Oregon marijuana oversupply driving out small farmers, lowering prices

Oregon cannabis farmers grew three times the amount of product consumers purchased last year, small cultivation operations are going out of business and dispensaries across the state are closing up shop or selling out.

That’s the scene that two dozen cannabis industry professionals painted of Oregon’s marijuana market, according to Willamette Week, a Portland-based alternative weekly.

Here’s what you need to know:

• Persistent low prices have led to small operations downsizing staff and cultivation facilities closing.
• Oregon regulators reported that 1.1 million pounds of marijuana were entered into the state’s traceability system in February. By contrast, Oregonians consumed only about 340,000 pounds of regulated cannabis in 2017.
• The state is planning to double the number of licensed cultivators this summer. At the beginning of April, Oregon had 963 licensed cannabis cultivators and another 910 on the Oregon Liquor Control Commission’s desk awaiting approval.
• One cultivator told Willamette Week he sold 60 pounds of indoor-grown cannabis at auction for $100 a pound. The farmer attributed the low prices to a flood of supply from the fall outdoor-grown harvest.