The Duchess of Sussex, Meghan Markle, recently shared news of an upcoming Netflix show that is in the works. According to a spokesperson for Markle, the show will be a nonfiction series that will “celebrate the joys of cooking and gardening, entertaining, and friendship.”
While the show is in the early stages of production, the gossip mill is already turning. Rumors have spread that Markle will be filming the Netflix show on a California cannabis farm – a rumor that is said to be false by sources close to the show.
The streaming series will list Markle as an executive producer, with goals to announce a release date in the coming months. Additional details of the show have not yet been released, but Markle is already sharing glimpses into possibilities on her new Instagram page, American Riviera Orchard, where the Duchess posted a video of herself arranging flowers and baking in the kitchen.
Rife with controversy, the highly-anticipated show is already grappling with negative feedback relating to rumors of the show’s filming location at a cannabis farm. Speculation circulated after the Daily Mail reported that the backdrop for the show would take place in two locations in The Golden State: a $5 million home in Montecito that belongs to Tom and Sherrie Cipolla and a cannabis-supplying farm owned by the Van Wingerden family near the seaside city of Carpinteria.
According to the website, the Van Wingerdens are the area’s largest vendors of legally produced cannabis. The farm, nicknamed Farmlane, is owned by David and Cindy Van Wingerden, who have been turning the flower farm into a floral focal point since 2015, and are currently selling cannabis flowers and pre-rolled marijuana joints.
But with California cannabis laws changing, providing more freedom to cannabis users and farmers, area residents of the seaside city have been up in arms over the Van Wingerden’s operation, as well as other cannabis farms, over the pungent weed smell filling the air.
Enraged residents claim that their homes and clothes are saturated with the marijuana smell, with some individuals also experiencing breathing problems, headaches, and nausea. Carpinteria residents filed 2,340 odor complaints between mid-2018 to 2022, leading to a class-action lawsuit in September against two cannabis farms that are not related to the Van Wingerden’s business. The lawsuit states that “The neighborhood surrounding their property has a thick, heavy, strong stench of cannabis on a near daily basis.”
But while Markle’s show has been the subject of many rumors, a source stated that “The show is not filmed on or near any cannabis farm.” They also implied that the show is taking place at a “private residence” and “anything that suggests otherwise is made up fodder.”
Page Six confirmed in March that the Duchess would be collaborating on a Martha-esque show that ties into her recently launched lifestyle brand, Montecito Riviera Orchard. The brand has already debuted its first products, including cookware and home needs, in the form of a jar of strawberry jam which Markle sent to her closest friends.
