Billion-Dollar Threat To Cannabis Industry: A Pathogen That Decreases Weed Potency Could Quickly Wipe Out Revenue

A pathogen called HLVd, or hop-latent viroid, is contaminating cannabis crops across the country, threatening to wreak billions of dollars in losses just as legal marijuana is taking off, warned the Wall Street Journal on Saturday, highlighting a frightening fact that the industry has begun to seriously grapple with lately. 

HLVd can severely reduce the potency of cannabis, a process known as “dudding.” And in an industry where potency determines profits, an infection that decreases the strength of weed can decimate its market value.  

A Disaster Waiting To Happen?

There is no cure for the viroid, which can ruin entire crops just before they’re ready for harvest. Unlike viruses, viroids have only been detected in plants and don’t infect humans or animals. 

According to BDSA, global cannabis spending grew to $32 billion in 2022 and is forecasted to reach $59.6 billion by 2027. Despite this, the WSJ noted that some publicly traded cannabis companies have issued warnings about the viroid to investors.

Curaleaf Holdings CURLF, one of the largest producers of weed in the country, has reduced HLVd detection in its crops to minimal levels through testing and so-called clean plant practices that resemble processes used for managing pest and disease. 

“We’re making sure we don’t get complacent,” said Matthew Indest, Curaleaf’s technical director of agronomy and plant improvement, per WSJ. “You can be lulled into a sense of confidence if your testing method isn’t as sensitive as it needs to be.”

The Viroid

HLVd, first detected in hops decades ago, is transmitted through contaminated tools, human hands or shared root systems. 

In recent years, it has been found in cannabis plants all over the country, as well as in Canada, Europe and Latin America. As the industry grows, so does the risk of HLVd infection, especially among large-scale cannabis farms where it can spread quickly. Some say it kicked off in California after the state legalized medical marijuana in 1996.

What's To Be Done?

CEO & co-founder of MyFloraDNA, Angel Fernandez and Ajith Anand, told Benzinga's Joana Scopel that DNA fingerprinting "can be broadly used in cannabis for cultivar identification, crop diversity, and creating evolutionary relationships," as a step toward combatting the viroid, though they warned it's a costly process.

See also: EXCLUSIVE: Early Detection For Hop Latent Viroid In Cannabis Crops, New Technology Against '$4B Losses'

Where Is The US Department Of Agriculture?

The viroid situation is being exacerbated by the fact that cannabis is not legal on a federal level, which has essentially left farmers and growers to deal on their own with HLVd - a job normally done by the USDA. 

In Nov. 2022, Leafly Holdings, Inc. LFLY issued a report finding cannabis to be the country's 6th most valuable crop. Nevertheless, the USDA deprives legal cannabis farmers of access to banking services, crop insurance, personal mortgages and car loans, etc. 

"Simply put, local and federal governments do not treat cannabis farmers like farmers. There is systematic discrimination at the local, state, and federal level," said David Downs, the report’s lead author. "Adult-use cannabis is a top cash crop in states where it’s legal, but that song goes unsung."

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