It was just last November that Calfiornians voted to legalize recreational use of marijuana in the state, and now the newfound economic source has presented a unique problem.
As the industry grows, according to Hezekiah Allen, executive director of the California Growers’ Association, the state is suffering a surplus in cannabis growth that could unfortunately lead to more illegal activity as growers try to expand their reach beyond California, a violation of federal law.
“We are producing too much,” Allen told the Los Angeles Times, adding that state-licensed growers were "going to have to scale back," as the industry is currently "on a painful downsizing curve.”
“For right now, our goal is to get folks into the regulated market, as many as possible,” said Lori Ajax, chief of the state’s Bureau of Medical Cannabis Regulation.
According to Ajax, Allen's proposal of scaling back could quickly become a reality for growers in a state where production is estimated to be somewhere between 5-12 times consumption numbers.