Overcoming Barriers to Entry – Voices from Around the World

Cape Town, January 27-28 2025

Fields of Green for ALL is very proud to be part of the planning committee for the very first ASTM D37 Conference to be held on the African continent.

This is a call for sponsors and speakers for this groundbreaking event. Information on how to participate is below.

Stigma is the over-arching barrier to entry in the Cannabis sector and the development of standards for quality assurance is the most powerful way of overcoming the enduring misconceptions around the harms of Cannabis.

ASTM International is a leading, globally recognised, no-profit organization in the development and delivery of voluntary consensus standards. For the past 125 years, ASTM has served society by providing a global forum for the development and publication of voluntary consensus standards for materials, products, systems, and services.

ASTM Committee D37 on Cannabis was formed in 2017 in response to the need for standards that address the quality of products and promote safety for the consumers, industry employees, and the environment. The D37 is tasked with the development and maintenance of standards and guidance materials for the international Cannabis industries (all its end uses, including industrial hemp) that ensure product quality and protect environmental health and safety, and has published 51 ASTM standards as of June 2023.

The global cannabis (and all its end uses, including industrial hemp) industries are diverse, represented by several stakeholder groups, many of whom have been historically marginalized and prevented from participating, even in their own market. ASTM International’s technical committee on cannabis (D37) recognizes these inequities and wants to provide a forum to listen and learn from more diverse representatives of these global industries. The goal of this two-day conference is to build a bridge between traditional knowledge, science, and commercialization of the many uses of the Cannabis sativa L. plant, its parts, and associated products so that underrepresented groups have an equal opportunity to succeed in the international cannabis marketplace.

Fields of Green for ALL is a member of the D37 on Cannabis as well as the sub-committee D37.93 on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion. Hence the title of the conference, in keeping with our enduring quest to find South African and African solutions to the challenges we face. We encourage ALL
companies to join ASTM as members and to support this event so that we can achieve a wider representation from our country and our continent.

The goal of this two-day conference is to build a bridge between traditional knowledge, science, and commercialization of the many uses of the Cannabis sativa L. plant, its parts, and associated products so that underrepresented groups have an equal opportunity to succeed in the international Cannabis marketplace.

Deadline for Sponsors: Thursday 29 February 2024

Deadline for Speakers (Call for Abstracts): Friday 29 March 2024

Abstract Submission Portal

All enquiries: charl(AT)fieldsofgreenforall.org.za / +27 631740938

Conference Website: Everything you need to know about sponsoring, applying to speak and attending the conference.

Additional ASTM Information ASTM D37 Committee on Cannabis

Additional Sponsor Information and Packages ASTMD37_JAN2025_Conf_Sponsor_Letter

ASTM Cannabis Resources

PLEASE USE THE OFFICIAL CONFERENCE WEBSITE FOR ALL APPLICATIONS AND CONTACT US IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS.