3 ms·

Because it's pretty cheap to produce and doesn't take a ton of special knowledge, wide legalization will see a race to the bottom on price This would be true i

Because it's pretty cheap to produce and doesn't take a ton of special knowledge, wide legalization will see a race to the bottom on price This would be true if all strains of marijuana contained the same levels of cannabinoids, flavor, appearance, combustion rate etc. I think a big one will be balancing Cannabidiol (CBD) levels with Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) to produce a more relaxed, less paranoid and happier strain. Given the varying affects on different humans due to different neurological makeups, there might even be a market for optimizing levels for individual humans both for medical and recreational purposes.

exelius 11y ago
I don't think that matters much at all; it's really no different than developing different strains of tomatoes for size and color. Nearly every large produce grower has an R&D department that develops different types of produce for different uses with optimal yields (i.e. tomatoes used for making pizza sauce vs. heirloom tomatoes designed for straight eating). Basically, if stoners have been doing this secretly in basement labs for the last 30 years, think of the progress an industrial-scale horticultural lab could make.
- Implicated 11y ago
  I'm confused. You seem to be supporting his point. R&D departments are cheap? No special knowledge required? Race to the bottom on price? How has that worked out in the wine world?
  - exelius 11y ago
    R&D requires scale. There are relatively few jobs compared to the size of the industry. And the vast majority of the wine industry is indeed in the $10-or-less category. Alcohol in general is a pretty well-consolidated industry, with a few global giants owning the vast, vast majority of the global brands and production. And I never said there wasn't money in it -- there is, but it's not going to be made by VC startups. The problem is that it's a relatively easy market to get into (I.e. There are no major technical hurdles) and it's really obvious. People will make money, but its really not a hockey-stick market. The types of companies that will be successful will be ones with superior cost controls enabling them to outlast / outspend the competition on brand advertising.
  - draw_down 11y ago
    I don't think anyone grows wine grapes indoors or hydroponically... Guess I could be wrong
- icanhackit 11y ago
  no different than developing different strains of tomatoes for size and color I think it would be an oversimplification to compare a vegetable (OK, technically a fruit) to a drug with nearly 500 known compounds with varying effects depending on levels in the plant and physiology of the individual ingesting the compounds. Producers currently aim for ball-park effects, appearance etc. However it would require a mix of medical testing at the individual (person) level and a map of effects with varying levels of compounds to achieve what I suggested. I'm not sure if you've ever tried a variety of strains but I can say they produce very different effects on mood and mind. It's inconsistent and there's no one kind of high. It's not like alcohol. Ignoring the medical aspects and instead looking at the market - coffee and tea are a great example. There's the stuff that you can buy cheaply which you'll find in the kitchen of small businesses or grandma's cupboard and there's the gourmet stuff that you'll find at trendy cafes and restaurants. To condense my point - some producers will race to the bottom, others will play in the connoisseur market where good margins can be made. But there's also a tonne of work to be done in the medical realm. This is just the beginning.
  - WildUtah 11y ago
    "I think it would be an oversimplification to compare a vegetable (OK, technically a fruit) to a drug with nearly 500 known compounds with varying effects depending on levels in the plant and physiology of the individual ingesting the compounds." You appear to be unfamiliar with the fanaticism and the breadth and diversity of the products of the tomato breeders. The differences in color, flavor, texture, size, hydration, phytochemical profile, and smell are very much like that of other subtle specialty plants. In fact, the first modern explosion of tomato varieties in the nineteenth century may precede the others.
    - icanhackit 11y ago
      You appear to be unfamiliar with the fanaticism and the breadth and diversity of the products of the tomato breeders. Believe me I'm not. My partner's a vegetarian, which pretty much makes me a vegetarian. But I do love the taste of a good burger... I think I'm perhaps not emphasizing the point that a plant with almost 500 psychoactive compounds that exhibits varying behaviors when ingested depending on the huge number of possible permutations in compound levels and the widely differing neurology and physiology of every individual. We're talking about the complexity of medicinal chemistry, not the flavors, shapes, shades, or textures of fleshy fruits from the nightshade family.

exelius 11y ago

I don't think that matters much at all; it's really no different than developing different strains of tomatoes for size and color. Nearly every large produce grower has an R&D department that develops different types of produce for different uses with optimal yields (i.e. tomatoes used for making pizza sauce vs. heirloom tomatoes designed for straight eating). Basically, if stoners have been doing this secretly in basement labs for the last 30 years, think of the progress an industrial-scale horticultural lab could make.

Implicated 11y ago
I'm confused. You seem to be supporting his point. R&D departments are cheap? No special knowledge required? Race to the bottom on price? How has that worked out in the wine world?
- exelius 11y ago
  R&D requires scale. There are relatively few jobs compared to the size of the industry. And the vast majority of the wine industry is indeed in the $10-or-less category. Alcohol in general is a pretty well-consolidated industry, with a few global giants owning the vast, vast majority of the global brands and production. And I never said there wasn't money in it -- there is, but it's not going to be made by VC startups. The problem is that it's a relatively easy market to get into (I.e. There are no major technical hurdles) and it's really obvious. People will make money, but its really not a hockey-stick market. The types of companies that will be successful will be ones with superior cost controls enabling them to outlast / outspend the competition on brand advertising.
- draw_down 11y ago
  I don't think anyone grows wine grapes indoors or hydroponically... Guess I could be wrong
icanhackit 11y ago
no different than developing different strains of tomatoes for size and color I think it would be an oversimplification to compare a vegetable (OK, technically a fruit) to a drug with nearly 500 known compounds with varying effects depending on levels in the plant and physiology of the individual ingesting the compounds. Producers currently aim for ball-park effects, appearance etc. However it would require a mix of medical testing at the individual (person) level and a map of effects with varying levels of compounds to achieve what I suggested. I'm not sure if you've ever tried a variety of strains but I can say they produce very different effects on mood and mind. It's inconsistent and there's no one kind of high. It's not like alcohol. Ignoring the medical aspects and instead looking at the market - coffee and tea are a great example. There's the stuff that you can buy cheaply which you'll find in the kitchen of small businesses or grandma's cupboard and there's the gourmet stuff that you'll find at trendy cafes and restaurants. To condense my point - some producers will race to the bottom, others will play in the connoisseur market where good margins can be made. But there's also a tonne of work to be done in the medical realm. This is just the beginning.
- WildUtah 11y ago
  "I think it would be an oversimplification to compare a vegetable (OK, technically a fruit) to a drug with nearly 500 known compounds with varying effects depending on levels in the plant and physiology of the individual ingesting the compounds." You appear to be unfamiliar with the fanaticism and the breadth and diversity of the products of the tomato breeders. The differences in color, flavor, texture, size, hydration, phytochemical profile, and smell are very much like that of other subtle specialty plants. In fact, the first modern explosion of tomato varieties in the nineteenth century may precede the others.
  - icanhackit 11y ago
    You appear to be unfamiliar with the fanaticism and the breadth and diversity of the products of the tomato breeders. Believe me I'm not. My partner's a vegetarian, which pretty much makes me a vegetarian. But I do love the taste of a good burger... I think I'm perhaps not emphasizing the point that a plant with almost 500 psychoactive compounds that exhibits varying behaviors when ingested depending on the huge number of possible permutations in compound levels and the widely differing neurology and physiology of every individual. We're talking about the complexity of medicinal chemistry, not the flavors, shapes, shades, or textures of fleshy fruits from the nightshade family.