Food Engineering logo
search
cart
facebook twitter linkedin youtube
  • Sign In
  • Create Account
  • Sign Out
  • My Account
Food Engineering logo
  • NEWS
    • Latest Headlines
    • Manufacturing News
    • People & Industry News
    • Plant Openings
    • Recalls
    • Regulatory Watch
    • Supplier News
  • PRODUCTS
    • New Plant Products
    • New Retail Products
  • TOPICS
    • Alternative Protein
    • Automation
    • Cannabis
    • Cleaning | Sanitation
    • Fabulous Food Plants
    • Food Safety
    • Maintenance Strategies
    • OEE
    • Packaging
    • Sustainability
    • More
  • EXCLUSIVES
    • Plant Construction Survey
    • Plant of the Year
    • Sustainable Plant of the Year
    • State of Food Manufacturing
    • Top 100 Food & Beverage Companies
  • MEDIA
    • Podcasts
    • Videos
    • Webinars
    • White Papers
  • FOOD MASTER
  • EVENTS
    • Food Automation & Manufacturing Symposium and Expo
    • Industry Events
  • RESOURCES
    • eNewsletter
    • Custom Content & Marketing Services
    • FE Store
    • Government Links
    • Industry Associations
    • Market Research
    • Classified Ads
  • EMAGAZINE
    • eMagazine
    • Archive Issue
    • Advertise
  • SIGN UP!
Cannabis

Price per lb. of cannabis falls in California due to massive overproduction

Price per lb. of cannabis falls in California due to massive overproduction
Photo courtesy of Getty Images/Kimberly Delaney
January 3, 2022

The price per pound of cannabis fell in 2021 because of massive overproduction across California . The dramatic drop in price left many outdoor cultivators looking for a way to make ends meet and fearing for the sustainability of their futures.

Jason Gellman, a second-generation cannabis farmer and owner of Ridgeline Farms in Southern Humboldt, has watched the cannabis industry evolve since he was a kid. He admitted that he has an advantage because his brand is well known throughout the region and much of the state. Even still, he struggled to sell his crop in 2021.

“Times are really, really tough for small farmers,” he told the Times-Standard in August. “Most of us are in the red right now and if you are lucky enough to sell your product, it seems to be the average price per pound is around $700 which is way, way down. The county wants their money, the state wants their money, the banks want their money, the trimmers need to be paid and all of the other fees. For a small farmer, it costs around $500 to grow a pound. It’s barely paying the bills.”

In June, the wholesale price for cannabis from last year’s harvest dropped from around $1,200 a pound when the 2021 light deprivation or “dep” crop began to hit the market, according to Humboldt County Growers Alliance Executive Director Natalynne DeLapp.

“The wholesale price for 2021 deps is between $650 and $750 a pound,” she said. “The wholesale price for 2020 AAA grade flower is between $400 and $500 a pound, otherwise as low as $200 to $400 per pound. Some farmers are having their 2020 harvest returned from distributors because they are unable to sell it.”

While small farmers like Gellman are demanding a cap on acreage, DeLapp leaned toward a shift in strategy and called for short and long-term solutions to better support small farmers. “The light at the end of the tunnel is interstate and international commerce,” she said. “We’re still probably two to three years away from that, so the big question is how the county can support farmers to keep their heads above water until then, and how we can use the time we have to build a craft Humboldt cannabis brand so that we hit the ground running when those new markets open up.”

In the meantime, farmers need relief.

“The county can support efforts at the state and federal levels to bring relief to farmers,” DeLapp said. “At the state level, it’s essential that the cultivation tax is eliminated—no matter how low the price of cannabis drops, the state still taxes cultivation at a flat rate of $154 per pound. And at the federal level, we need a legalization bill that recognizes cannabis as an agricultural activity which would provide protection for small farmers rather than pushing the industry towards further consolidation.”

As bleak as things may seem, Gellman said he doesn’t plan on giving up his farm. “I’m so highly invested and this is what I know, this is what a lot of us know and what a lot of us have been doing our whole lives, so we’re not just going to start a new career all of the sudden in our 40s,” he said.

KEYWORDS: cannabis trends

Share This Story

Looking for a reprint of this article?
From high-res PDFs to custom plaques, order your copy today!

Recommended Content

JOIN TODAY
to unlock your recommendations.

Already have an account? Sign In

  • Global Organic Food & Beverage Market to Grow

    Global Organic Food & Beverage Market to Grow

    With a CAGR of 12.07%, Bonafide Research estimates this...
    Latest headlines
  • skilled MEP worker

    Predicting Food and Beverage Manufacturing Trends for 2024

    The two words that should be kept in mind are labor and...
    Automation
    By: Derrick Teal
  • cleaning and sanitation

    The basics of cleaning and sanitation in food plants

    Sanitation maintains or restores a state of cleanliness...
    Cleaning | Sanitation
    By: Richard F. Stier
Manage My Account
  • eMagazine
  • eNewsletter
  • Online Registration
  • Manage My Preferences
  • Customer Service

More Videos

Popular Stories

Cargill Cocoa Plant

Cargill Invests in its Cocoa Supply Chain

Campbell’s Utah plant

Going for Gold(fish): Inside The Campbell’s Company’s $160M Cracker Plant Expansion

Woman engineer on construction site

Exploring the Impact of Women Engineers on the Food Industry

CHECK OUT OUR NEW ESSENTIAL TOPICS

Alternative ProteinAutomationCleaning/SanitationFabulous Food Plants

Food SafetyMaintenance StrategiesOEE

PackagingSustainability

Events

June 17, 2025

Refrigerated & Frozen Foods’ State of the Cold Chain

On Demand Kelley Rodriguez, Editor in Chief of Refrigerated & Frozen Foods, will be joined in this 60-minute webinar by industry experts to help unpack the latest research.

July 23, 2025

Decarbonizing Process Heat: What You Should Know and Next Steps

Driven by climate goals, business risk, client interest, and resilience considerations, food and beverage companies are increasingly turning their attention to decarbonizing their production processes.

View All Submit An Event

Products

Recent Advances in Ready-to-Eat Food Technology

Recent Advances in Ready-to-Eat Food Technology

See More Products

Plant of the Year

Related Articles

  • FSIS says poultry producers must reassess their HAACP plans within 90 days

    California processor recalls 8.7 million pounds of meat due to lack of inspection

    See More
  • FSIS says poultry producers must reassess their HAACP plans within 90 days

    California firm recalls chicken salad products due to possible E. Coli

    See More
  • Flowers Foods issues voluntary recall Tastykake cupcakes

    Flowers Foods voluntarily recalls cupcakes in 8 states due to possible presence of tiny wire mesh fragments

    See More

Related Products

See More Products
  • Rice-Engineering-Website-Cover-439x600.jpg

    Advances in Science & Engineering of Rice

  • food crime.jpg

    Food Crime: An Introduction to Deviance in the Food Industry

See More Products
×

Elevate your expertise in food engineering with unparalleled insights and connections.

Get the latest industry updates tailored your way.

JOIN TODAY!
  • RESOURCES
    • Advertise
    • Contact Us
    • Food Master
    • Store
    • Want More
  • SIGN UP TODAY
    • Create Account
    • eMagazine
    • eNewsletter
    • Customer Service
    • Manage Preferences
  • SERVICES
    • Marketing Services
    • Reprints
    • Market Research
    • List Rental
    • Survey/Respondent Access
  • STAY CONNECTED
    • LinkedIn
    • Facebook
    • YouTube
    • X (Twitter)
  • PRIVACY
    • PRIVACY POLICY
    • TERMS & CONDITIONS
    • DO NOT SELL MY PERSONAL INFORMATION
    • PRIVACY REQUEST
    • ACCESSIBILITY

Copyright ©2025. All Rights Reserved BNP Media.

Design, CMS, Hosting & Web Development :: ePublishing