High Times Magazine recently released an article How Genomics is Shaping the Future of Cannabis Genetics by Oaksterdam’s Director of Academics, Angela Bacca. We conducted many in-depth interviews with experts on cannabis genomics and genetics, which are fascinating reads in their own right that we wanted to share. Below is a Q&A with James Loud about how technology is reshaping cannabis breeding.
This course accompanies James Loud’s new book: Cannabis Breeding: The Art and Science of Crafting Distinctive Cultivars.
Angela Bacca (AB): I had the opportunity to work with you on producing your book, Cannabis Breeding: The Art and Science of Crafting Distinctive Cultivars, and your Oaksterdam course. What I thought was interesting is that cannabis has always been very secretive, and even for a lot of growers, it was kind of a blind spot. What motivated you to decide to write a book and start teaching classes about how to do it? Why is it important to you that people actually understand this now?
James Loud (JL): The biggest thing with that is there was a lot of snake oil out there, and now with the internet, there’s tons of information, and not all of it is right. There are 10 different ways to reverse a plant online that all sound legitimate. And so, how do you go through all the information and distill it down to the facts and stuff that really work? And so I thought at the time, you know, it’s like people didn’t want to give away the secrets for how to reverse stuff, but we have these big corporations that know everything. They’re hiring plant scientists who don’t know anything really about the effects or the subtleties of cannabis. They understand it as a cash crop. And so I really wanted to write a book so the small business owner or the enthusiast that’s just learning how to breed could read the book and get a lot of information, and if they were really interested, they could read the whole thing, and they would have a really good grasp on what it means to breed new genetics. I think that’s the biggest part about it is I wanted to even the playing field, and also it was time.
The world needs a breeding book, and so I thought, you know, I’m all about solutions. Everything I do is solution-based. So how can I provide a solution? I feel like that’s where you add value to everything: is creating a solution.
I’m so blessed at the time when I wrote the book. Between Mel Frank and Ed Rosenthal and Jorge Cervantes and Kenny Morrow and a handful of others, there were already good books out there for me and you as well, being the editor to really create a foundation for like what a good book could look like. We weren’t reinventing that wheel. I wanted to be something special that was like a college-level professor could pick it up and go like, “Yeah, this is a great book,” but also a home grower could understand and get excited about breeding.
I think the best breeders are the best growers—people who know how to grow and make the plant express. The better you can make the plant express, the better you’re going to be able to do your selections. And that’s where the real magic happens with breeding, in the selection process.
AB: Who should pick up this book or this course and learn how to breed cannabis?
JL: It should be an evolution of learning how to cultivate. I think the best breeders are the best growers—people who know how to grow and make the plant express. The better you can make the plant express, the better you’re going to be able to do your selections. And that’s where the real magic happens with breeding, in the selection process.
In this day and age, it is so competitive that if you want to stand out, genetics are the single most important thing, right? This is what separates all the different companies. Anybody can grow Lemon Cherry Gelato, but how much Lemon Cherry Gelato is needed for the market? Really, if we look at any of the Gelatos, how much Gelato is needed? You want to create something that’s unique, that you can put your name behind, that’s quality, and the best way to do that is by creating your own genetics. You could obviously buy them. You can hire breeders, but a lot of times, if you grow really well, you can do this in-house. You can create a breeding program from the ground up. As a small business, if you want to be successful, you have to have unique genetics. You cannot offer just the same thing as everybody else. The best way to separate yourself is to grow better quality with unique genetics.
AB: What do you see as the future of cannabis breeding?
JL: Cannabis breeding isn’t just cannabis breeding anymore. Now it’s like, what direction are you going to go in? Are you preserving genetics? Drug discovery? Because drug discovery is going to be huge, and we’re studying the plant more than we ever have. I also think long-flowering varieties and landrace genetics are going to be making a comeback because people are going to want diversity. Pest and pathogen resistance will also be huge. There are so many directions that you can really go as a breeder. The future is bright, and it’s all going to come back to genetics.
We need to return to discussing how cultivars make us feel.
We need to return to discussing how cultivars make us feel. That’s one of my most important focuses right now. It was flavor for a little bit, but now I’m really refocusing on effect because there are so many different effects out there, and we’re losing diversity every day and bottlenecking ourselves.
The rec[reational, or adult use] world just wants to know how much THC is in it and does it get you high? When the real question that we had during medical that we’ve gone away from was how does it make you feel? Do you need something that makes you hungry? Do you need something that makes you tired? Do you need something that wakes you up or does you need something for anxiety? It’s not just about getting high.
Want to learn more about cannabis genetics, genomics, and breeding? Check out our new Cannabis Breeding with James Loud certification program, which includes seven self-paced modules with course videos and an extensive collection of supplemental resources. There is also another opportunity to join live classes in April 2026!