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Mosaic Insurance’s Cannabis Team Visit the Washington Bud Company Farm

By June 24, 2021March 11th, 2024Cannabis

What sets WBC’s cannabis farm apart from others? “Flavor. Flavor. Flavor.”

When you think of homemade apple pie, you probably envision those juicy apples coming from a large orchard…tall green trees for miles with full branches, soaking up the clean air and summer sun as they release tons of sweet aroma. What about when you think of a fresh joint? You probably don’t dream about harsh pesticides, chemical perfume, or metallic flavor.

Like apple trees, the cannabis plant takes in its environment. And, like those with a sweet tooth for fresh pie, marijuana connoisseurs have a similar thought process while they are browsing for product and before they are about to take a hit. It is all about the flavor, flavor, flavor. Aroma plays an important part, but when it comes down to it, the product’s taste and effects better live up to the promising smell for you to have happy customers. How do you get fresh cannabis to meet and surpass clientele standards?

According to one of Mosaic Insurance’s cannabis clients, Washington Bud Company (WBC), organic is a key step in the process. And, because WBC has been part of the Mosaic family since 2016, we were invited to their farm for a in-person tour—finding out for ourselves that organic does indeed make a big difference in the world of cannabis.

Blog - Mosaic Team at Bud Co Tour in 2021

For about 3 hours on May 5, 2021, part of Mosaic’s cannabis team—Jonathan, Steve, Jacque, and Meagan–explored WBC’s 10-acre farm in Arlington, learning about their growing process, hearing the WBC crew rave about their eight different cannabis strains on the market, and getting to know everyone better. All in all? A great success! We loved hanging out with the WBC crew who all had positive attitudes, living up to the Washington Bud Co mantra and hashtag, “Be Happy.” Knowledge was also plentiful—all kinds of fun facts from “bug brokers” to how an organic cannabis grow operates.

What exactly is a bug broker?

“We have a bug broker,” WA Bud Co CEO, Shawn DeNae, laughed as she was showing us the WBC booth that they bring to events. Seeing our intrigued expressions, Shawn explained: “We get safe native predators like ladybugs to eat the harmful pests like aphids.”

As many cannabis growers know, you can get creatures like ladybugs and lacewings to eat dangerous pests that are destroying your crop that will not in turn hurt the plants themselves. (More about beneficial insects can be found here on Leafly.) The Mosaic Cannabis Team never heard of the “Bug Broker” term and thought that the title was a hoot (and fitting). Shawn went on to tell our team how WBC also has other protocols in place that help the plant growing process, including environmental controls, a full flush procedure with thousands of gallons of water, pesticide and heavy metal testing, and organic nutrients.

Why organic?

We see organic fruits and vegetables in the market all the time, sometimes not immediately seeing that an organic apple wandered into the non-organic section. So, how different really is organic cannabis? Our team saw (and smelt) for ourselves that there is a HUGE difference—like comparing apples to oranges. As you can see in the tour pictures that we took, organic growing is a key factor to healthy plants—tall stature, full branches that are perky, large lush green leaves, and big buds. Just like WBC teammate Becca says, we noticed that the plants were “happy girls!” as they towered over us in the grow rooms.

“Pesticides are not tasty, and heavy metal is for music, not for plants. WBC plants rock out to organic growing methods, creating a perky and potent result. Like Shawn emphasizes—organic growing gives weed a “smooth, crisp, and clean burn.”

Shawn’s crewmate, Donald, expanded on the positive factors of organic crop. “We know on a daily basis how we grow,” said Donald. “It is tasty. No pesticides. No wondering what it was sprayed with.” Chiming in right after Donald, coworker, Casey, noted that “Clean growing is what sets us apart. Flavor. Flavor. Flavor.”

Blog - Shawn Smiling at the Bud Co Tour in 2021

Sets them apart is right.

CEO, Bill DeNae, mentioned that for the last 6 years, every 4 weeks they need to harvest to keep up with demand and keep the experience fresh.

Washington Bud Co was established in 2012, and in those 9 short years they have accomplished many milestones and made a big name for their brand. They have been on their current Arlington, WA farm since 2014 where they made it their mission to be welcomed into the Arlington community right away. They started production on the Arlington farm in 2016 after the buildings were finished and they got cannabis insurance through Mosaic. After kickoff, they really emphasized on marketing strategies, earning them the rating as 1 in the top 5 cannabis companies to brand in Washington state.

Jump on their website for all kinds of cannabis blog posts. You can also find their pieces in other cannabis publications, including Marijuana Venture where Shawn writes a monthly Living the Dream segment. You can also find them on numerous social media platforms—Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

WBC sells an array of products:

    • Pre-roll flower joints
    • Mini cannagars
    • Sugar shake
    • Kief
    • Canis(topical therapy)
      • Soothing liniment
      • Soothing bath salts

When it comes to marijuana plants, WBC is currently focusing on 8 strains, 7 of which are high in THC:

    1. Afghani HashPlant (WA Bud Co exclusive; savory flavor; intense high)
    2. Blackberry Kush (spicy tart flavor; sedative)
    3. Dutch Treat Haze (zesty flavor; energetic sativa dominant)
    4. Gorilla Girl (breed of two popular Gorilla Glue phenotypes; diesel funk taste; giggly high)
    5. Pure Kush (zesty flavor; chill effect; tranquilizing indica dominant)
    6. Purple Sour Diesel (sweet pineberry flavor; euphoric high)
    7. Sky Master (tangy and sweet flavor; sativa dominant for a social high)
    8. Harlequin (floral bitters flavor; therapeutic essence; strong CBD)

If you want to see if their products are sold at a cannabis dispensary near you, visit their website weed map. They also have an online store that sells WBC cannabis memorabilia.

A big thanks again to Washington Bud Co for the awesome tour! It was such a pleasure to meet you all and we look forward to continuing to provide cannabis business insurance for you. As always, we are just a phone call or email away—so if you ever need anything, don’t hesitate to reach out! We look forward to seeing your future social media posts and hearing all about your future successes. We’d love to go back to your farm sometime, and until then, “Be Happy!”

Cheers,
The Mosaic Cannabis Family

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