GreenWave Advisors has analyzed data from the DEA and Homeland Security regarding cannabis plant seizures over the last several years and determined that the illicit market for cannabis in the U.S. is shrinking, according to a High Times report.
Cannabis consultant Dustin Moore said the data could indicate a variety of causes, including a shift from imported illegal cannabis to cannabis grown in legal states — but perhaps without a license to do so.
“While the DEA focuses mostly on illegal market players, I’d say in California the unlicensed players represent the most predominant section of the market right now. […] The hardest thing to do is to try and develop causality of why the illegal markets seem to be shrinking. Is it because there are now roughly 30 states with legal cannabis? Is it a function of the DEA and homeland security not prioritizing cannabis as much as they once did, given the fact that the Rohrabacher–Farr amendment gives them less latitude than what they once had?” —Dustin Moore, in the report
Many consultants agree, however, that such a large data set certainly indicates a changing cannabis playing field in states with legalization. ArcView Group and BDS Analytics published a separate report that encourages GreenWave’s interpretation of the data.
“The successful reduction of the illicit markets in Colorado, Washington, and Oregon provides evidence that legalization works, and continues to support the assertion that ‘more legalization is better.’” — Excerpt, “The State of Legal Marijuana Markets,” via High Times
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