Legal vs black market

[Joker]

Just a question for those of you fortunate enough to live in a state where weed is legal for recreational use.
What has it done to the local black market?
It seems like it would do away with the friendly neighborhood weed dealer. Where I live the local dealer is still in demand, the only difference is the weed for sale now is almost always from dispensary or possibly the growers.

[Canuck147]

Up here in Canada - countdown is on. Local dealers will still be around (I know 2 guys 2 minutes away). Government will want too much in tax, thus enabling the black market to stay in business.
Difference being, I expect government dispensary to have more of a variety. Especially in the hash department.
I know local activists (Dana Larsen) have campaigned to have cannabis available for $1.00 a gram. At that value, the black market would slowly be less prominent. That's what Larsen has said.
At a dollar a gram, I would definitely have different smoke to burn.

[Mr.furley]

Im only in a MM State and It has stabilized the price. It is all 200$ a oz no Matter the strain, no matter if your a Mmp or a black market buyer it starts at 2bills, before brick weed was 2 bills and 3 bills plus for a couple available strains.

[Doubledealing72]

Same here. It's all around 200. 180 every once in a while. Mine should only end up costing me about 50 or less once this second grow is complete! First grow was around 220, but I bought a bunch of unnecessary things lol.

[Buddy]

I live in mass. They want to tax it at 20 to 25 percent so there's plenty of room for blackmarket

[Boco2017]

Here in Colorado the black market is still here average price for an 1/8 after tax is about $50 and on the black market it's still $40-$45 an eighth. Black market will probably still always be here.

[oldjarhead100]

I agree the black market will always be there I live in Mass as well and I dont see it going away

[desertdan]

From what I hear. I don't have a card. The dispensary weed is not very good here because it is local grown by people who don't really know what they are doing. Black market comes from Ca, Or, Wa

[Mr.furley]

Part of the dispensary problem is quick turnover, when I had a provider he straight told me that he barely has time to dry for 7 days and right in the jar for sale no cure time just turnover.

[Joker]

When med weed was legalized I told a buddy, " just watch, before long quantity will be what the dispensaries want, more than quality."
If that becomes the rule rather than the exception they will soon realize (When the cash flow slows enough) that people want QUALITY

[alltatup]

Go, Black Market, Go!!!! We all knew this would happen with dispensaries rushing to get in on the cash flow. And I think I have read that there's been some pesticide or other contaminants found in dispensary weed... or did I dream that?

There will always be master growers whose clients aren't going away.

[Potted]

The black market will always b there,when there’s a buck to b made,sadly

[alltatup]

It's true for both sides. Dispensaries with poor practices will always be there, too...

[desertdan]

Where something as harmless as weed is marketed, I would rather call it the free or underground or Fed free market. The free and untaxed market is where it should be just like tomatoes.

[Joker]

I agree

[oldjarhead100]

a buddy of mine told me that the wild fires in CA have destroyed millions of acres of pot fields and at least 1 suppliers grow factory pretty soon CA people will be buying from the rest of country instead of us buying from them

[LuckyAcres]

In Oregon it’s called the grey market now and it’s thtiving! As far as dispensary quality well believe you me it’s there! ...if you’re ready to pay extra for those top shelf buds. But even medium and lower shelf are still better than the shit I used to buy around the corner and a lot safer. Pesticide testing is so intense here now that I truely believe dispensaries are safe. Mighty Wash is on the flagged product list for example... unlisted pyrethrums...small growers who don’t belong to a network of dispensaries are gonna create the mother of all craft cannabis markets! Small batches, attention to details... we did it here with craft-beer already!!!

[GanjaGed]

ATM in the US the black market is actually expanding, it's also changing.

It's not so much about bringing it in from out of country, but running it from State to State. Because suddenly anyone can take a trip to a legal State and take it to an illegal one you see more "normal" people getting caught on trafficking charges. It's becoming a crime of opportunity. Until the Fed changes this will be the case. What we've literally done at this point is to simply move the supply closer and actually made the large seller buy easier.

It's complicated by the inability to move product between States legally. Growers are producing more than the State can use often, and have no where to dump the excess except on the black market. The legal industry is still too new and rapidly expanding to have figured out all the logistics.

I think it will eventually shake out that dispensaries will still carry what will become the new "commercial" bud. Limited numbers of strains that grow uniform and produce uniform buds, taste, etc. but the real market will be processed products like extracts, edibles, vapes etc. This is where the THC/CBD/CBN etc. content can be uniformly controlled and homogenized. which is the goal of large scale agro business. The mass market is all about uniformity of product that appeals to the widest range of people possible.

From there I suspect cannabis to have one of the largest artisan/craft industries around. This type of operation is practically a direct plug and play from these days. Thats where you'll find the top notch buds with great variety etc.

Prices are gonna freefall again once it's federally legal, and the industry can use banks and more importantly take their appropriate tax write offs which they can't now. When they can move it across States the market is gonna get flooded with weed making it a buyers market for a while at least.

The black market for weed will pretty much die out in time, there will always be some form, I mean hell there's still a black market for alcohol but nothing like during prohibition, because in general, people are willing to pay for convenience, ease, familiar and "safe" products.

Sometimes I think the black market discussion tend to think that suddenly there will be no black market, it'll still be there there are plenty of other drugs they sell, and as long as any regulation exists there's someone who will want it but can't get it legally.

[alltatup]

I just can't wait to try the GMO cannabis... Remember soma from "Brave New World"...