2022 ended with a whimper, prompting a time for reflection of past mistakes. It started with a difference of opinion that led to an abrupt halt in development in the RD2.0, internally known as the NGT (next generation development). What started as a promising technology, testing was abruptly halted after a series of misteps- A combination of relying on unproven double-cut harvesting that delayed harvest until late September, resulting in a bad decision to leave partially harvested (tops only) plants in the field for 3 weeks. This allowed the compromised plants to absorb rainwater & rapidly degrade. In hindsight, this data is valuable to traditional fiber processors that rely on retted stalks to naturally degum the fibers, it proved disastrous for the RD2.0 prototype, as the stalks disintegrated as they were processed. This led to alot of frustration by the lead engineer, & an inability to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the NGT technology was feasible.   

Parting ways with the engineer, I was left with a feeling of ‘what-if’. After a series of chance meetings with a DIY design engineer who enjoyed 3D printing as a hobby, a ‘copy’ of the NGT was designed. This proved to be another mistake on my part. Due to my relentless nature, I pressed on with the design. Caught up in the excitement, I hired a promotional marketer to attract investors & find hemp growers that would be willing to provide the stalks the NGT copy would require to finally prove. This proved to be another mistake, as the investors were unable to provide the expertise they claimed to know of, & to top it off, were tasked with finding a hemp grower- who had no prior experience growing. Disaster finally reined & everything fell apart, starting with the failure of the NGT copy using stalks obtained by Hemp Traders in CA, along with dual-purpose Anka stalks from Peter Dushop. The crop that was being grown in Kelowna, BC had been stunted due to poorly drained land & planting a month prior to record rainfall. Finally, with my tail between my legs, I reached out to the creator of the NGT & got him in contact with the investors directly & came clean with what I had attempted. Although surprised, he accepted the investors offer of a 20% commission. Fortunately, (in a weird way), the crop they had promised to deliver from Kelowna that would have used to test the NGT once & for all was a complete failure & the investors left empty handed.