The problem of waste in the cannabis industry is getting worse as the market for legally produced cannabis expands.
Sandwich bags and plastic wrap accounted for a significant chunk of trash from cannabis products for a significant amount of time, but times have changed.
In addition to the significant quantities of energy that are needed to cultivate cannabis indoors on a commercial scale, the amount of waste that the industry currently generates in a variety of ways is enormous.
Managing Cannabis Trash Managing cannabis waste, which can include solvents, leftover biomass, and additional packaging, has become a serious challenge in an era of increasing cannabis legalization and normalization. This is due to the fact that cannabis waste is becoming more common.
According to a report by the CBC, the packaging waste generated by one gram of cannabis flower purchased from a store in Canada can weigh up to seventy grams.
Other types of garbage, such as solvents and vape pens, on the other hand, may call for more involved disposal processes. Composting, incineration, and landfills are just a few of the options for getting rid of biomass.
It is currently not possible to recycle vape pens and cartridges using conventional recycling facilities due to the fact that they are made up of a variety of materials, some of which are present in only small quantities.
TerraCycle, based in New Jersey, has developed a recycling program that takes the shape of its Cannabis Vapes Zero Waste Box; however, at the moment, it is only available in Canada.
According to Project CBD, the legacy of cannabis illegality, which has expressed itself as unneeded overregulation, is the root cause of the difficulties associated with cannabis waste.
The Changing Times Have Caused Shifts in Consumer Behavior Colorado-based According to Mark Keys, Vice President of Sales for Spherex, regulations and a lack of recycling choices may be contributing factors in the shift in purchasing patterns that customers are exhibiting.
It is impossible to offer recycling programs for these items at this time, according to Keys. “Since it is not compliant for a consumer to enter a dispensary with a THC cartridge that was previously purchased at a dispensary, it is difficult to offer recycling services for these products.” “This is yet another reason why customers could be moving away from them,” the author writes.
According to a survey published by Marijuana Business Daily in February, sales of vape pens climbed from $1.5 billion in 2019 to $1.8 billion in 2019, despite the fact that their market share decreased from 22.3 percent to 19.1 percent over the same time period.
According to the data, the market for cannabis vaporizer pens is expanding at a rate that is just half as fast as the overall market for cannabis products.
However, Keys claims that Spherex has witnessed an increasing demand for cartridges over the past six months, notably following “Vapegate” and COVID, despite the fact that sales of vape pens have slowed down.
According to Keys, “the majority of the disposable market was predicated on users who desired a small-dosage vape pen without the additional battery purchase.” The demand for these pens has been negatively impacted by the decline in tourism to Colorado as a direct result of COVID limitations. “In addition, disposables were a fantastic choice for events and weekend gatherings; however, there were fewer opportunities for these activities, which further reduced the market for disposables. Instead, over the course of the past year there has been an increase in demand for a bigger volume of distillate per unit, which Spherex was able to provide by expanding its product offering to include one gram cartridges this year.
According to Keys, the lack of recyclability and the small amount of vapor that can be contained in each disposable vaporizer contribute to the decline in popularity of these devices in the state of Colorado.
“Consumers are leaning toward the most volume for their dollar in each product,” says Keys. “Consumers are going toward the most volume for their dollar.” “As a direct consequence, there has been a rise in demand for 1,000 mg cartridges.”
Get Things Done and Observe the Results
According to Keys, there are actions that businesses can take to operate in a more sustainable manner, which is important considering that the disposal of trash from cannabis is an obvious and ongoing problem that needs to be addressed.
According to Keys, “Companies should continue to obtain eco-friendly products and packaging that is recyclable,” because options for consumers will hopefully begin to expand and sustainability becomes more of a brand differentiation. “In a market that requires the use of compliant and child-safe packaging, businesses ought to investigate other materials to use in place of plastic in order to ensure the safety of their products,”
According to Keys, all Spherex products are put through stringent testing by independent labs to verify that they not only meet but also go above and beyond statutory regulations.
In addition, Spherex makes use of hardware of the finest quality from CCell to guarantee that none of its products contain any heavy metals.
According to Keys, cannabis companies should search for more environmentally friendly options that are still able to satisfy regulatory criteria.
According to Keys, “the most straightforward shift for cannabis companies to undertake is the adoption of environmentally friendly and recyclable packaging.” We are obligated to utilize packaging and hardware that satisfies certain requirements in order to comply with the standards that govern our sector. Wind technology is utilized in the production of certain of Spherex’s packaging, most notably PAX. There are a lot of options for businesses to investigate ways in which they might lessen their carbon footprint now that so many different types of enterprises are beginning to move toward a more environmentally friendly mode of operation.
