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.
While the debate about how “medical” is medical marijuana rages on, it is important to remember that “Arguing that no evidence currently exists is not the same as arguing that no evidence could be found.” More scientific studies on the effects of medical marijuana are desperately needed. The demand for cannabis-specific studies is growing. Steps are being taken to improve researchers’ access to cannabis for medical studies. The federal government’s cannabis farm in Mississippi was recently given permission to increase annual production from 125,000 grams to 658,000 grams and an extra hurdle was removed when a step for approval for cannabis studies was eliminated.
Even with severely restricted access to cannabis for study use in the US, momentum in favor of the cannabis industry is growing. Promising studies continue to come out, the most recent showing that cannabis may help heal broken bones more quickly and that states with dispensaries have fewer deaths from prescription pill overdose.
Despite the federal roadblocks in the path of the cannabis industry, we are well on our way to creating an industry with the potential to be larger than the organic food industry.
In that spirit, July has been a big month for state-legal cannabis markets – seeing Oregon adult-use laws going into effect, Hawai’i officially legalizing medical dispensaries and the opening of the first medical dispensary in Illinois.
Many existing states are expanding their markets as well – Washington recreational sales reached their highest point yet in June at $31.9 million, medical dispensary applications in Oregon have doubled in the last six months to 411 and a large cultivation space has grown from 50 thousand square feet in 2011 to 180 thousand square feet in 2014.
And the momentum isn’t slowing anytime soon. Many states are looking towards 2016 and creating ballot measures for both medical and recreational use laws – five states already have ballot measures in place for 2016.
We have felt the groundswell here at Surna. We are working hard to meet the surging demand for energy efficient climate control options amongst cultivation facilities. We recently announced an expansion into a second location in order to increase our manufacturing capacity and, with 9 open positions, our team is rapidly expanding. In the coming months, we will also start offering new professional and engineering services in order to better help our clients during the chaotic build-out phase.
