Pennsylvania Marijuana Market in Tumult Amid Falling Prices, Consolidation

The Pennsylvania medical marijuana market is in upheaval, with smaller companies getting squeezed by falling wholesale prices while their ranks are thinned by growing consolidation among multistate operators.The situation has spurred independent operators to call on the state government for help, with one company accusing marijuana regulators of failing to enforce the rules and allowing monopolistic control.The Pennsylvania medical marijuana market is in upheaval, with smaller companies getting squeezed by falling wholesale prices while their ranks are thinned by growing consolidation among multistate operators.The situation has spurred independent operators to call on the state government for help, with one company accusing marijuana regulators of failing to enforce the rules and allowing monopolistic control.This trend of consolidation is playing out across the U.S. cannabis industry, and Pennsylvania is a case in point.Cannabis companies there report sliding wholesale prices for medical marijuana as the state’s patient count plateaus and more production comes online.The price drop comes as multistate operators are gearing up for the prospect of adult-use legalization and buying smaller, independent marijuana businesses that are struggling and laying off employees in an increasingly crowded market.“The biggest losers are the mom-and-pops,” said Steve Schain, a cannabis industry veteran and attorney based in Philadelphia.The dispensaries are having a difficult time if they’re not affiliated with a multistate operator, he added.“A large, publicly traded multistate operator can survive a long period of time without being profitable, and a stand-alone cannot,” Schain said.“It’s virtually impossible to compete with somebody who doesn’t have to be profitable in the short run.”Business owners in the state say wholesale flower prices have fallen from around $4,000 a pound to closer to $3,000, on average.One independent medical marijuana grower and processor, Calypso Enterprises, announced earlier this month it was laying off 55 workers at its Erie facility – or nearly 75% of its staff.Click here for the rest of the story!