The cannabis industry has evolved tremendously in recent years, with an increasing number of consumers seeking out a variety of products to satisfy their unique needs and preferences, and a broadening of product offerings to cater to diverse needs among consumers. New Frontier Data’s recent survey data suggests that high-potency offerings (high in THC) may not be suitable for most people.
Cannabis has a wide range of effective doses across different populations—more than other commonly used drugs like coffee and alcohol. Some people can feel the effects of just 1 mg of THC, while others cannot notice any effects below 20 or 30 mg of THC. While alcohol and caffeine tolerance also vary somewhat between people, a 30x difference in effective dose of wine or coffee is unimaginable.
Many adults today had their first experience with cannabis during prohibition, where information about the cannabis they were consuming was extremely limited, and where the iron rule of prohibition favored products of the highest potency possible. Product options were generally limited to flower and homemade edibles, where potency was often unknown, and could vary dramatically from one side of the brownie baking sheet to the other.
Such unpredictable potency has left many with stories of their early experimentation with cannabis that include paranoia, nausea, or full-on hallucinations. Some people end their relationship with cannabis there, not wanting to risk another negative experience.
I have many friends and family members who had previously sworn off cannabis after too intense an experience but have recently been introduced to new low-dose products like Cann beverages or Kiva’s Petra mints and are surprised to be enjoying cannabis for the first time. My hypothesis is that many people who tried cannabis in the past and had a bad experience took a dose much higher than their minimum effective dose, and that most people should probably be taking products with less THC, or what the industry calls “low dose”. Because of this, low-dose products have incredible long-term potential, not only for future consumers but as a way of bringing some former consumers back around to cannabis.
To read more, click on New Frontier Data