Category: Cannabis

Michigan Day 1 Recreational Sales

Being in NY, December 1st felt a lot like this:

Not surprising, there were incredibly long lines forming around the small number of recreational shops which were all located with Ann Arbor. Prohibitionists like to cheer on communities who ban recreational sales, as I have mentioned in my previous post, but banning the stores will just result in the traditional “black” market to continue in force.

Someone on Facebook shared an image(I tried to find the original source but couldn’t) showing the price list from one of the operating dispensaries:

Two things jump out; one being the limit on flower purchases and the other being the incredibly high prices(before taxes). The limit on flower purchases make sense for day 1. There is a limited supply and as we have seen in other states, hundreds of people show up looking to buy legal cannabis.

The prices, however, are just insulting. $70 for an 1/8th is almost double what the going rate is now on the street. With this being my first time monitoring a day 1 release in such a manner, I’m not sure how this has compared to other states on day 1.

I am really hoping this is simple supply/demand and that the prices will eventually come down to a more reasonable level. Price fluctuations are bound to happen in any commodity market especially one as new and erratic as cannabis.

Searching for Hemp Flower

After seeing a few posts on Twitter, I decided to make a few searches for Hemp flower.  To my surprise, Hemp flower was readily available from numerous vendors online.  The vast majority of these vendors are located on the West Coast, where growing Hemp has been allowed for some time.

Upon further searching I discovered Upstate Hemp Co, which primarily stocks Hemp grown locally near Buffalo, NY!  Always wanting to support local shops, Upstate Hemp has an actual storefront in downtown Rochester, NY and also has online shopping.

Hemp, according to the Farm Bill Act of 2018, is defined as the Cannabis Sativa L. plant which contains less than 0.3% THC.  THC is the psychoactive chemical that provides the high normally associated with marijuana.  Since the Farm Bill passed, the once dormant Hemp industry(see 1937 Tax Act which started prohibition) has seen an insurgence.  While mostly focused on production of CBD products, Hemp has a variety of other applications including textiles, food products, plastics, and Hemp flower.

Upstate Hemp Co has in stock a variety of local Hemp flower grown in a variety of conditions including greenhouse, outdoor, and dark room LED.  With a healthy choice of local hemp, the upcoming reviews will focus on the Deschutes, Sunbeam Haze, and Umpqua varieties.  Recent email updates from UHCO state they have new varieties coming that will be available soon.