A vast majority of Midwest cannabis business leaders believe the federal government won’t deschedule cannabis anytime soon, according to a survey conducted by Grown In. Forty-two percent think cannabis won’t be descheduled as a schedule I drug by the Federal Drug Administration until 2023, and another 35 percent think “It’s not happening anytime soon.”
The survey of 31 leading cannabis company executives, marketers, investors, attorneys, and accountants was conducted over the last two weeks to discover influencer thinking about the future of the cannabis industry. Grown In sought answers from a pool of thinkers with deep roots in the cannabis industry who also have a great deal at stake with its future.
Respondents were also split in terms of the shape of the industry, with 42 percent saying that in five years the industry will trim down to “a dozen big companies and many smaller ones” with 48 percent voting that cannabis will become “a fractured market that’s totally different depending on the state.”
One anonymous respondent expanded on their answer. “Cannabis has uses in so many different product categories that there’s little chance the market will be fully developed in 5 years much less having experienced so much consolidation. I think you’re going to have between 30-50 fairly dominant brands in five years.”
“Will there be huge companies that expand rapidly? Absolutely. Will there be room for successful state or regional operators? Absolutely. Will there be international companies and brands able to operate across borders? Probably, over time,” said another.
Answers to the rest of the survey are below.
