Oregon State Fair To Award Blue Ribbons To Cannabis Farmers

Farmers take righteous pride in what they raise, with the ultimate prize for many who work the land being recognition at the annual State Fair. And in just the second year of legal recreational sales, Oregon’s cannabis farmers will get to compete for the same rewards that await the top hog farmers, apple growers and other agricultural prodigies.

This year’s Oregon State Fair will include a cannabis competition, according to the Los Angeles Times. The Oregon Cannabis Growers’ Fair will hand out blue, yellow and purple ribbons in three categories: indica, sativa and hybrid.

Growers’ rewards up until now have always been within the industry, with a trophy from the Emerald Cup or a win at the High Times Cannabis Cup the best evidence of a farmer being outstanding in his or her field.

The sudden “inclusion of marijuana in a state fair speaks to [cannabis’s] suddenly booming reputation as a cash crop and its growers as the future farmers of America,” as the Times reported.

However, the judging will be a little different than what attendees of the Emerald Cup are used to: there will be no consumption. Only “non-flowering” plants will be judged, meaning no buds. Just to be safe, the non-flowering plants will also be housed in their own hall at the fair, away from children. Still, for a state that already treats craft beer as a point of pride, having the state fair welcome weed is a step in the right direction.

Do you think your marijuana crop this year should win awards?