Well, folks, it’s that time of year again. Everyone is starting to wind down operations for the year and look ahead to 2017 for new and exciting projects. Both Surna and the Cannabis Industry have had big years in 2016.
So, you’ve been working for months to get all your documentation together to get licensed, picked out a space for your facility, found investors, decided on your lighting, climate control, pest control and automation systems and you’re finally ready to start building. Well, hold on because the last– and possibly one of the most important– decision has yet to be made. Who will be your contractor?
Lately, it seems every other article we read is about growers having to dispose of large percentages of their crops due to testing failures. The recent tightening of regulations on pesticides and fungicides in Oregon has had a serious effect on cultivators as they try to figure out new ways to grow healthy plants without depending on chemicals. But this isn’t just an Oregon problem. More states are joining the cannabis market and, with that, comes stricter testing regulations. In fact, a new study by Steep Hill Labs shows that if California were to adopt similar testing standards to those used by Oregon Environmental Laboratory Accreditation Program (ORELAP), nearly 83% of crops would fail. That is no small issue.
Here at Surna, we’ve been designing facilities for indoor cultivation for close to 10 years and we’ve been excited to watch as new states begin coming online and more people reach out to us for guidance in designing their cultivation facility. Over and over, we get asked about what kind of equipment grower’s need and our response is always “it depends”. This can be confusing sometimes but designing the ideal environment means thinking about your grow holistically and considering everything from your growing style to temperature and humidity parameters to the types of lights being used to power capacity and more. But, one of the most important indicators of what type of equipment to choose is the physical location of your cultivation facility. With so many diverse climates in the United States, cooling and dehumidification needs vary vastly from region to region. So, we’ve gone ahead and highlighted some of the major regions of the country and detailed options to consider when choosing a cooling system.
We had a great time in Las Vegas last week for Marijuana Business Daily’s 5th annual Marijuana Business Conference and Expo. The energy was great following such great election results for the cannabis industry. In fact, people were so excited that the show not only sold out its 7,500 tickets, but it sold out an additional 2,500 tickets (and were still turning more people away) making this show one of the largest we’ve ever seen! Ten thousand people showed up proving that the cannabis industry is here to stay.
Tuesday marked an incredible moment in history. This election will be remembered as one of the most shocking of all time. Donald Trump is now president elect of the United States of America. But before you start packing your bags and looking around for your passport, remember that now 1 in 5 Americans have access to marijuana. Yes folks, cannabis was the big winner this year with four states (Massachusetts, California, Nevada and Maine) voting to legalize recreational use for adults 21 and older and another four (Florida, North Dakota, Montana and Florida) voting to add or expand medical use. These states together represent about 75 million Americans who now have some type of access to cannabis. With so much uncertainty about what happens now, we can take comfort in one guarantee– cannabis is not going anywhere anytime soon.
This is an exciting time for Cannabis. An estimated 84 million Americans will be affected by proposed cannabis legislation on the ballot next week. This is significant for the industry, marking a turning point in our country’s relationship with the plant. However, as more and more states come on board, it is inevitable that cultivation operations will begin multiplying at incredible rates. It is important that this innovative industry approach these new opportunities responsibly and in a way that shows the world that we understand and respect the resource constraints we are facing. The good news is that, because the industry is so young, we have the chance to set standards on how we will utilize resources.
There are many positives about growing in an indoor, sealed environment. The vast majority of cannabis cultivators rely on this method to maximize output. Indoor gardens allow cultivators to get multiple harvest per year while reducing exposure to pests, fungus and bacteria. Further, indoor cultivation eliminates outside conditions as a concern for indoor climate, and ensures a secure operation.
Each month, we publish a newsletter discussing a trending topic within the cannabis industry and how it shapes Surna’s philosophy. To be one of the first to receive this information, be sure to sign up for our email list.
Protecting the biosecurity of a facility involves a variety of best practices. Instead of explaining what we think is the best way to ensure healthy plants through biosecurity, we’d like to share what some of our clients and partners think.