Among the many individuals getting into the CBD/hemp industry for a variety of reasons and aspirations, few have quite as deeply personal of a connection to the burgeoning industry as Third Coast Hemp founder Rene Pena Jr. The advocate and farmer who’s a longtime resident of Banquete, Texas has seen firsthand both the healing benefits of cannabis and the future usefulness of hemp-based byproducts.
Pena Jr. admits with humorous foolishness in his younger years that he and some friends bought small amounts of cannabis of a quarter pound maximum in his hometown of Banquete, Texas and from there, started a small plant operation from the seeds of one particularly potent strain. Rene ended up cultivating some quality product and achieved success but laughs as he asserts the silliness and smallness of all the adventures in the grand scheme of things. He ended up leaving that operation for corporate America but it instilled the knowledge of how to grow quality cannabis plants in a town with countless acres for agriculture.
In 2013, Rene’s mother was tragically diagnosed with stage 4 angiosarcoma, a rare type of blood vessel cancer. She experienced the gauntlet of chemotherapy and radiation yet initially rejected cannabis because of her very prohibitionist upbringing of false fear-mongering propaganda. Through his own personal decision and for the safety of procuring cannabis, Rene used his connections for quality seeds and decided to grow the cannabis himself to help his ailing mother cope with the damaging side-effects of chemotherapy.
Starting with high-THC products, his mother, never one to drink or smoke, wasn’t a fan whatsoever as she didn’t appreciate the high. In late 2015 however, Rene began learning about cannabidiol (CBD) and the benefits of THC’s non-psychoactive cousin. In specific, he researched the reverse breeding and sciences behind cultivating strains with an astounding CBD content. With personally cultivating high CBD and low-THC strains, his mother much preferred the feeling of the strains and didn’t feel that mental separation sometimes associated with high-THC.
With a homegrown CBD-focused version of Rick Simpson Oil (RSO), his mother’s symptoms weren’t as severe. While technically prohibited by Texas, Pena wasn’t in any way a trafficker. He grew crops only for his cancer-stricken mother’s use and didn’t sell cannabis in any Nancy Botwin-esque way.
“I had no interest in being in a cannabis business or in this space. I just wanted to save my mom.” Pena recalled. “We were just doing what we could to keep her here as long as she could. I can’t say cannabis is a cure-all, but it’ll definitely give you a better quality of life.”
Sadly however, Rene’s mother, Sanjuana “Janie” Pena, passed away in September of 2018, but optimistically living beyond her initial prognosis. His mother, a wonderfully active and loved member in the community of Banquete, was so prominent and respected by so many that a Texas house bill, House Bill 820, was passed in her honor by Representative Abel Herrero.
“Whereas no words can diminish the pain caused by a life cut short, but all who shared in the warmth and friendship of Janie Pena may find comfort in their treasured memories of this beloved woman.” the bill read beautifully.
Rene likes to believe beyond a doubt that the homemade RSO, along with cannabis in general, assisted greatly in her longevity.
To keep the memory of his mother and her alleviations with cannabis alive, Pena began Third Coast Hemp, a name which is a reference to the Gulf Coast’s nickname. Instead of focusing only on CBD oil, Pena has made sure to diversify the products that the company makes. One quality worth noting are the innovative ways that Pena leads the company, with him supporting the discussion differing opinions or viewpoints that might run contrary to his own.
“We’re always willing to work with anybody in this space to get where we need to get. We need to have this crop in all our building materials, in all our plastics, in all our fuel.”
In the words of Pena himself, their current operations consist of “selling pharmaceutical grade products to health professionals, developing genetics for Texas and it’s regional micro climates, consulting large and small farmers to help aid the industry and providing cannabis oil for terminally ill patients.”
A look at their website will show that Pena has ensured that the hands of Third Coast Hemp will continue to be present in many differing pots. From tinctures to capsules to pure hemp flower an even hair renewal products and clothing among many other commodities, their products vary on usage and will certainly continue to do so.
Third Coast Hemp also has future plans that could potentially alter the grand scheme of the hemp industry as a whole. Among many plans, Pena wants to focus his company’s efforts on hemp-based fuels and lubricants, two widely used products that could revolutionize hemp production when achieved. Rena’s long-term plan to utilize the hemp crop and produce gasoline, hemp-oline if you will, could be monumental and greatly changing towards the country’s reliance upon more conventional oils.
