Washington State now has too much legal marijuana

(Image credit: Associated Press)

published 16 January 2015

For any pot fan who doesn't believe there can be too much of a good thing, meet the laws of supply and demand. When Washington State gave the green light to its legal recreational marijuana marketplace last summer, there was a dearth of licensed weed — not enough for the licensed stores to stay open. Now, after a productive fall harvest, there's too much, causing prices to drop and growers to gripe, The Associated Press reports.

Prices at pot retail shops, roughly $23-25 a gram, are still about twice the price at legal medical dispensaries and the black market, partly due to taxes. But while Washington — unlike Colorado, the other state with a legal pot market — doesn't restrict production of retail marijuana, there are only about 80 stores currently licensed to sell pot. Until more stores are approved, there's a natural bottleneck from farm to bong. Watch growers lament and state regulators shrug in the AP's video report below. —Peter Weber

The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Explore More

Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.