Chapter 16 Emerging trends in cannabis cultivation – and the way forward Martin Bouchard, Gary Potter, Tom Decorte On November 2, 2010 the citizens of California were asked to vote on Proposition 19 – the Regulate, Control, and Tax Cannabis (RCTC) proposition – which would have legalized the possession and cultivation of cannabis for citizens over 21 years old, and allow the state to regulate and tax the sale of cannabis in licensed establishments. Although it didn’t pass, the mere fact that such a proposition was seriously considered in a major US state is notable. The legalization of cannabis would, to say the least, considerably change the landscape of cannabis consumption and cultivation in the US, but also for other countries directly or indirectly affected by the change (e.g. Mexico, Canada). If such a proposition were to materialize, it would provide extensive material for another book. As demonstrated in a recent volume on this very issue, discussion over possible change in cannabis policy is happening across the world (Room et al. 2010). Over the past decades, several countries have seen changes to the traditional approaches of criminal prohibition of cannabis use. In the Netherlands and several US states, less punitive cannabis use control regimes were implemented in the late 1970s. More recently, reforms have been implemented or proposed in an increasing number of countries in the European Union, Oceania and the Americas. In February 2009, a Latin