Despite being an administration that has worked hard to prevent others from growing weed, the DEA plans to grow nearly 1,000 pounds of weed next year. They’re setting a heavy quota for their federally-licensed cannabis researchers and growers.
The DEA Drug Quota
According to a Federal Register filing by the DEA, the exact amount that the agency expects from researchers is 443,680 grams of cannabis, which equals a little more than 978 pounds of weed. On top of the thousand pounds, the DEA will allow 384,460 grams of THC to be produced for scientific research in 2018.
The DEA’s yearly order actually consists of much more than just weed.
They apparently have quotas for 92,120 grams of cocaine, 40 grams of LSD, 45 grams of heroin, 30 grams of psilocybin, 25 grams of DMT and more. The DEA’s got a guy for just about anything you need for a wild night.
Close to a thousand pounds may sound like a lot, but it’s actually less than what was requested last year. Last year the quota was 1,040 pounds. While the last order wasn’t much bigger, the new lower number seems to contradict the DEA’s request for more marijuana researchers.
Justice Department Prevents More Marijuana Research
The lower number may have something to do with Attorney General Jeff Sessions, who recently expressed a desire to limit the number of new medical marijuana suppliers in a contradictory statement.
“I think it would be healthy to have some more competition in the supply, but I’m sure we don’t need 26 new suppliers,” he said.
Justice Department officials have prevented the DEA from processing the applications for new suppliers. Despite Session’s claim that competition would be “healthy,” he has failed to respond to a bipartisan letter asking him to lift the block on applications.
As a result, there is still only one legal supplier of government weed.
The DEA plans to grow 1,000 pounds of weed next year at the University of Mississippi. The university has been the sole source for legal weed since 1968. Unfortunately, the weed they grow is trash and not comparable to what people are actually smoking today. Having more competition and better growers would provide more accurate research on modern cannabis.
Fortunately, the DEA can adjust the quota as the year progresses to accommodate their needs. So by the end of the year, it’s still possible for this year’s quota to exceed that of last year.
Final Hit: DEA Plans to Grow 1,000 Pounds of Weed
The DEA is actually growing less weed and THC this year than they did last year. Cannabis research in the United States is decades behind. The cannabis researchers are being forced to use is from one source, and it doesn’t compare to the weed most people are smoking today.
