Marijuana is the most profitable drug business in California. Growing marijuana for medicinal purposes is legal in California, but illegal according to the federal law (Cherney 1). Marijuana is known to be the number one crop growing in California. Many people are involved in the marijuana business and they say it is a multimillion dollar business. The pot industry gives rise to profitable and violent enterprises. The people grow marijuana in homes, backyard gardens, and parks. The growers protect themselves with guns because they are often attacked by thieves who come to steal the marijuana (CNBC 1). The local authorities have tried to control the amount of marijuana available to the people, but they are overwhelmed by the number of marijuana growers.
The Emerald Triangle is a region in California that is known for growing and selling marijuana. The economy of this area is based on drugs. Some of the people involved in the marijuana business say that the economy of their state would crash if marijuana would be completely eradicated (CNBC 1). The Mendocino County in Northern California allows people to grow marijuana for medicinal purposes. The people were allowed to only grow 25 marijuana plants, but they abused this and grew many plants. The state law then reduced the number of plants down to 6 plants in an effort to reduce the amount of marijuana in circulation, but the people would violate this rule and grow more plants.
The marijuana business is very profitable. It costs $400 to grow one pound of marijuana. The growers are then able to sell one pound of marijuana at $2500 to middlemen. The one pound of marijuana sells at $6000 on the streets (CNBC 1). The profit margin is big and this is what attracts people to the business. People from other regions go to the Emerald Triangle during harvest time to look for work. They say that they can earn between $15,000 and $20,000 within a period of two months. It is estimated that about 60% of the population of Mendocino County are involved in the Marijuana business.
Works Cited
CNBC. “Marijuana Inc: Inside America’s Pot Industry”. Online video clip. YouTube. YouTube, 22 Sep. 2014. Web. 21 Apr. 2016. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fVZrmkla5os
Cherney, Max. Growers in California’s Emerald Triangle are Changing their Minds about Legal Weed. 24 Mar. 2015. Web. 21 Apr. 2016. https://news.vice.com/article/growers-in-californias-emerald-triangle-are-changing-their-minds-about-legal-weed
