Dutch Coffeeshops Turn 30!
Cannabis coffeeshops in the Netherlands celebrate
their 30th anniversary on November 29, 2002.
Dutch coffeeshop entrepreneurs honour their
pioneers!
When Wernard
Bruining and a few hippie friends started to sell hash from
a former bakery in Amsterdam,
in 1972, he could not foresee his initiative would develop into
the industry it is now, 30 years later.
Wernard's Mellow
Yellow was the first place to serve their customers with pre-bagged
deals of hash,
from a regular address.
This example was followed up in the following
years; the famous Bulldog
concern opened its first coffeeshop in 1975, in the middle of
the Red
Light district, in business for 27 years already! Henk de
Vries, the founder, is now the managing director of a chain of
Bulldog coffeeshops, bars and a traveller's hotel. He is the longest
active coffeeshop-entrepreneur in the world.
It was Wernard who introduced the technique
of sinsemilla
growing to the Netherlands,
in 1979, and produced the first harvest of the renowned 'Nederweed'
in 1980. He developed this technique in close cooperation with
an American expert, Old Ed, who came over from California to share
his knowledge with Wernard. This shows that the famous Dutch sinsemilla
originates from the USA.
After setting up hundreds of sinsemilla growers
in the Netherlands, and founding the Lowlands Seed Company in
1981, Wernard went on to other projects.
In 1986, Wernard opened the first growshop
of Europe, serving his members with the equipment, nutrition,
seeds and cuttings, and with expert advice, to start up their
own 'homegrow' operation to produce sinsemilla, the demand for
the potent marihuana grew faster than the plants!
Coffeeshops
became accepted in Dutch society, their numbers went up to 1450,
around 1994, the current count is 805 coffeeshops, in 105 out
of the 504 Municipal Counties in the Netherlands.
Wernard was and is the ultimate cannabis
pioneer, he initiated the first medical marihuana project in 1996,
"Mediweed", meant to serve sick and disabled people
with first class cannabis, for a reduced price. The system still
works, and serves thousands of people.
Positronics went bankrupt in 1997, theft
and fraud in his company left him with a 1.5 million guilders
in bills, and pushed him into a state of depression, after exactly
25 years in the business he gave birth too.
The cannabis entrepreneurs of the Netherlands
are about to pay tribute to Wernard, the Potfather of Cannabis,
for his career as a pioneer, for thirty years now!
The Global
Hempmuseum, in cooperation with a number of coffeeshops and
other cannabis related businesses, organise a special event for
and around Wernard: 'The 30th Anniversary of Coffeeshops Celebration'
This event is meant as a fundraiser for Wernard
Bruining, and to pay tribute to him and other greats of the cannabis
culture, in a relaxed setting, with video's, demo's, artists and
a special bingo, with a two week trip to Jamaica as a grand prize.
During the event there will be a book presentation,
Wernard will be handed the first copy of 'The Dutch Experience',
by the author, Nol
van Schaik. The book describes the developments of Wernard's
initiatives and the explosive follow up, over the past 30 years,
and the political changes and motivation that lead to the current
status of cannabis in the Netherlands. Wernard and other prominent
cannabis pioneers were involved in supplying authentic material
and pictures, making this book a unique chronicle of the history
of cannabis, the coffeeshops and the policy around the controversial
topics.
After the Anniversary Celebration, we clear
the floor for Wernard again, he launches the Haarlem Hash &
Weed Festival on Saturday, November 30. This event is organised
to taste cannabis, and then cast a vote on the quality of the
tested product, in the most democratic manner possible.
Old Ed, the Sinsemilla Man from the USA,
86 years old now, will be our special guest, throughout the events,
he will be available for a meet and greet in the Global Hempmuseum,
from 14.00 - 17.00 hrs. The closure of this 'best cannabis competition'
is on Sunday, December 1, the winners will be announced and handed
a suitable trophy on Sunday evening, from 21.00 hrs.
More info on The Anniversary celebration,
and the Haarlem Hash & Weed Festival, is available on:
www.wwwshop.nl/30
More info on "The Dutch Experience"
book:
www.realdealpublishing.com
contacts:
The Global Hempmuseum,
Tel/fax: 0031(0)235349939
Maruska de Blaauw:
0031 (0) 653666921
Kim van Schaik:
0031 (0) 618499064
