I had the same reaction -- what's the practical value here that makes it news? One possible clue is in this quote: "[Cannabidiol] production from plants is a b

I had the same reaction -- what's the practical value here that makes it news? One possible clue is in this quote: "[Cannabidiol] production from plants is a bit complicated." This might turn out to be by far the best way to obtain pure cannabidiol (and other cannabinoids). I suspect that the long-term goal is to demonstrate new chemical synthesis techniques of interest to the pharmaceutical industry. The choice of THC (& hydrocodone) as an endpoint might have been somewhat arbitrary.