6-25 IAN Marijuana 3

 Part 3 of our legalization of marijuana series focuses on pot as a legal crop. Ag producers, you’re going to want to listen up. I’m not an advocate, I’m an observer and over the past two days we’ve talked about attempts at legalizing marijuana for medicinal and recreational reasons. There’s a movement in Idaho to see that happen and a state senator is even behind it. What if a wheat, hay, onion, barley, corn or sugar beet producer could legally raise marijuana. What are the economic implications? Here’s Mike Meno, the Director of Communications for Marijuana Policy Project in Washington, DC: “To talk about the agricultural and economic impact of this in many states, particularly out West marijuana is already the largest cash crop, it’s estimated to be a  $36 billion/year industry, that’s more than corn and wheat combined. It’s very lucrative primarily because it’s illegal so there’s a high mark-up that you can charge for it. We expect those types of prices would go down in a regulated market but there would still be a lot of demand for it. Marijuana is the 3^rd most popular recreational drug in this country behind alcohol and tobacco. I might objectively point out that it’s safer than both of those legal products.  In a regulated market, we could see farmers not only grow marijuana and be able to make it profitable and give the government back some form of tax revenue but we would also see a more preferable scenario than what’s been happening under the system of prohibition.”