Cannabis Cultivation Myths: Buying the Cheapest Does Not Equal Cutting Costs

There is a big trend in cannabis cultivation to cut costs by buying the cheapest substrate, especially in depressed markets and highly competitive markets. However, buying the cheapest does not equal cutting costs. In fact, the result is quite the opposite.

The truth is buying the cheapest substrate adds costs and ends up accelerating your losses.

In this first post of bio365’s new “Cannabis Cultivation Myths” series, we’ll show you exactly why buying the cheapest does not equal cutting costs, so you can make the best choices for your grow operation and your business in the future.

Buying the Cheapest Causes Big Problems and Adds Big Costs

Your grow operation will create a number of problems if you choose a cheaper substrate, and those problems will add bigger costs. The problem is a cheap substrate will lead to lower quality plants. It’s inevitable – no matter how many microbe amendments you add.

In addition, cheap substrates are inconsistent, and consistency is crucial when it comes to cannabis cultivation. The problem is inconsistency ends up requiring more labor, more inputs, and more finesse on the part of the grower. All of these things add expenses.

Buying the cheapest also leads to unpredictable outcomes and behaviors, which requires even more time and money to manage. Again, the list of expenses keeps getting longer and longer when you buy the cheapest substrate.

Buying the Cheapest Means You’ll Get a Lower Price for Your Crops and Lose Money

When you use a cheap substrate to cut costs, your plants will be inferior and your yields will be smaller. That creates two big problems. You’ll have less to sell, and you’ll have a lower quality product that sells for a lower price.

While you may have saved pennies per plant by using a cheap substrate, you’ll end up losing $50 to $150 per plant when it comes time to sell. Bottom-line, your business won’t end up cutting costs at all. In fact, you’ll end up accelerating your losses.

Buying Higher Priced, Better Substrate Can Deliver the Highest ROI

When you invest in a higher priced substrate that has been proven to consistently drive better outcomes, healthier plants, and higher quality crops in controlled environment grows, you’ll generate the highest return on your investment, which leads to higher profits.

Keep in mind, a higher price doesn’t necessarily guarantee that a substrate will deliver a higher ROI for your facility. You need to look at the data, because data doesn’t lie.

For example, bio365 has the data to debunk the myth that buying the cheapest is effective to cut costs. Let’s take a look at some measurable outcomes that cannabis growers have experienced when they switched to bio365 substrate:

• An MSO headquartered in Massachusetts cut labor hours by 70%, increased crop yield 121% and boosted total cannabinoids by 35%, THC by 36%, and terpenes by 48%.

• An MSO headquartered in New York increased crop yield by 100%.

• A California cultivator reduced soil costs by 21% and saved $4.33 per square foot in labor costs.

• A Colorado cultivator increased crop yield by 27% and saved more than 350 operational hours per year.

• A Massachusetts cultivator reduced soil costs by 21%, used 33% less soil, and increased THC by 70%.

You can read all the details about these outcomes here.

Key Takeaway about Costs and Outcomes

When you buy a cheap car, you’ll likely end up spending more on upkeep than you would if you purchased a higher quality car. The same thing is true with clothing, airfare (the ticket is cheap but those fees add up quickly), cultivation equipment, and so on. To truly save money and boost revenue and profits, you need to think strategically, and in cannabis cultivation, it all starts with your substrate.

If you’d like to learn more about any of the data referenced in this article or you want to learn more about how bio365 soil can help you improve outcomes and profits, contact us and let’s find the right solution for you.