MJBiz - July/August 2024 - 10

FROM THE EDITOR Omar Sacirbey
Stewards of Success
It's time for cannabis to lead the way to a more sustainable future
T
he regulated cannabis
industry in the United
States has gotten as far
as it has because of compliance,
responsibility and a willingness
to try to do the right thing.
Think back to the early days
of COVID-19, when marijuana
retailers were among the first
businesses to proactively
institute social distancing
and other measures to keep
customers safe, while product
manufacturers jumped into
action to make sanitizer.
Or consider the over-the-top
regulations that marijuana
operators must comply with,
such as mixing plant waste
material with kitty litter before
disposing of it.
Improving Our Reputation
These actions have helped the
cannabis industry win trust with
regulators and the public-and
they are a big part of the reason
why new states continue to
legalize regulated marijuana.
When licensed U.S. cannabis
businesses are at their best, they
are not only models of efficiency
and innovation, but they are
socially responsible neighbors
working to conduct business in
ways that help rather than harm
the communities where they
operate.
And given the intense scrutiny
that the marijuana industry still
faces, socially responsible cannabis
business operators can only help
buoy the industry's reputation.
Trying to Do Better
One area where the industry
10 July-August 2024 | MJBizMagazine
has fallen short, however, is
sustainability.
MJBizMagazine has written
extensively about the
environmental downsides of our
industry, such as the exorbitant
use of electricity and excessive
packaging, as well as some of the
solutions operators have come
up with to fight these hazards.
In this issue, we looked at the
latest in sustainable innovation
in the cannabis industry and
found that while problems
still exist, there are a growing
number of solutions and
operators willing to try them.
For example, LED lights and
heating, ventilation and air
conditioning (HVAC) systems are
becoming more efficient and
more affordable, while better
building design is amplifying
those benefits. Solar panels,
too, are starting to appear on
more and more cannabis farms
throughout North America.
Reuse, Recycle, Retail
On the brand and retail front,
some business owners are using
packaging made from recovered
ocean plastics, while others are
constructing vape pens from
recycled materials.
These measures have up-front
costs, but cannabis companies are
betting they will pay dividends.
Operators who invest in energyefficient
technologies will enjoy
an eventual return on investment;
they also can get hefty
rebates from utility companies.
Sustainable by Statute
At the same time, some states
mandate environmental practices.
Mandated or not, operators are
finding sustainability increasingly
sells with consumers in general
and cannabis consumers in
particular.
And why not? Marijuana
comes from nature and is a plant
that, for many consumers, is
associated with enlightenment,
including taking a more
enlightened approach to how the
plant is grown and packaged.
Since environmentally conscientious
cultivation and packaging
resonates with cannabis
consumers, it is an important
part of the recipe for business
success.
Making Good Choices
Price and quality likely will
always be the top factors that
cannabis consumers consider
when making purchases. But as
shoppers continue to see our
planet suffer from human-made
climate change, they won't want
to feel guilty for buying products
from manufacturers that hurt
the planet.
Rather, cannabis companies
can be stewards of the
environment while being
stewards of their own success.
And just as the cannabis sector
has led on other issues, it now
has an opportunity to lead other
industries into a more sustainable
era of doing business.
Omar Sacirbey is the
editor of MJBizMagazine.
You can reach him
at omar.sacirbey@
mjbizdaily.com.
MJBiz - July/August 2024

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