For Josh Crosier and childhood friend Matt Osler, cannabis cultivation started decades before hemp beverages became part of the conversation.

For more than 25 years, the two cultivated cannabis in the hills of Southeastern Ohio. Josh eventually stepped away from cultivation, earning degrees in environmental science and sustainable agriculture while focusing on building a family. But when the 2018 Farm Bill opened the door for hemp cultivation, he saw an opportunity to reconnect with the plant through a legal framework.

He turned to another childhood friend, livestock farmer Joey Ellwood, to explore the idea of building something together. Their vision was centered around small-scale farming, community, and a more sustainable approach to cannabis. They later brought in childhood friends, Lance Melanchico and Amy Garland, to form Appalachian Girls Cannabis Co.

While their original goal was to participate in the medical and adult-use cannabis markets, the hemp industry created the first path forward in infused beverages.

Growing their own hemp to supply their products was not the easiest route, but it was an important part of the company’s identity and roots. As regulations continue to shift state by state, the team has had to remain flexible, adapting cultivation strategies while navigating Ohio’s changing hemp rules.

The company has moved between Joey’s family farm and an indoor cultivation facility managed by Josh and Matt as they refine their approach. Today, the focus is shifting back toward field-grown cultivation.

“The most exciting news is that we’re slowly departing from the indoor grow in Nelsonville, Ohio, and Joey is now running the field,” said Josh. “He produced a very nice crop back on the family farm in Midville, Ohio, that we can use for products.”

The company positions itself around sustainable cultivation and a farm-to-table approach.

“We believe in sustainable farming and the idea that ingestible products should be sun-grown without inputs of herbicides, fungicides, and pesticides that we know,” said Josh. “Knowing your farmer is something that we believe separates us from the pack.”

They are also making headway in the med-rec space, positioning the company ahead of a potential November 12th ban on hemp products. “We are almost full circle in the med-rec space here in Ohio, and I’m looking forward to finalizing some things there,” added Joey.

The Meaning Behind the Name

For Appalachian Girls Cannabis Co., the name represents traditions surrounding cannabis cultivation in the Appalachian hills, and the resourcefulness required to cultivate a plant that was once pushed into the shadows. Before legalization, growers often referred to their plants as their “girls.”

“If you were in Athens in these hills growing weed, and ventured to town on those very seldom nights, you’d hear somebody say, ‘How’s your girls doing?'” Josh said. “They weren’t talking about their girlfriends. They were talking about the crop back at the house.”

Today, Appalachian Girls is using that history to build a legal cannabis beverage company rooted in agriculture, community, and the people and places that shaped its founders.

The Economics of Cultivation and Why Outdoor Matters

The company’s vision has always been in outdoor farming, but current regulations create challenges around how cannabis and hemp can be cultivated, processed, and moved through the supply chain.

Josh believes the distinction between hemp and marijuana creates unnecessary barriers for farmers who want to grow hemp as an agricultural crop.

“What we’re really fighting for is the ability just to grow cannabis outside and use it, without having these distinctions,” said Josh. “When you talk about hemp extraction costs and the damage to the extraction material or equipment because you have to run 1,000 pounds through when you could have run 100 pounds through with marijuana, there are significant economic differences.”

Joey also pointed to the significant cost difference between indoor and outdoor cultivation.

“The best of the best growers are doing indoor for maybe $400 to $600 a pound,” Joey said. “Outdoors, we can do that for $40 to $45 a pound.”

The team believes indoor cultivation has an important role in the market, particularly for premium flower products where aroma, flavor, and sensory characteristics are central to the consumer experience. But for extracting cannabinoids into products like beverages, they question whether the energy costs associated with indoor cultivation always make sense.

“If you’re using all that electricity, there should be more to focus on than just THC in a bottle,” Josh said.

For Appalachian Girls, outdoor cultivation is a more cost-effective approach that aligns with their broader philosophy of sustainable agriculture. However, regulatory uncertainty continues to shape their decisions.

While hemp remains an outdoor federally compliant crop, state-level rules around cannabis, processing, and transportation create additional complexity for operators trying to build vertically integrated businesses.

“It’s crazy work,” Josh said. “It’s hard to wrap your head around all the different rules.”

Cultivating Genetics for the Future

As the company grows, genetics is an important part of Appalachian Girls’ long-term strategy.

For craft flower producers, genetics are often selected for traits such as aroma, cannabinoid ratios, and terpene expression. But for now, the company is forced to choose genetics based on agricultural performance, compliance, and cannabinoid production.

“We still have specific genetics that we mess around with, but we choose those genetics for entirely different reasons than you would choose genetics heading into the craft flower market,” said Josh.

The goal is to identify plants that can maximize cannabinoid production while staying within the current regulatory framework. That means looking for genetics that grow efficiently, reach harvest quickly, and perform consistently in the field.

“The genetics that we’re choosing aren’t about the profiles of terpenes and what else,” Josh explained. “They’re very selective for getting the most that we can in a compliant crop.”

For the team, this has meant experimenting with a limited pool of available genetics designed to navigate the complexities of hemp cultivation.

“It isn’t like the thousands that you can choose from for other applications,” Josh said. “There might be 10 to 20 varieties that really work for what we’re trying to do.”

Joey emphasized that scaling cultivation is a learning process, especially for a crop that is still relatively new to commercial agriculture. The company has continued testing new genetics and farming methods as it expands cultivation, moving from one acre to five acres while refining its approach.

For many hemp beverage brands, cultivation happens behind the scenes through third-party sourcing. Appalachian Girls is taking a different path by attempting to control more of its supply chain, from the field to the finished product.

From Cultivators to Brand Builders

While cultivation remains the foundation of Appalachian Girls, the team’s focus today is building a recognizable brand that can adapt as the market continues to evolve.

“We know it seems like we’re doing all this, but we can also adapt, remain nimble, and leverage just the brand space,” said Josh.

“Growing was our focus to start, but to get where we’re at now, we’ve had to put that growing focus to the side at times and source from others for the sake of the brand,” Josh explained.

“The brand is priority,” Joey said. “Those other items are tertiary.”

Expanding Beyond Ohio

While Ohio and the Appalachian region remain central to the company’s identity, Appalachian Girls is looking beyond its home state as it seeks to expand its beverage footprint.

After reaching approximately 300 retail locations and nearly $1 million in sales during its first ten months in Ohio, the company is now working with distributors to expand into Kentucky, North Carolina, and West Virginia.

Ohio provided an important launchpad for the brand, but evolving hemp regulations have created challenges for operators trying to scale.

The company’s approach has been to build a diverse lineup that gives retailers multiple entry points, including tea, seltzer, and what Joey calls a “pop,” reflecting the Appalachian roots behind the brand.

The company is also leaning into partnerships and collaborations to grow brand awareness. Appalachian Girls recently partnered with professional bass angler Cole Harris, known as the “Champlain Kid,” who collaborated on a Wild Berry Ginger Ale flavor as part of the brand’s portfolio expansion.

The team has seen different products perform well in different consumption environments. Lower-dose seltzers have found traction in social settings, while tea has performed well during warmer months and outdoor activities.

Among the portfolio, Black Cherry Soda has emerged as a standout product, earning a double gold award among independent beverage submissions and becoming the brand’s hero SKU.

For Appalachian Girls, product quality remains a major focus. The company believes flavor is one of the biggest opportunities for differentiation in the hemp beverage category.

“We’re unapologetically high in organic cane sugar,” Joey said, adding that the company is also working to remove artificial flavors in future label updates.

The story behind Appalachian Girls is one of legacy, passion, and grit. What started in the shadows of the Appalachian hills is now on shelves in 300 retail locations — and expanding.