Although much of the concern over legalization swirls around the fear of large international agribusiness co-opting marijuana, in fact, for many reasons, agribusinesses won’t be the growers immediate concern. According to an excellent series by CNBC (Check it out—I highly recommend it)
Seed and agri-chemical maker Monsanto isn’t focused on [growing marijuana], says spokesman Darren Wallis, adding that even if that changed tomorrow, development of a mass-scale crop takes time.
“We focus on major crops for food, feed and biofuels—corn, soybeans, cotton, canola, wheat, sugarcane and vegetables,” he says. “It takes eight to ten years of investment to bring a biotech product to market.”
Other big food and agricultural firms would not comment, saying the proposition was too hypothetical or inappropriate given the largely illegal current status of the drug.
Furthermore, international organizations and even national organizations would have to contend with fighting the federal government. Probably not initially worth their while. Perhaps somewhere down the road when marijuana is legal in the majority of the states. But not now.
What small mom and pop growers should consider as their competitors likely to put them out of business is the large industrial grows at dispensaries where football field size grows may soon be the norm.