Welcome to Senior Cannabis Digest. This week we look at the value of cannabis as a cash crop, the debate over potency and the need for consumer education, Jim Belushi’s expanding cannabis empire and more. Enjoy.
Cannabis Corner
Now rice is nice and taters are dandy but when it comes to the wholesale value of cash crops in the U.S., cannabis outpaces both of them.
According to Leafly’s 2022 Cannabis Harvest Report, the wholesale value of marijuana in the 15 states where adult use is legal has reached $5 billion. That makes it the sixth most valuable cash crop in the country, beating out potatoes and rice—and that figure doesn’t include the medical cannabis market that provides cannabis for patients in nearly two dozen other states.
The only crops that were more valuable were corn, soybeans, hay, wheat and cotton.
That’s the word from Kyle Jaeger who reported on the Harvest Report for Marijuana Moment. Jaeger writes that Leafly, a multi-purpose cannabis company, analyzed licensing records for legal cannabis states, sales and tax reports, commercial pricing data, field measurements, U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) crop values and input from experts to create the report. Leafly’s analysis covers past 12-month data in some states and full-year 2021 data in others.
Jaeger says that the “top-level takeaway” from the report is that “the marijuana industry is a significant component of the agriculture industry, even if it’s only legal and regulated by certain states at this point.” Jaeger also points out that the report found there are almost 13,300 American farms growing marijuana for adult use in the 15 states the report covered.
Said David Downs, the report’s lead author and Leafly’s California bureau chief, in a press release, “Adult-use cannabis is a top cash crop in states where it’s legal, but that song goes unsung.”
Jaeger also points out that the researchers for the Leafly Harvest Report found that farmers grew 24 percent more metric tons of adult-use marijuana in 2021 compared to the previous year.
Calculated another way, the sector cultivated 2,834 metric tons of cannabis, which “would fill nearly 15,000 dump trucks lined up end-to-end for 45 miles.”
The Leafly report also makes the point that if medical marijuana states were included in the analysis, the total yield would be “about 3 to 5 times larger.” In addition, the report points out, the production totals don’t include federally legal hemp cultivation, which would also increase the cannabis total even further.
As always, Kyle Jaeger does an excellent job of unpacking a complicated subject. You can learn much more by reading his article in the November 1, 2022 issue of Marijuana Moment.net.
To read the report itself, simply click on the link that follows.
www.leafly.com/news/industry/how-much-weed-grown-us-2022
Cannabis Quote of the Week
“The legal cannabis system is driving that high-THC percentage and completely ignoring everything else. The only thing a consumer knows is it has the highest THC, it must be the best. Many people are stuck in that world of “the stronger, the better.”….The consumer isn’t educated on any of this. Even if they are, they walk into dispensaries and get these budtenders that don’t know what they’re doing. That’s an issue…We’re almost relying on our budtenders like we would a pharmacist.”— Kim Stuck.
Ms. Stuck is the founder of the cannabis advisory firm Allay Consulting. Her comments are taken from an article by Bart Schaneman that appears in the current issue of MJBiz Magazine. The article examines how some in the cannabis industry are rethinking the issue of the demand for high potency products.
Schaneman writes that some industry experts believe an increased emphasis on minor cannabinoids and terpenes might help to curb the consumer obsession with THC content.
For example, Eric Leslie, Chief Marketing Officer of Cheeba Chews, a maker of infused products, told Schaneman he believes having a better understanding of what the cannabinoid does for you—and conditioning consumers to look for those effects versus just potency—helps to retrain consumer expectations about the results they’re going to get from the flower, the oil or the edible they are about to purchase.
According to Schaneman, the Denver-based company is trying to diversify its products to increase the entourage effect or the experience generated by cannabinoids working in concert with other cannabinoids and terpenes.
Leslie said that the company’s goal is to help consumers recognize how these other components affect them. For example, to increase the entourage effect, in addition to adding THC distillate, the company is adding cannabinoids such as CBN and CBG to its products.
We urge you to read Bart Schaneman’s article in the November/December issue of MJBiz Magazine.com. He does an excellent job of getting industry experts to put forth on the potency issue and how many believe consumers need to be educated on how the entourage effect can enhance their cannabis experience.
Below you’ll find a link to the magazine. The article starts on page 104. There’s a link on the table of contents.
www.nxtbook.com/emerald/MJBizMag/mjbizmag-november-december-2022/index.php?
CBD News and Notes
An established manufacturer of CBD products is introducing a product line that features the addition of the minor cannabinoids CBDA and CBGA.
So says Vuk Zdinjak, writing for Benzinga. He reports that the products, called CBD Energy Gummies and CBD Immunity Gummies “may help support the body’s natural ability to fight off pathogens and increase energy levels.”
According to Zdinjak, the company is using a new solventless-extracted, water-soluble, full-spectrum CBD, CBDA, and CBGA for these products. Said Joe Kryszak, president of Stirling CBD, “Most CBD companies use ethanol, butane, or carbon dioxide to extract cannabinoids from the hemp plant. We use a proprietary process to extract cannabinoids using only ice water and air bubbles, making it the purest CBD available. Because it’s water-soluble, it will provide five to 10 times better bioavailability than oil-based CBD.”
The CBD Energy Gummies contain 20mg of full-spectrum CBD, 50mg of caffeine from green coffee beans, vitamin B12, CoQ10, and L-Theanine. The CBD Immunity Gummies are formulated to help the body’s immune system stay strong. In addition to the 20mg of full-spectrum CBD, these gummies also include the following: Vitamins C and D, Zinc, Black Elderberry and Echinacea.
You can learn much more by reading Vuk Zdinjak’s article in the November 2, 2022 issue of Benzinga.com.
Senior Celebrity Spotlight
Actor turned cannabis entrepreneur Jim Belushi continues to expand the reach of his Oregon-based cannabis company, Belushi’s Farm.
Recently, his company was awarded a license to open a retail presence on the Saint Regis (Akwesasne) Mohawk Tribal territory in upstate New York.
According to TG Branfalt, who covered the story for Ganjapreneur, the New York location will be part of the company’s national franchise, which includes shops in Oregon, Colorado, Oklahoma, Illinois, and Massachusetts.
The Saint Regis Mohawk Tribal Council said in a press release that the fees collected from the retail sale of cannabis products help support community programs and services for the Tribe and its members.
Branfalt notes that the Tribal Council began issuing licenses last year after several unauthorized shops opened following the legalization of cannabis in New York. It has been reported that there are at least a dozen licensed adult-use dispensaries on Akwesasne territory.
While the state has not yet issued licenses for businesses under the purview of the state, it has released regulations for Conditional Adult-Use Retail Dispensary licenses, including guidance for in-house, drive-thru, and delivery options.
For Belushi, the company is more than just an opportunity to license his name or engage in “product testing.” He is actively involved in all aspects of the business, from quality control to overseeing the business plan.
To learn more, we urge you to read TG Branfalt’s article in the November 2, 2022 issue of Ganjapreneur.com.
Stats of the Week
This week’s magic numbers are 25 percent and 546 million. The first is the percentage by which Florida’s medical marijuana patient count increased during the fiscal year 2022. The second is the number of ounces sold to the state’s 757,600 qualifying patients during that same period of time.
That’s the word from Lukas Barfield who covered the story for Ganjapreneur. According to Barfield, Florida patients are categorized by the type of cannabis—either low-THC or high-THC—their doctor recommends. Patients are also categorized by the method of administration recommended—either edible, inhalation, oral, smokable, sublingual, suppository, or topical.
He also noted that depending on the consumption type, patients are eligible to purchase up to a 35-day or 70-day supply at a time.
Barfield also did a deep dive inside the consumption numbers recorded by the State’s Physician Certification Pattern Review for 2023 and found that Florida’s medical cannabis market expanded in the fiscal year 2022 in specific ways. For instance, he reports that demand for low-THC cannabis, including edibles, inhalation, and oral products increased by 7 percent. Demand for sublingual products, such as tinctures, increased by 8 percent and the demand for suppositories and topical products increased by 11 percent.
When it comes to high-THC doses, the sales of products administered by inhalation and orally increased by nine percent while sales of edibles grew by 10 percent. Barfield noted that three other categories saw double-digit increases in sales during this period as well, with the sublingual products increasing by 11 percent, suppository products by 13 percent and topicals by 16 percent.
We know it’s only one state, but it is one that’s among the reddest of the red politically. The use of cannabis, and its effectiveness when it comes to managing specific medical conditions, seems to be one thing that gets folks to “cross the aisle,” or at least put their political preconceptions aside for a moment.
The fact that it’s a state with a significant population of older folks probably helps to boost those sales numbers as well. Mature consumers do vote with their wallets, after all—and they wouldn’t be buying it if it didn’t provide them with the results they are seeking.
You can learn more by reading Lukas Barfield’s clear and concise reporting in the November 2, 2022 issue of Ganjapreneur.com.
www.ganjapreneur.com/report-florida-medical-cannabis-patient-base-grew-25-in-fy2022/?
Senior Cannabis Digest is compiled and edited by Joe Kohut and John Kohut. You can reach them at joe.kohut@gmail.com and at 347-528-8753.
