Pure Joy: It's what's ahead, not what if

(Editor's note: This is the second in a two-part series on Cheney's marijuana manufacturing business, Pure Joy.)

As Ted Youngs sees it, he can look towards the future of the business he runs for the family with a what if or a what can be attitude?

He's chosen the latter when discussing Pure Joy, the marijuana production facility located in the Cheney Commerce and Industrial Park. The company opened in May 2015, the idea of former Eastern Washington University professor Bill Youngs and son Ted.

But when Donald Trump was elected president last November, along with everything else that day brought, it came with the specter of the federal government cracking down on states like Colorado and Washington that have legalized the use of recreational marijuana, still an illegal Schedule 1 narcotic.

"There was already legislation in place to protect the medical side of marijuana at the state level," Youngs, Pure Joy's general manager, said. "However, on the recreational it was less clear."

Youngs, however, is very clear on the direction he plans to take.

"To me, there are enough moving pieces in the business that I can manage, or not manage; that the existential threat of the federal government closing me down is something that I've just chosen not to focus on at this point and time," Youngs said.

Youngs added, "I could manage to go out of business by thinking about the federal government, as opposed to focusing on the business."

The United States is somewhat unique across the world where recreational use of marijuana is allowed on a state-by-state basis.

Even in the Netherlands, long associated with relative ease of obtaining certain narcotics for personal use, "It (pot) is still illegal, it's just not prosecuted," Youngs said.

Columbia and Uruguay are two of a number of countries Youngs said have provisions for use of either medical of recreational marijuana in their laws.

At a state level, Olympia has stepped up and said, "Hey, we believe this is a state's rights issue," Youngs said.

It's also a significant source of tax revenue - $300 million in 2016 - for a state that seems always in need of more money to keep the governmental gears well oiled.

"They (the state) are going to be the greatest advocate for the grower on that level," Youngs said, should the feds throw down the hammer.

The regulatory environment at the state level makes sure Pure Joy stays above board, an asset in any possible crackdowns.

"They are in our business every day," Youngs said. Fines of $2,500 are possible for a security camera not correctly placed, or if a name badge is improperly worn.

About the only thing Youngs is immediately cautious about as Pure Joy closes in on its second birthday are additional investments in the business.

"The one thing I would say is as we look at major capital improvements - doubling our HVAC or purchasing a $100,000 machine - some of those things will probably wait a few more months," Youngs said.

While primarily a matter of cash flow, "The governmental situation will give us a little bit of pause," he added.

Youngs hopes with an administration that has telegraphed a desire to unwind some of the control the federal government exerts on states - less government in health care, education and the Environmental Protection Agency, just for starters - that recreational marijuana is not a minefield worth venturing into.

Because, in Youngs' view, there's more to marijuana than to just get high.

With smoked product, concentrates and edibles making up the product offerings for Pure Joy, what else is out there to pursue?

Youngs pointed to technology that separates certain cannabanoids. "That could not have been done a decade ago," he said.

There are plants which offer a pain relieving property that make a person feel good, Youngs said. "But you have no head fuzziness, you don't get high with it," he added. Lower potency products such as hand creams are being offered by general retailers.

The maximum dosage for THC (Tetrahydrocannabinol) is 10 milligrams for an edible product in the state, Youngs said. "You might see a 5 mg CBD (cannabidiol) dosage specific to pain relief or improving performance."

Because of the legal ramifications on a federal level, there has been little official non-governmental research conducted on marijuana in the U.S.

However, Youngs referred to a film, "The Scientist," that examines the work of a doctor and laboratory in Israel that is engaged in numerous studies. "That's a country that has established a framework and a structure for looking at the value of the plant," Youngs said.

Paul Delaney can be reached at pdelaney@cheneyfreepress.com.