THE COLORADO GREEN RUSH – GET STONED, GET RICH

Not too long ago you would have been in serious trouble if you were caught in the tranquil US state of Colorado with marijuana in your pocket. But that was then and this is now: since the government decided that marijuana could be legally farmed, sold and consumed here, this cowboy state has been in the grip of a new gold fever. Marijuana tourists have been flocking to the capital city of Denver for a year now, and countless sales outlets are offering everything from joints to hash cookies. The political establishment is realising that it can no longer do without the bonanza created for the city and state by the producers, traders and established financial industry  . We take a closer look at this "green rush" and meet players, beneficiaries and losers of this huge, new branch of industry. We accompany a group of tourists on a city tour with a "cannabis bus" and we talk to producers such as 43-year-old wholesaler Toni Fox. In the very first month following legalisation, her company recorded a turnover of almost 300,000 dollars. We interview medical scientists, stockbrokers and government employees. And we see how quickly the "stoner romance" has yielded to the pressures of all-American business logic. In short, this is – if nothing else – a lesson in capitalism.