Cannabis cultivators know that buying the cheapest doesn’t equal cutting costs, especially when it comes to substrate, but how do you quantify the difference? How can you prove that spending a bit more per plant can deliver measurable results, including higher quality crops and increased revenue? We ran some numbers based on real-world cannabis grower experiences, and have some clear answers.

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.