Federal officials in New Mexico are apparently targeting state-licensed marijuana companies at border checkpoints and seizing regulated cannabis products, according to media reports. 

New Mexico legalized medical marijuana in 2019, followed by the legalization of adult-use cannabis in 2021. Regulated sales of recreational weed began in the state on April 1, 2022, just under a year after Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham signed the legalization bill into law.

Since then, New Mexico’s licensed cannabis businesses have seen little interference from federal authorities, much like other weed-legal states over the last several years. The situation has changed recently, however, with U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents seizing regulated cannabis products at least a dozen times over the last two weeks, according to Ben Lewinger, executive director of the New Mexico Chamber of Commerce. Although 12 such seizures have been reported, the actual number could be even higher.

“There still is a lot of stigma and a lot of fear so I imagine this is underreported,” Lewinger told KRQE 13 television news. “It’s hurting small businesses. It’s hurting all of us because of the loss of tax revenue.”

CBP officers are permitted to establish immigration checkpoints to help stem smuggling and human trafficking within 100 miles of the international border with Mexico. In states with legal weed, these checkpoints are generally navigated without incident by licensed cannabis companies moving products within the state. But recently that has changed, although seemingly only in New Mexico. Lewinger said he believes the state’s cannabis businesses are being targeted by federal officials in the state and called on the Biden administration to step in.

“Our brothers and sisters in California and Arizona, which also share a border with Mexico, they’re not seeing this kind of same increased activity. It seems like this is a situation that is particular to New Mexico and I think what needs to happen is The White House needs to direct the Department of Homeland Security to stop wasting resources on a product that poses no threat,” Lewinger said. “It’s just clearly outside of the scope of Customs and Border Patrol.”

Nick Spoor, operations manager at Top Crop Cannabis Co., told reporters that the company has regularly transported cannabis products through CBP checkpoints successfully.

“Normally they don’t have dogs, usually it’s just a, ‘are you a U.S. citizen, yes’ and then they wave you through,” said Spoor.

But that changed when CBP agents seized products from one of the company’s vehicles at a checkpoint on Valentine’s Day.

“We’ve been going through that checkpoint for over a year, no questions asked, so obviously we’re doing everything compliantly. It was manifested product,” said Top Crop Cannabis Co. CEO Matt Chadwick. “So, I was shocked, a little blown away and taken back.”

Ethan Ramsey, an employee with Las Cruces cannabis producer Head Space Alchemy, was arrested by the CBP last week while attempting to go through an immigration checkpoint, according to a report from The Paper. The driver had been stopped at a checkpoint on Interstate 25, about 25 miles north of Las Cruces while delivering samples to a cannabis lab in Santa Fe. 

Rob Duran, a managing partner of Head Space Alchemy, was following in another vehicle. The Paper obtained an audio recording of the interaction with CBP officials. 

“We’ve been instructed to seize all cannabis—all illegal products,” the CBP officer can be heard saying. “It’s still federally illegal.”

When Duran asked how the company and CBP could reach a solution to the situation, he was told that he could talk to a supervisor or contact the regional office. 

“I can’t tell you anything that they [haven’t] already told you,” the officer says on the recording. “Or I can’t go above what they’re telling you … Everything’s going to get seized.”

When Duran asks about Ramsey, he is told that the employee has been arrested.

“He’s under arrest,” the agent says. “That’s what happens when someone gets placed under arrest. You’re trying to get a definitive answer out of me. I don’t know where we’re at. We’ve just started this process. We’ve just started this case, so I can’t give you a definitive answer.”

Between last week’s seizure by CBP and an earlier one, Duran says the company has lost about $20,000 in product. More significantly, his workers now have a record with the federal government because of the interactions.

“In both cases, [employees] have had their pictures taken and been fingerprinted, and have also been told that their names are going to now be in a federal database as being caught at a federal inspection checkpoint with cannabis,” Duran says.

When contacted by local media, a CBP spokesperson denied allegations that officers in New Mexico are targeting licensed cannabis businesses.

“Although legal for medical and/or recreational use in many states, marijuana is classified as a Schedule I controlled substance under federal law,” the spokesperson said in a statement. “Therefore, U.S. Border Patrol agents will continue to take appropriate enforcement action against those who are encountered in possession of marijuana anywhere in the United States.”

Chadwick of Top Crop Cannabis Co. said that his business can handle the loss from CBP interference. But he says that other companies could be irreparably harmed by the product seizures.

“People’s lives are at stake here. Businesses are at stake here. And it can affect some people with, like I said, very dire circumstances and they could lose everything they’ve had,” said Chadwick. “They’ve put their hearts and souls into their businesses and it’s not fair.”

A long standing argument against the legalization of cannabis has cited that legal access could lead to an increase in youth cannabis use. As states across the country continue pushing forward with reform measures, research is continually providing insight on just how merited that assertion is in actuality.

Fresh off the heels of a recent study showing the prevalence of delta-8 THC use among high school seniors — a hemp-derived cannabinoid that is widely available outside of the legal cannabis industry and in states with or without legal cannabis programs — some may wonder how many teens are using cannabis in recreational states and whether reform has escalated these trends.

A new study published in the journal Addictive Behaviors looked to investigate how legal cannabis laws have impacted adolescent use and examined lifetime and past 30-day (P30D) cannabis use among middle school-aged adolescents in Nevada versus New Mexico.

It ultimately affirmed what many studies in the past have: Initiating state-licensed cannabis sales is not associated with an increase in cannabis use among young people.

Comparing Youth Cannabis Use in Legal and Illegal Recreational States

We’re still exploring the impacts of cannabis use, for better or worse, given the limited scope of research on the plant over the last several decades. However, despite the many benefits cannabis and its compounds may offer us, it’s widely accepted that cannabis use during adolescence can be especially impactful on development. 

To examine how adult-use cannabis legalization has influenced adolescent cannabis use, researchers behind the recent study used data from the 2017 and 2019 NV Youth Risk Behavior Survey and the NM Youth Risk and Resiliency Survey, state-run surveys for Nevada and New Mexico respectively designed to monitor health behaviors among U.S. students.

Researchers used difference-in-difference analyses to compare behaviors surrounding lifetime and past 30-day use in Nevada and New Mexico during the same period. At the time, Nevada had legal adult-use cannabis sales and New Mexico did not.

According to the analysis, the odds of lifetime and past 30-day use increased in both states during the observed time period, specifically among students who were female, older, non-white or attending a Title 1 school. 

Ultimately, researchers noted that there was “no difference in lifetime and P30D marijuana use by adult-use sales status.” 

Rather, cannabis use in both states followed similar trajectories. Researchers still noted this as a point of concern, given the negative health consequences of cannabis use at an early age, though whether or not cannabis was legal in a given state didn’t appear to be an influencing factor.

“We did not find compelling evidence that implementation of adult-use marijuana sales was associated with an immediate increase in lifetime or P30D marijuana use among middle school youth in Nevada which aligns with previous research,” the study notes.

Indeed, many other studies from the past have come to a similar conclusion: Cannabis reform does not appear to be correlated with an increase in use among young people.

A 2022 policy paper looked broader, reviewing data on consumption among eighth, 10th and 12th grade students, finding that youth consumption either “decreases or remains flat in regulated markets.”

“State legalization of cannabis has not, on average, impacted the prevalence of cannabis use among adolescents. In other words, states with medical and/or adult use laws are not seeing larger increases in adolescent use relative to states where use remains illegal,” the report states, additionally noting that educational early prevention methods can help to combat youth consumption.

The same appears to be true when focusing explicitly on medical cannabis laws, as a 2021 study “found no evidence between 1991 and 2015 of increases in adolescents reporting past 30-day marijuana use or heavy marijuana use associated with state MML (medical marijuana law) enactment or operational MML dispensaries.”

Another study tackled an adjacent inquiry: Does a state’s legal or illegal adult-use cannabis status impact children’s attitudes around cannabis use and perceptions of its risks? Researchers concluded that individual, child-level characteristics were the primary factor influencing young people’s attitudes toward cannabis, not state policy.

A recent report from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention further compounds these findings, showing a steady decline in cannabis use in high school students from 2011 to 2021.

The market is still in its infancy, and we’re bound to see more reports on the topic as time goes on. But as it stands, the argument that legal cannabis will increase use among young people appears to have weak footing, and naysayers may need to look elsewhere for concrete arguments against reform.

The office of New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham said Tuesday that cannabis consumers “have purchased more than $678.4 million worth of adult-use cannabis products and $331.6 million in medical products since April 1, 2022,” and that, to date, “the state has recorded more than 21 million transactions with $75 million in cannabis excise taxes going to the state general fund and local communities.”

“This is a huge milestone for New Mexico’s cannabis industry,” Lujan Grisham, a Democrat, said in a statement. “Nearly two years after beginning sales, New Mexico is on the map as a premier hub for legal and safe cannabis and the thriving business community that comes with it.”

The $1 billion threshold represents a significant milestone for New Mexico’s legal weed industry, which opened for business in April of 2022. (The state officially legalized adult-use marijuana a year earlier, in 2021, when Lujan Grisham signed into law the Cannabis Regulation Act.)

Almost one year exactly, Lujan Grisham announced that the state had hit $300 million in adult-use pot sales.

“In just one year, hundreds of millions of dollars in economic activity has been generated in communities across the state, the number of businesses continues to increase, and thousands of New Mexicans are employed by this new industry,” Lujan Grisham said at the time. “I’m excited to see what the future holds as we continue to develop an innovative and safe adult-use cannabis industry.”

In that announcement, the governor’s office said that monthly sales “have remained consistent throughout the last year, with March 2023 marking the highest adult-use sales at $32.3 million,” and that, as of March 2023, “more than $27 million in cannabis excise taxes has gone to the state general fund and to local communities.”

“To date, the state has recorded more than 10 million transactions. More data on sales and licenses can be found here,” the office said in a press release at the time.

In Tuesday’s announcement of the $1 billion milestone, the governor’s office said that “Albuquerque remains the top city in the state for cannabis sales with more than $202 million in adult-use products being sold since legalization,” while “Sunland Park, one of the many communities that has been positively impacted by cannabis tourism, recorded $57.4 million in adult-use sales.”

It isn’t a surprise that Albuquerque, New Mexico’s largest city, would boast the highest sales tallies. The city reportedly has more cannabis dispensaries than it does liquor stores.

Tuesday’s press release from the governor’s office indicated that smaller communities in New Mexico “are also reaping the benefits of the flourishing cannabis industry.”

“Municipalities like Las Vegas, Silver City, and Deming have each seen more than $5 million in adult-use sales since April 2022,” the press release said. “As of March 1, 2024, the state has issued 2,873 cannabis licenses across New Mexico, including 1,050 retailers, 878 manufacturers, and 459 micro producers.”

Lujan Grisham’s signing of the Cannabis Regulation Act in 2021 made New Mexico the 18th state to legalize adult-use marijuana.

“The legalization of adult-use cannabis paves the way for the creation of a new economic driver in our state with the promise of creating thousands of good paying jobs for years to come,” Lujan Grisham said at the time. “We are going to increase consumer safety by creating a bona fide industry. We’re going to start righting past wrongs of this country’s failed war on drugs. And we’re going to break new ground in an industry that may well transform New Mexico’s economic future for the better.”

Her office projected that “sales of adult-use recreational cannabis could amount to $318 million in the first year, creating over several years what could be more than 11,000 new jobs,” and pointed to preliminary estimates that suggested “the excise tax will raise at least $20 million for the general fund in the first full fiscal year, with significant growth in subsequent years.”

“As we look to rebound from the economic downturn caused by the pandemic, entrepreneurs will benefit from this great opportunity to create lucrative new enterprises, the state and local governments will benefit from the added revenue and, importantly, workers will benefit from the chance to land new types of jobs and build careers,” the governor added then.

“This legislation is a major, major step forward for our state,” she continued. “Legalized adult-use cannabis is going to change the way we think about New Mexico for the better – our workforce, our economy, our future. We’re ready to break new ground. We’re ready to invest in ourselves and the limitless potential of New Mexicans. And we’re ready to get to work in making this industry a successful one.”

Psilocybin proposal Senate Memorial 12 (SM-12) was recently signed by Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham.

SM-12 is referred to as memorial legislation, which is more of an official request for research, unlike other bill proposals. “A memorial requesting the Department of Health to study the efficacy of using psilocybin mushrooms for therapeutic treatments and the establishment of a program for psilocybin mushrooms to be used for therapeutic medical treatments,” the legislation states.

The memorial legislation explains that mental illness in New Mexico is at an all-time high, and a majority of suicides in the state are committed by veterans or first responders suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder or depression. Drug overdoses are also high in the Land of Enchantment, and the state’s rate of alcohol-related deaths is “highest in the nation.”

The reasoning behind pushing SM-12 is because many reputable universities and institutions have found efficacy in the medical properties of psilocybin. The proposal concludes by requesting that the Department of Health and University of New Mexico Health Sciences work together “to study and evaluate the efficacy of psilocybin-based therapeutic treatments and the establishment of a program allowing the use of psilocybin mushrooms for therapeutic medical treatments and the necessary statutory or regulatory framework for developing such a program.”

SM-12 was sent to the Senate Health and Public Affairs Committee on Feb. 10 and unanimously with a 7-0 vote to pass. “This can help people very potentially, and so what we’re trying to do in a bipartisan way is ask the Department of Health to recognize that we want them to get going to start looking at this,” said Sen. Jeff Steinborn, one of the bill’s sponsors.

The New Mexico Senate unanimously approved SM-12 on Feb. 14 in a 37-0 vote. “It turns out that medical mushrooms, psilocybin, has proven to be medically efficacious for the use of major behavioral health issues,” Steinborn said on the day of the Senate vote. “It can help alleviate and be an alternative to major anti-depressant drugs and probably other drugs that have serious side effects and can bring real relief to New Mexicans.”

Senate Minority Whip Craig W. Brandt, who is also a sponsor of SM-12, explained that medicinal psilocybin is “not a treatment that you take on your own once a day or once a week or even once a month, but it can be a treatment that’s done about once every six months to every year, as needed.”

“And sometimes one treatment is all that’s needed to actually cure someone of a traumatic brain injury, or of PTSD,” Brandt continued. “And so this is actually a really exciting, cutting-edge technology… God seems to have provided a cure, and we just need to figure out how to use that cure.”

Previously, the last bill in New Mexico to attempt to pass psilocybin therapy was last spring with House Bill 393. It did not receive any further action after March 2023.

A steady stream of studies have been published on the topic of psilocybin in recent years. One in particular showed that psilocybin consumption not only contributed to enhanced sexual pleasure and satisfaction in participants, but that those effects lasted up to six months after consumption occurred. “It’s important to stress our work does not focus on what happens to sexual functioning while people are on psychedelics, and we are not talking about perceived ‘sexual performance,’ but it does indicate there may be a lasting positive impact on sexual functioning after their psychedelic experience, which could potentially have impacts on psychological wellbeing,” said lead author and Ph.D. student Tommaso Barba.

Psilocybin legislation in other states has continued to rise. In late January, companion bills Senate Bill 3019 and House Bill 2630 were proposed in Hawaii, which would establish therapeutic psilocybin regulations and also enact protections for patients. In Arizona, Senate Bill 1570 would legalize psilocybin treatment centers and establish regulations and training requirements for therapy center medical directors. Just last week, Senate Bill 3695 (also called the Compassionate Use and Research of Entheogens (CURE) Act was proposed in Illinois, which if passed would also legalize supervised use of psilocybin in a therapeutic setting.

Psilocybin and other substances are recognized for their medicinal value outside of the U.S. as well. Mexican Senator Alejandra Lagunes spoke out in October 2023 about suffering from depression and anxiety in her 20s. Her mindset changed after an Ayahuasca trip. “My perspective of my own life changed. My mind changed. All my negative thinking patterns shifted,” Lagunes told Vice in an interview. “It was as though there was a different light illuminating my mind and I saw things differently. I stopped taking medication. It changed my life.

Now Lagunes is proposing that psilocybin mushrooms, which are native to Mexico and have long been utilized by indigenous people, could be a huge benefit to people who are suffering from mental illness. “There isn’t a single meeting in the Senate that doesn’t mention the mental health crisis and the lack of medications to treat it,” Lagunes said. She explained her intention to propose psilocybin legalization and have it removed from Mexico’s list of scheduled drugs (currently on the same level as heroin, cocaine, and MDMA).

In a news release on Tuesday, the Cannabis Control Division (CCD) of the New Mexico Regulation and Licensing Department said that Bliss Farm and Native American Agricultural Development Company (NAADC), two cannabis farms located within miles of each other in Torrance County, New Mexico, had been ordered to “immediately stop all commercial cannabis activity” and “pay large fines.”

The two farms were cited for “exceeding plant count limits, not utilizing the state’s mandatory track and trace system and unsafe conditions, among other violations,” which resulted in the revocation of their licenses.

Additionally, Bliss Farm and NAADC must “each pay $1 million in fines for their illegal activity,” the Cannabis Control Division said. The fines will “be remitted to the State Treasurer and are to be deposited by law in the Current School Fund,” according to Tuesday’s news release.

“The illicit activity conducted at both of these farms undermines the good work that many cannabis businesses are doing across the state,” Clay Bailey, the Acting Superintendent of the New Mexico Regulation and Licensing Department, said in a statement. “The excessive amount of illegal cannabis plants and other serious violations demonstrates a blatant disregard for public health and safety, and for the law.”

Todd Stevens, the director of the Cannabis Control Division, said that he hopes the sanctions serve as a warning to other would-be violators.

“Compliance within the industry is the CCD’s main priority and our office is committed to ensuring New Mexicans have access to safe cannabis products,” Stevens said. “The team worked diligently on both of these cases to determine the appropriate action for violations at a scale we hadn’t seen before. The outcomes were justified under the law based on the egregious conduct of these individuals and I hope this serves as a reminder to those who might be violating the laws and rules the state has put forth.”

Last year, local news station KOAT conducted an undercover investigation that revealed “how some cannabis dispensaries were not following the rules and were selling marijuana coming from outside New Mexico.”

The state’s cannabis law requires all cannabis programs to be grown and regulated in New Mexico.

Acting Cannabis Control Director Andrew Vallejos told KOAT last year that the state needed “to devote some more resources to enforcement.” 

This week’s announcement suggests that might be happening. 

The Cannabis Control Division uncovered the violations at Bliss Farm and NAADC during inspections carried out by compliance officers.

At Bliss Farm, those officers “discovered multiple alarming violations including numbers of cannabis plants far exceeding the allowable limits under the Cannabis Regulation Act, not utilizing the state’s mandatory track and trace system, unpermitted structures, unsanitary conditions of the production facility, pests, and more,” according to Tuesday’s news release.

“In total, Bliss Farm was cited for 17 violations. The farm’s large number of cannabis plants on site and evidence of a recent harvest without records entered into the track and trace system led the division to conclude the plants were transferred or sold illicitly,” the agency said.

The Cannabis Control Division said that it “filed a Notice of Contemplated Action against Bliss Farm on August 14, 2023,” and that the business “requested a hearing on the matter which was set for October 19, 2023.” 

“At the hearing, the farm’s attorney stated that all violations had been remedied. However, upon returning to the facility, compliance officers did not see any evidence that the violations were fixed. The hearing  officer agreed to revocation and the imposition of fines which were set by the CCD after determining the appropriate amount,” the Cannabis Control Division said.

Native American Agricultural Development Company (NAADC), meanwhile “was cited for eight violations, including exceeding the allowable number of cannabis plants under the Cannabis Regulation Act, improper security measures, no chain of custody procedures, and ill-maintained grounds with trash and pests throughout,” according to the news release.

And much like at Bliss Farm, the Cannabis Control Division’s compliance officers “also saw evidence of a recent harvest at NAADC, but no plants had ever been entered into the mandatory track and trace system,” the release said.

“The CCD filed a Notice of Contemplated Action against NAADC on October 12, 2023. The hearing on the matter was conducted on November 22, 2023,” the news release continued. “At that time, representatives from NAADC and the CCD were given the opportunity to present their cases. The hearing officer agreed with the state’s recommendation to revoke NAADC’s license and impose a fine.”

New Mexico legalized recreational cannabis for adults in 2021, when Democratic Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham signed the Cannabis Regulation Act into law. Legal adult-use sales began in 2022, topping $300 million in the first year of sales.

In Tuesday’s news release, the Cannabis Control Division said that it has “revoked six licenses to date and has levied more than $2.3 million in fines related to illegal activity.”

Speaking of cannabis, the High Times Cannabis Cup New Mexico: People’s Choice Edition 2023 is scheduled to take place Dec. 9 at the Rio Rancho Events Center in Albuquerque, with a headlining act from the iconic duo, Method Man and Redman. It’s here that anyone can be the judge to determine the best weed New Mexico has to offer.

Below we list must-see attractions in New Mexico that will keep you busy during your stay in the desert dreamland, where you can see the stars in the sky and get a taste of Southwestern art.

International UFO Museum and Research Center in Roswell

Ufologists agree that Roswell is one of the top UFO hotspots on the planet. In 1947, an unidentified craft crashed into the ground in Roswell, and wreckage from a “flying disc” was recovered on the property of a local rancher. Local, typically credible papers ran with the story. The most logical first stop is the International UFO Museum and Research Center, and the tourist traps around it.

The Georgia O’Keeffe Museum 

The Georgia O’Keeffe Museum is ground zero for the artist’s finest work with a collection of 3,000 pieces including 140 oil paintings, 700 drawings, and hundreds of other works. O’Keeffe was known for her powerfully direct approach to expressing the divine role of females, and she experimented with peyote. The Georgia O’Keeffe Museum  located a few blocks northwest of the Santa Fe Plaza in downtown Santa Fe.

Gila Cliff Dwellings

Nomads used the caves above Cliff Dweller Creek as temporary shelter about 1,000 years ago. In the late 1200s, people of the agricultural Mogollon (Southern Ancestral Pueblo) culture settled there, built rooms, crafted pottery, and raised children in the cliff dwellings for one or two generations. By approximately 1300, the Mogollon had moved on from the Gila Cliff Dwellings.

The Cathedral Basilica of St. Francis of Assisi

Santa Fe is a very old city, especially by American standards. In 1598, the Spanish declared Santa Fe “New Spain” initially. While most of The Cathedral Basilica of St. Francis of Assisi was built in 1886, an older church used to exist on the same site, built in 1626, but was destroyed in the 1680 Pueblo Revolt. Catholic or not, this cathedral has history. 

New Mexico Museum of Natural History & Science

The New Mexico Museum of Natural History & Science in Albuquerque offers a fun and interactive experience. The museum’s new hall, titled Ancient Life, features hundreds of never-before-seen fossils. The Planetarium has a 55-foot Sky-Skan Definiti, full-dome theater which is great for edibles.

Four Corners Monument

Here you can stand in New Mexico, Arizona, Utah, and Colorado—simultaneously. The location is marked by a granite and brass plaque and surrounded by flags representing the tribal nations and states that share the region. At the site, you’ll find vendors selling homemade jewelry, pottery, crafts, and art. The cost to visit this monument is $5 per person.

Sandia Peak Aerial Tramway

Got a fear of heights? According to Trip Advisor, Sandia Peak Aerial Tramway is the state’s number one tourist destination. The tram takes visitors 2.7 miles and 10,378 feet up the Sandia Mountains. You can witness views of over 11,000 square miles of New Mexico from that vantage point.

Taos Pueblo

Taos is home to art galleries, hot springs, spellbinding scenery and excellent skiing opportunities. Most notably, Pueblo adobe dwellings that have lasted over 1,000 years. In Taos, visitors can choose between several museums: The Millicent Rogers Museum, Taos Art Museum at Fechin House, and the Kit Carson House & Museum.

Bandelier National Monument

With ruins that date back to 1150 CE, the Bandelier National Monument provides 33,000 acres of beautiful landscape, showing off New Mexico’s incredible natural wilderness. This includes homes carved into soft rock. You can see historical relics from the ancestral Pueblo tribes who built structures in the area for thousands of years.

Petroglyph National Monument

Petroglyph National Monument is home to nearly 25,000 petroglyphs, 90% of which are believed to have been drawn by ancient Pueblo people. Many of the meanings behind the petroglyphs is unknown. Drivers will have to pay $1 per vehicle on weekdays and $2 on weekends. 

White Sands National Park

Forget the Sahara Desert: White Sands National Park is a stunning dune-filled region located within the Tularosa Basin and it happens to be home to the earth’s largest gypsum dune field. More than 73,000 acres of white sand stretch out all the way to the horizon. 

Carlsbad Caverns National Park

Carlsbad Caverns National Park is home to over 100 limestone caves. You can choose between two underground trails, The Big Room Trail and the Natural Entrance Trail. The former is the most popular route, taking visitors through one of the largest cave chambers in North America. You can witness 400,000 Brazilian free-tailed bats exit the cave in search of food each evening. 

Chaco Culture National Historical Park

Yet another Pueblo site, Chaco Culture National Historical Park was given its name in 2013 . No permanent outdoor lighting exists in order to protect nocturnal wildlife and the natural rhythms of humans and plants that depend on an unaltered night sky. Within the park, visitors can see evidence of the huge structures built by the Ancestral Pueblo people between 850 and 1250 AD.

High Times Cannabis Cup New Mexico: People’s Choice Edition 2023

Or you can attend the High Times Cannabis Cup New Mexico: People’s Choice Edition 2023.

A live awards show is scheduled for Saturday, Dec. 9 at the Rio Rancho Events Center in Albuquerque. The event will be headlined by Method Man and Redman, who will be joined by Devin the Dude, Paul Wall, Haizi Haze, and Lil’ Flip. New Mexico’s own will judge the cannabis and products that will prove their worth.

The duo celebrated the partnership in a new state market, while remembering what is most important to most consumers. “Our partnership with Dreamz is all about making folks’ lives better through cannabis,” said Chong. “New Mexico deserves the best, and that’s what we’re here to offer.” 

Cheech agreed, as both recently toured dispensaries in the state in recent months to get a closer look. “Together with Dreamz Dispensary, we’re weaving our story into the fabric of New Mexico,” said Marin. “This partnership is about embracing and celebrating local culture.”

Dreamz Dispensary locations span the full length of the state, and you can find them using the company’s dispensary locator. It’s another strategic move by the rapidly-growing company that’s operating in multiple states.

“The Dreamz Partnership with Cheech and Chong brings two powerhouses together,” Dreamz Dispensary CEO John Fisher told High Times. “This collaboration will allow Dreamz Dispensaries to deliver the highest quality cannabis products to the state of New Mexico with the most iconic name in cannabis culture. Together we are creating a unique and memorable experience for all cannabis enthusiasts, ensuring that every visit to Dream Dispensary is an unforgettable journey into the world of Cheech and Chong.”

The company formerly known as Eighth Icon Holdings rebranded as Cheech and Chong’s Cannabis Co. in 2021. Part of the plan was to develop better and more potent products. Bringing in Dreamz Dispensary will put it into the hands of more consumers. The duo has been in the game a lot longer than most, company representatives remind us.

“While some celebrity brands just stick their label on products and call it a day, we’re all about true partnerships,” said Brooke Mangum, CMO of Cheech and Chong’s Cannabis Co. “Our goal is simple: empower outstanding cultivators and retailers with the digital and social credibility they need to stand out against competitors and succeed.” 

The state’s cannabis industry is off to a blazing hot start: Adult-use cannabis sales in New Mexico totaled more than $300 million in the first year of regulated sales, New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham announced last April 3.

Lujan Grisham signed the Cannabis Regulation Act into law two years ago in April 2021, legalizing the use of cannabis for adults and creating a framework for regulated sales. Then one year later, in April 2022, licensed sales of adult-use cannabis began at retail locations across the state. 

As of last April, New Mexico regulators have issued around 2,000 cannabis licenses across New Mexico, including 633 cannabis retailers, 351 producers, 415 micro producers, and 507 manufacturers, the governor’s office reported.

Cheech and Chong’s Cannabis Co. is a Family-Run Business

Cheech and Chong Cannabis Co. is a family-run business, with numerous brands and product lines. The brands include Cheech & Chong’s, Cheech’s Stash, Tommy Chong’s Cannabis, and their delivery service Cheech & Chong’s Takeout, featuring THC and CBD products delivered to your door.

That includes flower lines like Lowrider, Yesca, Ahhberry, and Love Machine. On the website, you can read about the terpene profiles. Love Machine, for instance, is loaded with myrcene and ocimene, while Ahhberry is loaded with terpinolene and linalool.

Cosmic, Cheech and Chong Cannabis Co.’s concentrate line, features sugar, badder, diamonds, sauce, and disposable carts.

The company also operates with many partnerships. Last July, High Times reviewed the Cheech & Chong Mambo Herb Stick from XVape. They also partnered with Z2 Comics to release their own comic book line. Cheech and Chong’s Chronicles: A Brief History of Weed was released in a soft and hardcover editions in finer comic shops and bookstores on April 20, 2022. 

Chong has appeared in High Times numerous times, most recently in 2021, and you map their growth as artists throughout old interviews, when their fame first exploded. (You can read this scintillating interview of both comedians with former editor Ed Dwyer from the August, 1980 issue of High Times magazine, for instance, or Chong’s vivid 2020 account of Operation Pipe Dreams and unjust prison time with the real Wolf of Wall Street, Jordan Belafonte.)

Cheech and Chong’s Cannabis Co. and Dreamz Dispensary’s partnership marks a new shift into the state of New Mexico, which holds high potential for economic rewards as its industry unfolds.

A study on MDMA treatment for new mothers, which launched in the spring, is being led by Dr. Larry Leeman, the medical director of the University of New Mexico’s Milagro Program.

Leeman “treats expectant mothers experiencing opioid use disorder,” and “was dismayed to see that many of his patients eventually resumed opioid use due untreated post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD),” according to a press release from the university on the study.

“Now, Leeman and his colleagues are launching a first-of-its-kind pilot study to see whether a regimen of trauma-focused therapy coupled with doses of MDMA – popularly known to rave participants as ecstasy or molly – can help new mothers permanently overcome their drug dependency,” the press release said.

In an interview this week with local news station KOB, Leeman explained that New Mexico is “one of the epicenters of the opioid epidemic.”

A study from the New Mexico Department of Health in 2019 found that nearly two-thirds of those living in the state know someone who is or has been addicted to opioids. According to the agency, New Mexico was the “first state to approve naloxone for use by laypeople and has statewide standing orders for law enforcement to carry and pharmacists to dispense naloxone without a prescription.”

“We know that our communities often have collective intergenerational trauma here and most of the research that’s happening in psychedelic assisted therapy has happened in John Hopkins, it happens in Yale, it happens in different places. This is the first study and its happening here in New Mexico,” Leeman told the station.

The study, which was approved by the Food and Drug Administration, “will enroll 15 people with diagnoses of moderate to severe PTSD six to 12 months after they have given birth,” the university said. 

Participants in the study “will receive 12 weeks of intensive therapy and three medication sessions.”

“The project, funded through private donations, will assess whether MDMA-assisted therapy can help the mothers overcome their addictions and improve bonding with their infants,” the university explained earlier this year. “Leeman’s team is collaborating with the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies, which is supplying the MDMA used in the pilot. He noted that when the MDMA is purchased on the street it is often dangerously adulterated with other drugs, such as methamphetamine.”

In his interview this week with KOB, Leeman explained that MDMA is a “psychedelic type of drug that is different from classical psychedelics, such as psilocybin in that it really focuses on opening people up to be able to process their trauma.”

“Our hope for using MDMA assisted therapy is to treat that trauma, decrease the likelihood of using opioids again and kind of help set up the mother and the baby and the family for a life that really what everybody who’s using opioids wants, which is not to be using and to be able to be there and be fully present for their babies,” Leeman told the station.

The press release announcing the study earlier this year noted that “MDMA has complex effects, including some that are similar to classic psychedelics, such as psilocybin, which tamps down the brain’s default mode network and may interrupt trauma-driven rumination,” and that “MDMA temporarily increases production of oxytocin, a hormone that promotes a sense of connectedness.”

“Addiction has been described as the opposite of ‘connection,’” Leeman said at the time. “Another proposed mechanism of psychedelic-assisted therapies for addiction is that they increase participants’ connections with self, including emotions, values and life meaning, connection to others – family and community – and connection to the world and universe, which includes connection with nature and the feeling that everything is interconnected.”

“What the MDMA-assisted therapy does is take away their fear for a short period of time,” Leeman added. “During that time, they have the ability to process the trauma that has led to their PTSD and which have never been able to process. It’s a bit of a redo in helping people heal in ways that may improve their ability to bond with their baby.”

Academic research into psychedelic therapies continues to blossom, with local and state governments across the country also increasingly signaling an openness to what was once taboo. 

A recent study led by researchers from NYU Langone Center for Psychedelic Medicine in New York found that MDMA could be an effective treatment for various mental health conditions, and that it could also yield benefits when used in concert with other psychedelics. 

Relative to psilocybin/LSD alone, co-use of psilocybin/LSD with a self-reported low (but not medium–high) dose of MDMA was associated with significantly less intense total challenging experiences, grief, and fear, as well as increased self-compassion, love, and gratitude,” the researchers wrote.

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