Dr. Bronner’s, the soap company with the eccentric on-bottle messaging, really loves cannabis.

It’s not just that they’re one of the largest U.S. consumers of hemp oil, an ingredient derived from the non-drug version of the plant. The All-One also is a longtime advocate of recreational marijuana.

And that’s why the activist personal hygiene business just planted itself amid one of the most important debates of the legal marijuana industry: Who gets to decide what’s ethical and organic when it comes to cannabis?

“I feel like we’re in a good position to be able to assist and maybe help shape some of the standards for the cannabis industry,” said Les Szabo, director of constructive capital for Dr. Bronner’s.

A federal appellate panel on Wednesday blocked the states of Nebraska and Oklahoma from challenging Colorado’s marijuana legalization law, saying their claims should be directed to the U.S. Supreme Court—a venue that has already refused to hear their fight.

Colorado-based biotech company Next Frontier Biosciences (“NFB”) announced plans to launch a suite of purified cannabinoid products for the medical and adult-use marijuana markets in Colorado in the third quarter of 2017. NFB’s Verra Wellness line of products are scientifically formulated for accurate and consistent delivery of purified tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and cannabidiol (CBD) in three different ratios via nasal mists and sublingual sprays. Verra Wellness will also offer a line of small batch topical salves designed to permeate skin and muscle tissue deeply without penetrating the blood stream or causing psychoactive effects.

A cannabis farm’s neighbor can sue them for smells and other nuisances that could harm their property values, a federal appeals court ruled Wednesday.

The 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruling revives a lawsuit between a Colorado horse farm and a neighboring marijuana-growing warehouse.

The horse farm’s owners, the Reillys, sued in 2015, claiming that the warehouse would diminish their land’s value by emitting “noxious odors” and attracting unsavory visitors. A federal district court dismissed the Reillys’ claim, and the warehouse opened in 2016.

The Colorado Department of Agriculture, Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment and the Occupational Safety and Health Association are teaming up to host a health-and-safety course for marijuana employees this summer, as the industry continues to grow and add more workers.

In West Virginia, a new law includes a provision that requires regulators to encourage minority-owned business owners to apply for growing licenses. (Photo by Heath Korvola/ Digital Vision/Getty Images)

In some states that have legalized marijuana, officials are trying to entice nonwhite citizens to join the cannabis industry with breaks aimed at making up for the toll unequal drug enforcement has taken on Black and brown communities.

So far, the booming industry has overwhelmingly line the pockets of white cannabis sellers.

The Denver dispensary is called Medicine Man and was founded on serving medical marijuana patients. Yet, since Colorado legalized recreational marijuana sales three years ago, few of the store's patrons have been making medicinal purchases.

“There’s less need for medical inventory because we have less medical customers,” said Andy Williams, owner and CEO of Medicine Man, one of Colorado’s largest legal marijuana stores selling both recreational and medical marijuana. “People don’t want to go through the hurdles to get their cards anymore.”

The legal weed business is booming in Colorado, and the state has finalized plans to spend its pot tax windfall on health programs in public schools, housing for at-risk populations, and a new treatment program to combat the opioid crisis.

Cannabis is one of the fastest growing industries in the United States, and thanks to people like John-Paul Maxfield, it’s also rapidly becoming one of the most forward thinking – and (with any luck) trendsetting.

In 2009, Matthew Kahl of the 101st Airborne Division returned stateside from his first combat deployment. In Afghanistan he had seen firsthand the carnage of explosions set off in crowded street markets. Back on base at Fort Campbell, Kentucky, he tried to put those memories behind him. But echoes of wartime still haunted him as he as he inched through the commissary.

He made his way through the market with his back to the aisles’ shelves, keeping a watchful eye on the bustle. Children toddled behind their mothers, sometimes squealing or crying. Kahl couldn’t stand the crying.