In the United States, 46 states have decriminalized small amounts of marijuana, allow the use of medical marijuana, or allow the adult use of recreational marijuana. Twenty other countries also allow some form of marijuana use.1 Cultivating and harvesting marijuana plants are only two parts in the process of creating a usable product. The plants also need to be dried and cured.
The drying and curing process, if done properly, enhances the flavor and smell, inhibits mold and bacteria growth, increases the shelf-life of the product, and may increase potency. Drying and curing require precise humidity and temperature, both of which can be influenced by several factors including seasonal temperatures, elevations, barometric pressures, different cultivars, and quantities, to name a few. Some smaller processors that have only a few plants may prefer to dry and cure the product manually, using drying racks and containers for curing, while personally monitoring the environment in the drying room and checking on the progress often. Mid-size and larger processors that dry and cure several pounds of product at a time are more likely to use stand-alone drying and curing machines that automatically maintain the correct temperature and humidity within, thereby needing less oversight.
Today’s market size shows the sales of marijuana drying and curing equipment worldwide in 2017 and projected for 2025. The United States led with a 55% share in revenue in 2017, followed by Canada with 32.2%. Australia, Uruguay, Israel, and Colombia combined composed the other 12.8%. More countries are expected to legalize the use of marijuana for medical or recreational use. As a result of this and technological advances in the equipment, demand is predicted to increase.
1 As of January 2, 2018.
Geographic reference: WorldYear: 2017 and 2025
Market size: $76.7 million and $157.1 million, respectively
Sources: “Marijuana Drying and Curing Equipment Market Size, Share & Trends Analysis Report By Country (U.S., Canada, Germany, Australia, Uruguay, Israel, and Colombia), and Segment Forecasts, 2019 – 2025,” Grand View Research Report Summary, January 2019 available online here; “The Global Marijuana Drying and Curing Equipment Market Size is Expected to Reach USD 157.1 Million by 2025,” Cision PR Newswire, February 18, 2019 available online here; “All of the Places in the World Where Pot Is Legal,” Kindland, June 2, 2017, updated January 2, 2018 available online here; Kenneth Morrow, “Master the Art of Drying and Curing Cannabis,” Cannibis Business Times, April 2017 available online here; Nebula Haze and Alltatup, “Complete Drying & Curing Marijuana Guide,” Grow Weed Easy, February 1, 2019 available online here; “Top Tips to Successfully Dry and Cure Your Fresh Cannabis Buds,” Royal Queen Seeds Blog, October 30, 2017 available online here; “The Drying and Curing Process,” Cann Systems available online here.
Image source: gjbmiller, “marijuana-cannabis-weed-bud-green-2174302,” Pixabay, March 27, 2017 available online here.