iCannabis: The Technology Issue • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
Although Cannabis-related software has been around for a few years to help growers and manufacturers track their plant progress and output in a more organized fashion, recent legalizations necessitate the tracking of each seed to its final consumption. With legalization comes regulatory constraints and taxation. Making Cannabis a business goes hand-in-hand with traditional business considerations, including the costs of “playing with the big boys.” Licensing for a retail store alone in Colorado is about $4,000; add another $3,000 for a place to maintain a grow operation. Consistency and quality of product need to be weighed against scale and output. Legalization has only increased the need for supply. Helping businesses efficiently meet the demand has become a business unto itself. New banking rules enacted by the Obama administration in February make it possible for banks to now do business with licensed Cannabis dispensaries. The “move from the shadows to the historically covert financial operations of marijuana businesses” is a nod from the federal government in the right direction for Cannabusiness and indicates the possibility that more states will opt for legalization to cash in on the tax opportunities. The website THC Biz (www.thcbiz.com) showcases industry news and serves as a business directory for all aspects of the trade.
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MARCH 2014
There are currently 11 Cannabis-related software companies listed. Of these, more than half are currently in use in dispensaries in Colorado and Washington, where absolutely everything having to do with the medicine and its patients is required to be tracked. Other software is used in nurseries and manufacturing, and catalogues seeds to product, but does not deal with the patient side. The grower software tracks plant management, including optimum conditions and mediums helping to improve consistency while staying in the legal confines of tracking each seed through its life cycle. The Grow Assistant is a representative of these. The “grow room software” is a fairly inexpensive option for the caregiver who needs to keep records of dates, equipment, nutrients and finances and the patients they service. The dispensary software operates with barcode scanners and detailed tracking of every sale, and of patient information including medical condition, consumption preferences and every purchase made. The barcodes on finished products include information on strain, weight, and properties and takes the item out of inventory. Most companies run on a monthly fee with a hefty start-up cost for the hardware needed. Fees run anywhere from $50–200 a month with hardware minimums including a computer,
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