production and facility management,
• Laws and regulations
• Marketing, sales and patient acquisition strategies
• Health and the drug development process

There are currently 25 authorized medical cannabis in Canada, 13 in Ontario and 6 in British Columbia. But Tegan Adams, Professor and Director of biz dev at Experchem Laboratories, a cannabis testing company, estimates that the Canadian Ministry of Health has received over 2,000 requests for authorization. «That's a very low success rate,» Tegan Adams sums up, pointing to the need for education at all levels.

The course has been created with the help of cannabis industry experts, including experienced legal growers. According to the KPU website, «students will learn to identify the different characteristics of plants. They will be trained to identify good plants from bad and learn processing techniques, as well as how to optimize the growing environment for healthy production». Specialized horticulture after all.

Tegan Adams readily admits that the subject could benefit illegal growers looking to then sell on the black market, but, she says, «that's not the point. Part of the interest comes from people who are passionate about the medical perspective, having lost a loved one to a cancer, or using it to treat another disease».

«It's not a gardening course,» adds Jim Pelton. «It's about how to do it legally.

The first course is currently half-full, with 25 students registered. It runs from September 8 to October 23, and costs 12,49$ Canadian (about €870), or about 100 grams of weed on the French black market.

L’National University of Colombia will also give cannabis cultivation courses