Charlotte’s Web Holdings introduces new mentor program for Black hemp farmers

The Colorado-based hemp and CBD company continues to fulfill its social equity promises

Charlotte’s Web Holdings has made a name for itself by being more than just a company offering hemp and cannabidiol (CBD) products. It has undertaken a number of initiatives to support the communities it serves and to draw attention to social awareness, and one of its projects is getting a significant boost. Charlotte’s Web’s Ten Commitments to Black Lives has formed a partnership with 40-acre Cooperative (FAC) to launch a new mentorship program for Black hemp farmers and leaders.

The new partnership has introduced a new program, Seeding Our Future Together, which will provide mentoring opportunities to increase social equity representation in the hemp industry. FAC will act as an adviser to Charlotte’s Web to increase participation of Black farmers in the space, and will also provide educational opportunities to Charlotte’s Web employees and leadership team to address challenges, as well as growth possibilities, for the Black hemp farming and manufacturing community.

Charlotte’s Web President and CEO Deanie Elsner explains, “Greater diversity in our company and in the hemp industry may not happen swiftly, but working together with The 40-acre Co-op on our new ‘Seeding Our Future, Together’ mentor program is a way to move forward by sharing our knowledge, our science, and our cultivation expertise with Black farmers and other agricultural leaders in the black community.”

FAC, a multi-state organization with more than 50 farmer members, and Charlotte’s Web share the same vision of raising interest to create a healthier planet. FAC became the first national cooperative in over 100 years to focus on Black farmers, focused on increasing the representation of Black farmers, business entrepreneurs, scientists and others working in the hemp industry. The organization’s founder and president, Angela Dawson, asserts, “This is the beginning of an important shift in the industry and we intend to use this momentum to create lasting and impactful change.”