The Dime

The expensive decision rarely looks intelligent before the market needs it.
Operators can build for the regulations in front of them, or for the direction regulators are already moving. Across global medical cannabis markets, internal labs, stability programs, EU GMP manufacturing, and control of distribution are beginning to separate companies that can scale profitably from those that can only trade product.
This week we sit down with Michael Sassano
Europe's 51st state
Pharmaceutical discipline
EBITDA before volume
Chapters
00:00 Schedule III and Europe
02:15 Europe as the 51st state
07:44 Building for pharmaceutical lead times
11:44 What EU GMP changes
16:14 Creativity inside the rulebook
19:40 Why pharma owns the lab
22:50 The economics of internal validation
26:34 Could the United States adopt this model
28:34 The EU GMP supply shortage
32:32 Regulators close the conversion loophole
35:23 Distribution consolidation begins
39:46 The missing vertical
43:25 A country by country strategy
46:37 What SOMAI will not do
49:42 Why extracts start with full bud
51:38 The rules become the moat
53:15 Europe as a totality of growth
55:21 Where to find Michael
Guest Links
SOMAÍ Pharmaceuticals website
Michael Sassano / SOMAÍ on X
SOMAÍ on Instagram
SOMAÍ on LinkedIn
SOMAÍ on Facebook
Our Links
The Dime Podcast — website
Bryan Fields on X
The Dime on X
The Dime on YouTube
The Dime on Instagram
Newton Insights — insights for extraction teams

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A 115-year farm discovered that preserving the legacy meant letting a new crop compete with it.
Ayrloom reached Beak & Skiff's revenue scale in three years, then forced the family to reallocate capital, people, land, and drying space while cannabis regulation kept the businesses legally separate.
The advantage was not cannabis expertise. It was years of beverage manufacturing scars, retail-grade quality systems, and relationships strong enough to survive a crowded New York shelf.
This week we sit down with Eddie Brennan
Capital behind rapid growth
Quality before repeat purchase
Defending premium through compression
Chapters
00:00 Sharing one farm across two companies
02:18 Cannabis versus apples for space
04:24 Three-year growth catches a 115-year business
07:33 Growth, cash, and what breaks
09:52 Why cannabis expertise is overrated
12:09 Beverage scars become an operating advantage
15:17 Grocery-grade quality control
19:10 Consistency wins repeat purchase
21:04 Making cannabis approachable
23:43 The reverse gateway claim
25:29 Where cannabis beverages belong
27:22 Regulation and high-dose drinks
30:14 Why Ayrloom stays narrow and deep
34:22 Price compression and retail health
37:05 When an in-house brand outruns co-manufacturing
39:39 What changes in a new market
42:10 The pressure of a fifth-generation legacy
44:35 Where to find Ayrloom
Guest Links
Eddie Brennan - ayrloom
Our Links
The Dime Podcast — website
Bryan Fields on X
The Dime on X
The Dime on YouTube
The Dime on Instagram
Newton Insights — insights for extraction teams
Follow The Dime for more conversations on cannabis business, operations, and international markets.
Share this episode with an operator rethinking their edibles.

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Federal cannabis reform is supposed to open the same door for everyone. The current market says otherwise.
The largest operators do not share one political agenda, and some of the barriers they complain about are also widening their moats. As capital markets, international medical standards, and state regulation collide, the operators built for uncertainty may be the ones hardest to dislodge.
This week we sit down with Jay Rosenthal
Limbo as a moat
EU GMP advantage
Regulation's hidden winners
Chapters
00:00 Federal limbo becomes the business model
02:17 The reform everyone agrees on
03:28 Capital markets and the bigger pond
05:35 Six hundred brands and no patience
06:55 Why Rochester can move New York
09:48 Strong operators become obvious
13:40 The cost of crossing state lines
16:28 Aurora Curaleaf and scarce EU GMP assets
20:26 The Canadian future that did not arrive
22:00 What mature industry compliance could bring
24:35 Cultivated's nonsecret sauce
31:41 Cannabis stigma still follows the operator
32:28 Why Cultivated launched membership
40:23 Quality media has a real cost
41:18 California and New York regulators share a market
44:02 Policy goals that fight each other
49:06 Competition cooperation and price compression
52:25 Where to find Jay and Cultivated
Guest Links
Jay Rosenthal - Co-Founder and Managing Director of Cultivated Media
Cultivated Media
Cultivated events
Sign up for the Cultivated Daily newsletter
Our Links
The Dime Podcast — website
Bryan Fields on X
The Dime on X
The Dime on YouTube
The Dime on Instagram
Newton Insights — insights for extraction teams
Follow The Dime for more conversations on cannabis business, operations, and international markets.
Share this episode with an operator rethinking their edibles.

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Fast-acting edibles can command a premium, but labels such as "nano" do not prove the final product works. The larger operating question is whether the formulation improves taste, shelf stability, manufacturing efficiency, and trust at the same time.
This week we sit down with Kim Sanchez Rael
Fast onset economics
The nano problem
Science/ AI and so much more
Fast-acting cannabis edibles promise a more predictable experience, but the language on the package does not always tell operators what happens in the final product.
Kim Sanchez Rael, President and CEO of Azuca, breaks down what "fast" should mean, why slow-onset edibles still dominate, and how formulation choices affect taste, stability, curing time, shelf life, and production efficiency. She explains why "nano" is often a measurement or marketing label rather than proof of a better consumer outcome, then offers four questions brands should ask any infusion supplier.
The conversation also moves beyond formulation. Kim describes the economics behind fast-acting products, the role of supplier behavior when production is at risk, the case for a single regulatory framework for the cannabis plant, and why operators cannot build a business that depends on an unpredictable regulatory change.
Topics include:
The consumer value of predictable onset
Manufacturing tradeoffs in gummy formulation
What brands should demand from infusion partners
Why structured quality systems matter
How Azuca uses AI inside its team and customer experience
Learn more about Azuca and TiME INFUSION® at https://azuca.co/.
Guest: Kim Sanchez Rael, President and CEO, Azuca
Host: Bryan Fields, The Dime
Chapters
00:01 Why slow-onset edibles still dominate
01:47 The economics of fast acting
03:56 Can brands claim "fast"?
05:56 Predictability and consumer trust
08:06 The retail education gap
10:24 How Azuca licensing works
14:44 Formulation, cannabinoids, and flavor
15:30 When "fast" does not feel fast
18:18 Onset, peak, and duration
20:01 Manufacturing efficiency R&D
23:14 Validating infusion science
24:43 Why "nano" is a buzzword
27:38 The operational cost of change
28:24 Four questions for infusion suppliers
30:00 Supplier behavior as brand experience
32:31 The Fourth of July production rescue
33:48 What cannabis still gets wrong
34:15 The One Plant Solution
37:04 Policy resistance and incrementalism
38:41 AI and "Kimothy"
41:21 Quality systems and sustainable math
44:58 The question Kim wishes people asked
45:45 Where to find Azuca
Our Links
The Dime Podcast — website
Bryan Fields on X
The Dime on X
The Dime on YouTube
The Dime on Instagram
Eighth Revolution
Newton Insights — insights for extraction teams
Follow The Dime for more conversations on cannabis business, operations, and international markets.
Share this episode with an operator rethinking their edibles.
Guest Links
Kim Sanchez Rael — Azuca

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Global expansion is often pitched as an opportunity. For an undisciplined cannabis company, it is an expensive way to expose every weakness at once.
International markets reward specific operating capabilities, not ambition alone. Pharmaceutical standards, reliable supply, disciplined data use, and local market fit determine whether an operator can cross borders without compounding its problems.
This week we sit down with Jamie Pearson
EU GMP's undervalued strategic value
Regulation exposes operating weakness
Matching strength to global markets
On The Dime, host Bryan Fields speaks with Jamie L. Pearson, President and Founder of New Holland Group, about European cannabis expansion, medical cannabis supply chains, and building operations that can succeed across borders.
Key Takeaways
Jamie explains why European medical cannabis markets call for pharmaceutical reliability, consistent supply, and a different operating model from adult-use brands.
EU GMP (European Union Good Manufacturing Practice) capability can be a strategic asset for cannabis manufacturing and international market entry.
Match the company's repeatable strengths to local buyers, regulations, and supply chains before choosing a market.
Prove standard operating procedures (SOPs) and quality controls in another U.S. state before adding language, currency, and cross-border complexity.
The discussion spans the UK, Germany, Switzerland, Slovenia, Portugal, and Brazil, alongside cannabis data and U.S. hemp regulation.
Chapters
00:00 Regulation is breaking the data layer
02:49 Finding trend data upstream
06:24 What EU GMP actually demands
10:19 Why compliant facilities become strategic assets
16:13 Canada-Europe regulatory harmony
19:20 Europe is medical first
25:28 First-mover advantage vs. disciplined execution
27:59 Medical supply rewards repeatability
30:48 Weak operations do not travel
32:24 Switzerland, Slovenia, and Portugal
35:54 Brazil and partner requirements
37:07 Practice expansion before global scale
40:08 The hidden U.S. hemp market
43:29 Turning customers into political force
47:10 Directness as respect
Guest Links
Jamie L. Pearson — official bio
New Holland Group
New Holland Group on LinkedIn
Related Episode
Germany Is the Engine: What BAT Knows That Cannabis Doesn't ft. James Yamanaka — continue exploring Germany's cannabis market and operational discipline.
Our Links
The Dime Podcast — website
Bryan Fields on X
The Dime on X
The Dime on YouTube
The Dime on Instagram
Eighth Revolution
Newton Insights — insights for extraction teams
Follow The Dime for more conversations on cannabis business, operations, and international markets. Share this episode with an operator considering expansion.

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