& how to fix it.

Cannabis clinics are a relatively new phenomenon in the world of ‘medical cannabis’. They are the fastest-growing segment within the cannabis industry, with many North American producers looking to get into the action in new European markets.

But why do so many cannabis clinics have such a poor reputation? On the surface, it’s a relatively simple answer; because product quality is not meeting the expectation. In the following article, we will dig under the surface to understand more.

Why does product quality suck?

Well, there’s not just one reason. In some cases, clinics do not have the expertise or tools required to consistently source high-quality products. And there is no shortage of international producers who are happy to take advantage of this skill gap.

If a producer is able to shift some old, dusty product out to an unwitting European clinic for a discounted rate, then they will - because the alternative is adding it to the mountain of 3.7 million pounds of unsold, unpackaged cannabis in Canada since 2018. Furthermore, it’s not a particularly challenging play to make. Get a spruced-up lab report showing the highest THC you can find (and heck, why not slap ‘craft’ on the label and get a high terpene count back, too, while you’re at it), then send these reports off to European buyers who may not know better than to take these numbers as a measure of product quality.

This may be a necessary sale to make for a business that may well be on the brink of bankruptcy, but it sadly ends with a medical consumer getting low-quality medicine - which means they are suffering more than they should be, and ‘medical cannabis’ is letting them down.

Even when good product is sent, clinics must deal with unruly supply chains. The products can take up to 3 months to arrive and be ready for sale in local markets. A lot can happen to the phytochemical composition of a plant in that time - it also leaves ample room for the development of unwanted undesirables such as mould, which at best results in a ruined batch and, at worst, ends up in a medical patient’s lungs.

Making Data-Driven Decisions

Clinics think they are making data-driven decisions, but on the whole, they are not. Let me be more accurate; they are not making data-driven decisions based on high-quality data. Lab reports, for example, are not to be counted as high-quality data unless you’re receiving standardized lab reports based on a set testing framework - every single time.

Such an established testing protocol does not exist internationally.

So how can clinics with a desire to do better make data-driven decisions based on high-quality data?

Evaluating Cannabis Quality

Learning how to evaluate cannabis quality is a must for clinics wishing to source high-quality products consistently. With cannabis being the complex chemical factory that it is, comprehensively evaluating cannabis is no simple task.

But those who are able to master this - and apply it consistently throughout the supply chain - stand to gain insights that will save cash, reduce risk, and ultimately serve medical patients with the high-quality product that they need.

By establishing a grading protocol and grading a product from source to sale, a complete view of a product’s quality can be mapped out. This allows vulnerabilities in the supply chain to be snuffed out. It can also be used to intelligently inform a good purchase price and optimal sale pricing.

Furthermore, establishing a comprehensive grading protocol provides more touch points on the cannabis, where undesirables can be detected and tackled proactively.

Building your own Grading Database

As you continue to grade products that come through your doors, you start to understand the relationship between product quality and price. You can use your data to negotiate a good price, lobby your government for better regulations, and serve your customers with thought-leading insights and high-quality products.

A new frontier awaits cannabis clinics that seek not just profits but the chance to serve the plant up in all its miraculous glory.

About the TDC Grading System

Urbanistic has spent the last half-decade building and perfecting the ultimate cannabis evaluation platform - The TDC Grading System.

This cannabis evaluation platform revolutionizes what it means to understand product quality.

• A digital-first, guided experience makes it easy to unlock value from day one
• Evaluate cannabis buds, concentrates, vape cartridges, pre-rolls and more with the TDC Grading System’s world-class grading protocols
• Store your grading data securely and build up a valuable dataset to guide your business decisions with confidence
• Effects Grading digs deeper into the cannabis experience by linking objective, subjective and ‘set & setting’ parameters
• Business features to facilitate focus groups, analytics and more

Want to book a demo?

Schedule a call by emailing us at info@urbanistic.ca