473

Wasted Weed: Canada’s Disposal of 3.7 Million Pounds of Cannabis Since 2018 Oversupply has been a real issue for the cannabis industry.

top 50 comments
sorted by: hot top controversial new old
[-] ABCDE@lemmy.world 151 points 10 months ago* (last edited 10 months ago)

Export or stop making so much (or discount it, or give it away).

[-] sighofannoyance@lemmy.world 93 points 10 months ago

«Industry expert and consultant Farrell Miller notes that the majority of this discarded product was destroyed for being too old and having too little THC. “There is no demand for old and low-THC products, so manufacturers of finished products are not buying this biomass as inputs,” she said. “It’s likely low-quality material with no value. “As consumers become more savvy with packaging dates on dried cannabis products, this trend will only continue.”»

They claim nobody wants it

[-] rockSlayer@lemmy.world 68 points 10 months ago

That makes no sense. Low content strains are perfect for all sorts of concentrates.

[-] CaptainSpaceman@lemmy.world 42 points 10 months ago

Yeah, any trim or whack weeds could easily be repurposed for concentrates. Theres probably more to it than just "nobody wants it"

[-] troyunrau@lemmy.ca 45 points 10 months ago

The size of the market was vastly overestimated. Every pothead wanted a slice of the business, so they all started up companies thinking there was unlimited growth potential. It was rapidly saturated and now we're in the collapse and consolidation phase, exacerbated by the higher interest rates and inflation.

Canada's population is similar to California, but it's producing weed enough for a country several times its size.

Plus the black market still exists, albeit in a small scope, due to price, quality, variety, or loyalty reasons.

load more comments (5 replies)
[-] Nomecks@lemmy.ca 11 points 10 months ago* (last edited 10 months ago)

It's cheaper and probably way easier to use higher potency cannabis

load more comments (2 replies)
load more comments (3 replies)
[-] mx_smith@lemmy.world 34 points 10 months ago

So why is their hemp industry not thriving. They should be making fabrics and paper with it.

[-] Coreidan@lemmy.world 25 points 10 months ago

I’m fairly certain hemp isn’t made from the flower, which is the part of the plant that is sold for weed consumption.

What they are throwing away is the flower. The part they would use to make hemp is already long gone.

load more comments (3 replies)
[-] nogooduser@lemmy.world 14 points 10 months ago

They should sell it for biomass fuel. :)

[-] gibmiser@lemmy.world 11 points 10 months ago

This just in, huffing your cars exhaust gets you H.I.G.H.

load more comments (2 replies)
load more comments (1 replies)
[-] sighofannoyance@lemmy.world 9 points 10 months ago

I think Hemp is a different species that has low amounts of thc.

[-] OccamsTeapot@lemmy.world 16 points 10 months ago

Same species! The line between them is actually pretty blurry and some strains are inbetween. They're just different general 'types' within the same species

load more comments (2 replies)
[-] Cheers@sh.itjust.works 8 points 10 months ago

Supply and demand. No one wants it for the price they're charging.

load more comments (3 replies)
load more comments (1 replies)
[-] tsonfeir@lemm.ee 31 points 10 months ago

They could have free weed events for tourism. I’ve been meaning to drive up there.

load more comments (2 replies)
[-] the_post_of_tom_joad@sh.itjust.works 145 points 10 months ago* (last edited 10 months ago)

How about we change the title juuuuust a bit...

Since 2018 Canada Destroyed 3.7 Million Pounds of Cannabis Rather Than Let Prices Fall

[-] Kanda@reddthat.com 55 points 10 months ago
[-] masterspace@lemmy.ca 37 points 10 months ago

That's not really that accurate. The article explicitly says that much of the waste is caused by growers who overproduced low quality weed, when most of the market is focused on really high potency cannabis.

[-] pineapple_pizza@lemmy.dexlit.xyz 8 points 10 months ago

I miss low quality weed, I feel like I get too high now. Maybe I'm just getting old lol

[-] Got_Bent@lemmy.world 7 points 10 months ago

There was a giggle quality to that old nineties brick weed that the modern stuff just doesn't have.

The experience went from, "that stain in the carpet is hilarious. Who threw my burrito against the wall?" to, "the cosmic, like, existence, is, whoa, did I think that? I can't find my face."

Modern stuff is so potent that I can't stay conscious on even the smallest of hits. Great for sleep aid, useless for doing anything.

Sometimes I just wanna laugh at Ren and Stimpy while I've got a pile of cheeseburgers in a feed bag strapped around my neck, you know?

load more comments (2 replies)
load more comments (1 replies)
load more comments (11 replies)
[-] Sdnimm543@slrpnk.net 47 points 10 months ago

It's a weird way to frame misspeculating and overestimating demand, but whatever makes you feel better, industry.

[-] Bo7a@lemmy.ca 41 points 10 months ago

Hey man. I'm just like... Doing my best.

[-] ForestOrca@kbin.social 9 points 10 months ago

Me too, eh! Rolls another one, while singing "Oh Canada...".

[-] sighofannoyance@lemmy.world 9 points 10 months ago

You've been bested 😱 😜 😂

[-] IrateAnteater@sh.itjust.works 40 points 10 months ago

It's probably got a lot to do with the market being relatively new. I imagine things will settle down in the coming years as producers gain real data to base demand estimates off of.

Also, I think initially some people were conflating support for legalization with actual demand. There are many people that support legalization who don't actually use the product.

[-] troyunrau@lemmy.ca 11 points 10 months ago

This is me :)

[-] Frog-Brawler@kbin.social 26 points 10 months ago

Lower the price???

[-] Sprawlie@lemmy.world 26 points 10 months ago

Want to Chime in since there's a lot of weird misinformation and conjecture in the comments:

The over-production was a business decision by many of the producers. A bad one. But they knew they were producing more flower than the Canadian market needed at any price point. Dropping price down isn't going to dramatically increase the consumption as polling / research by stats can shows the people smoking todtay, are the same who were smoking illegally before, and that the overall Cannabis market (while huge) isn't something that was ballooning.

I had invested in numerous stocks in the industry back when legalization started to gain ground. As an investor and reading the reports, one thing was clear. Everyone of the biggest producers believed they were going to be international gods of pot and be able to sell world wide. Many hedged billions on producing enough flower for the American market with hopes that the US would follow along very shortly.

These poor business decisions led to the large producers, such as Canopy, and Aurora from making over-building production to the point that even if they shut several of their operations, they would still over-produce for the Canadian market.

at the end, this was some MBA deciding that profit margins would be higher by writing off the excess weed instead of spending additional resources to use it in other products (it still can be used for extracts and edibles even if low quality)

This is what happens when you create a new industry (Producers) and let it be run by the MBA's and giant businesses instead of those who are actually involved in the industry in the first place.

as soon as I saw these happening I sold out on their stocks. IOf you go look up these companies current valuations, they're almost worthless and worth pennies compared to when they started due to their horrific management. (Aurora Cannabis lost 1 Billion in a year)

[-] Smoogs@lemmy.world 17 points 10 months ago

End stage capitalism: when you realize the population you’re selling to has a finite number and neglect to scale to parameter and still feel like you’re owed.

load more comments (2 replies)
load more comments (8 replies)
[-] unreasonabro@lemmy.world 24 points 10 months ago* (last edited 10 months ago)

Sounds like the price is too high. Stupid fucking government. How dare you pride yourself on high prices. Are you not trying to disrupt the illegal trade? Why the fuck are you using their numbers, retards? GEE WHY ISNT ANYBODY BUYING OUR GREEDY FUCKING OUNCES and man, you should see the fucking website. Doug ford can go fuck himself with a forklift.

Try this amazing philosophy: if you can make that much, but can't sell that much, it's cuz it ain't worth that much not cuz nobody will buy it. Unless it's, you know, shit. AND FURTHERMORE, since clearly the government is going to read this, you might want to doublecheck that quality control isn't just taking the cheque and AFKing, cuz from this end that's how it looks!

load more comments (1 replies)
[-] Kolanaki@yiffit.net 23 points 10 months ago

If nobody wants it I guess I could take it off your hands. 🤷🏻‍♂️

load more comments (1 replies)
[-] BobbyNevada@discuss.tchncs.de 20 points 10 months ago

Can one compost old weed? Turn it into weed mulch? Could someone buy it wholesale and make something else? This feels like a problem a little R and D could solve.

load more comments (2 replies)
[-] SomeGuy69@lemmy.world 19 points 10 months ago

Hey send some of that oversupply to me, yeah, thanks.

load more comments (2 replies)
[-] TIMMAY@lemmy.world 19 points 10 months ago

ayo send me some I can pick up the slack

[-] studabakerhawk@lemmy.world 14 points 10 months ago

We're smoking. It's just not that weed.

load more comments (2 replies)
[-] Stanwich@lemmy.world 14 points 10 months ago

They fucked everything up. I know there were big issues with major gangs making money ect..... but no one seems to get that there were soooooooo many mom and pop operations making a little tax free money that went direct into the communities. They were buying quads , snowmobiles from local dealerships. Paying cash to local restaurants. There were people who couldn't find other jobs for reasons that could trim and grow to support themselves. It was a great industry for the lower to middle class to rise up without being screwed .

[-] BonesOfTheMoon@lemmy.world 12 points 10 months ago

I've never used cannabis in my life, but last year I got a wild hair and decided to buy a gummy. It had no effect on me save for wanting to go to bed early, but I did my part y'all.

[-] Cinner@lemmy.world 8 points 10 months ago* (last edited 10 months ago)

It's a well known phenomena that some people just don't get high their first time(s). I knew a guy since high school and years after that was basically immune to it. People gave him huge vape bags and massive doses of edibles and it never had an effect. Never saw the guy forget a single word. Then apparently at some point it did, because he smokes now.

There are also people who are terrible at metabolizing gummies. I'm not one of them. Give me 2mg and I'm good. Give me 20mg and I'm curled up in the fetal position in bed waiting for the visions and monsters in my head to go away.

[-] Spacehooks@reddthat.com 7 points 10 months ago

Same experience. My gf felt like she had a cold. We both tried it 3x with same results.

load more comments (1 replies)
load more comments (8 replies)
[-] Zaphod@discuss.tchncs.de 10 points 10 months ago

Send it to Germany :)
We need it soon (hopefully)

[-] Meanshadows35@lemmy.world 10 points 10 months ago

I'll take some bricks right here.

[-] TomMasz@kbin.social 9 points 10 months ago

Supply exceeded demand, it happens.

load more comments (3 replies)
[-] TheDeepState@lemmy.world 8 points 10 months ago

It’s puff, puff, and then pass.

load more comments (1 replies)
load more comments
view more: next ›
this post was submitted on 10 Jan 2024
473 points (100.0% liked)

World News

39023 readers
1835 users here now

A community for discussing events around the World

Rules:

Similarly, if you see posts along these lines, do not engage. Report them, block them, and live a happier life than they do. We see too many slapfights that boil down to "Mom! He's bugging me!" and "I'm not touching you!" Going forward, slapfights will result in removed comments and temp bans to cool off.

We ask that the users report any comment or post that violate the rules, to use critical thinking when reading, posting or commenting. Users that post off-topic spam, advocate violence, have multiple comments or posts removed, weaponize reports or violate the code of conduct will be banned.

All posts and comments will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis. This means that some content that violates the rules may be allowed, while other content that does not violate the rules may be removed. The moderators retain the right to remove any content and ban users.


Lemmy World Partners

News !news@lemmy.world

Politics !politics@lemmy.world

World Politics !globalpolitics@lemmy.world


Recommendations

For Firefox users, there is media bias / propaganda / fact check plugin.

https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/media-bias-fact-check/

founded 1 year ago
MODERATORS