Will pot join wine as a leading legal product in Yakima Valley?
Will pot join wine as a leading legal product in Yakima Valley?
Jan 21, 2013 6
Now that Washington voters have legalized marijuana, will an Eastern Washington region long recognized as one of the country’s leading fruit bowls, best celebrated for Washington apples, become known as the vice belt? Not necessarily. Irrigation canals line Washington’s Yakima Valley east of the Cascade Range, transforming a desert landscape into one of the most productive agricultural regions in the world — including crops for some of America’s biggest vices.
Thousands of acres of wine grapes dot the landscape, contributing to Washington’s No. 2 rank for premium-wine production behind California. Farmers grow more than two-thirds of U.S. hops for big beer companies and craft brewers alike, and a large tobacco field is flourishing on a valley Indian reservation.
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