Greed Over Green, By Psy-23

As  far  back  as  I  can  remember,  the  search  for  a  reputable, regular and reasonable supplier was almost always at the forefront of my mind and I can’t even count the number of times that I’ve ended up either waiting around for nothing or getting screwed over by the less scrupulous among us. Underweight bags, damp buds and over-priced homegrown used to be rife in my younger days, but now it seems that the game has evolved and there’s plenty more to consider when sourcing your next strain

Perhaps the single biggest issue comes from the fact that a seemingly large proportion of cultivators think only of the profit margin. This is not to say that there aren’t some incredibly passionate growers out there (far from it) but when you live in an area where possession and cultivation is still seen as a criminal activity, you can understand why some people feel that they should be handsomely rewarded for their risk-taking.

Over the past few years, the rise of black-market gang activity, combined with illegal immigration and the expansion of ‘County Lines’ drug networks, has led to a range of issues that directly effect the consumer. Incredibly, the apparent desire for stronger and stronger strains means that many illicit producers have taken to dousing their trimmed buds in all manner of chemicals in the hope of imitating the hit of a high-THC strain.

Many of these chemicals, often used for synthetic cannabis like Spice, are toxic to humans and can leave people in a state of stupor and potentially cause horrendous health issues as well as massively increasing the risk of addiction due to the comedown and symptoms of withdrawal.

While true growers will flush out their plants before getting to the cropping stage to ensure the absolute premium quality, the worst growers out there will pump the plants full of additives, quick dry them and then coat them in hazardous materials just to turn a quick buck.

If you manage to avoid this pitfall and all of the ills that come alongside having to be involved closely with anyone in this type of operation, there’s plenty of other things to consider. Something to always keep in mind is that many people trade in bullshit.

The recent CBD rush has seen a huge number of companies jumping on the bandwagon with no clue of what they are doing. Trying to capitalize on people’s health issues is a pretty low blow, but the fact that this has had a knock-on effect on seriously ill people looking to secure high-THC cannabis oil and RSO through various online channels. Selling someone false hope is one thing, but putting product to market that is unsafe for consumption and may potentially cause severe consequences is completely unforgivable.

Beyond that, I can’t even begin to list all the different strains that people have tried to sell me at elevated prices just because it’s ‘Cali Weed’. It’s like people think you can only enjoy your smoke if it’s the latest import with the highest THC content you can imagine, when in reality it’s just some random strain grown out quickly by someone with no idea of what they’re doing.

Firstly, if you’re expecting me to pay double the usual price for something that isn’t even cured then we’re going to fall out pretty fast. Honestly, some of the nonsense people spout in the run up to a sale is hilarious and I’ve even had people try to sell me the same strain a few days apart and try to charge me more because it’s ‘imported’.

I don’t care that it’s in a shiny bag with an air-tight seal, I don’t care what name you’ve scrawled on the packet in black pen...if it’s a bag of soggy buds I’m not coming back to you again. Genuinely, I had a guy arguing with me a few weeks back because I dared to question the origins of his bud. His entire defence was based on the idea that the packaging said it was from

California...I sent him a link to an eBay post where you could by the exact same bags by the hundred. He wasn’t impressed, but I didn’t really care because he was trying to charge me £90 for 3.5 grams.

What happened to customer retention? I’ve had more than a few exceptional connections in my time who were trustworthy, open and honest and they had more repeat business from me than any of these come-and-go charlatans. Even back in the days when all people had was soap bar or dusty pollen, being able to meet up with someone who could sort out an eighth for a tenner and would sit and have a spliff or two with you before you headed back home made all the difference.

In recent years, I’ve spent far too much time standing about on street corners or sitting with my engine running picking up endless ‘I’ll be there in a minute’ texts only to be told after half an hour that ‘something came up’ and then having to drive home empty-handed and dejected.

I was getting pretty fed-up with it at one point (especially after I moved to a new area and had to start from scratch with sourcing my supply – I actually ended up stopping smoking for a while because it was more effort than it was worth), so when I managed to find people from further afield who could meet my needs it was a joyous day indeed.

Nowadays, I get about 95% of my weed online. Sure, it still has some of the risk factor (especially organising for shipping through the postal service – I have visions of the law knocking at my door, hence why I always put a different name on the shipping label) but I can’t help but feel that the convenience of picking from a menu and waiting for it to arrive surpasses the endless grind of chasing my tail.

I’ve managed to find a couple of people who have consistently delivered great strains at good prices and it’s difficult to imagine going back to the way things were. Recently, I ran into an issue when a package went missing in the post. While you might expect this to be a total write-off, after a few carefully considered messages and a lot of patience they agreed to send out a replacement at no extra charge.

The second package came in a couple of days and we agreed that it was only worth sending by post if it was recorded or tracked. I was stoked that they offered such awareness for their customers, so when I saw them advertising cheap ounces a couple of weeks later I jumped on it without a second thought: it came the next day, so that initial sense of disappointment is becoming a distant memory.

I suppose it all comes down to the same old argument: legalization and regulation leads to a much safer experience for the consumers. As long as it remains illegal, there is never any guarantee of getting quality product that’s safe to consume.

That being said, I’d much rather find someone who grows independently and takes pride in their work than buy some corporate branded product. It’s never easy, but we all have to take our chances until a real change comes along. In the end, however you consume and wherever you get it from, we hope you stay safe and don’t get screwed by the unscrupulous.