Marijuana Business Magazine January 2019

Automation Automating certain parts of your operation can also save you time and money. Cultivation operations often struggle with staffing trimmer crews. A trimming machine could signifi- cantly cut production costs. “We definitely do mechanical trimming,”VanWingerden said. “Our volume is such we couldn’t even think about staying with only hand trim.” He still has a few employees clean up the buds before they go out to retailers, given that his trimming machines don’t catch everything. Peters, meanwhile, said he’s seen machines that can do a better job than hand trimmers. “We see better trichome preser- vation and a ‘tighter’ trim than we can do by hand while still preserving the original shape of the flower and overall quality of the finished product,” he said. “All at a fraction of the cost.” He said he’s cultivating indoors for $189 per pound and is trying to cut that number in half, given the slump in wholesale prices. “When you see price compression happen like you’ve seen in Oregon, you have to find a way to be efficient or—you don’t survive,” Peters added. Mechanical trimming can save money on labor costs. Photo by SunMed Growers 39 Norman Street, Salem, MA 01970, USA