40 Under 40
For the past five years, the Marijuana Venture staff has compiled an annual list of some of the brightest young leaders and influencers in the cannabis industry. As in past years, we have narrowed the list from hundreds of worthy candidates to present 40 individuals from the vast and ever-changing business in the United States and Canada.
It is our honor to share their stories.
Kaelan Castetter
Age: 23
Title: Founder and CEO
Company: Castetter Sustainability Group
At 23, Kaelan Castetter has already made an incredible impact on the hemp industry. First, he was successful in following in his father’s footsteps by starting his own hemp-infused wine company, Sovereign Vines. Then, he founded Castetter Sustainability Group, a consulting and genetic research company that helps New York businesses, farmers and entrepreneurs navigate the complexities of the cannabis industry.
Castetter helped to get the state’s hemp extract bill signed into law by Governor Andrew Cuomo in January 2019. And in the fall of 2019, his company worked with 15 New York farms, harvesting 150,000 hemp plants over 37 days with a crew of 61 workers running two shifts.
“That was something that I am very proud of — and especially proud of my team for being able to execute while running on very little sleep,” Castetter says. “It was a very long and hard road to get here, for sure, but it has been very rewarding.”