We’ve been cultivating hemp for more than a generation, been processing to GMP iso standard for years and were one of the first groups to have legal CBD related produce certified to be sold publically.
So we have a great understanding of the industry and specifically about processing extracts to go into the wellbeing market. With this knowledge we become very efficient at production, from the farm to the table.
“so why do Granjacia’s extracts seem more expensive than others I see?”
This really comes down to the familiar term about comparing apples to apples. We can all do the maths with a bit of thought.
Hemp isn’t cannabis, it also isn’t a high yielder of extract if using approved EU hemp strains. This hemp database can be found at EU database of hemp varieties.
It’s important to know this database if you are buying within the EU.
So, this hemp produces x amount of produce per hectare. It is not particularly labour intensive and has a ceiling price. Spain, with its altitude and abundant sun, is clearly efficient and importantly for ourselves, gives a strong broad range of cannabinoids and vitamins and other beneficial elements, far better than if grown outdoors in northern or eastern Europe.
The sun/solar energy can also offset other costs of production and processing. It cannot be argued that Spain has the tools to be competitive in the hemp industry, particularly in the wellbeing sector, as opposed to fibre production.
To become certified, co-op farms, invest in processing equipment and high standard C02 extraction facilities takes real hard work, collaboration and finances. There simply are no corners to be cut if you are processing for public consumption at scale. The costs of c02 machinery to run tonnes and tonnes of hemp every day is 100’s of thousands of euros. We cant supply brands from a small machine in our garage, this is an agricultural scale.
So, with the price of farming, paying farmers, processing, drying, separation of plant material, extraction, cleaning, product registrations, packing, etc. etc. all adds up to production cost.
We then add margins the same as any other industry, not higher or lower, just bog-standard everyday price structures.
So why are other CBD companies cheaper?
In reality, without being pedantic about a few euros either way, how can efficient reliable certified produce be created more cheaply?
Well, it can’t be if we remember the apples versus apples statement. I’ve just shown the XYZ of those production costs.
What about comparing apples to pears?
Yes, it can be produced more efficiently in several scenarios by changing one of the apples.
The biggest and most obvious is by not using approved AND registered seed.
There are many strains nowadays, some crossed for stronger fibre and many crossed with cannabis that produces lots of extract, For example, 8% CBD compared to the official seed that’s typically around 2-3%. That’s almost 3 times more efficient, right? It is. A lot of these strains of ‘hemp’ are grown, in particular in the USA and it is brought into Europe. But ratios of CBD are quite in tune, so when you get higher CBD you get the THC higher too and it’s way over legal limits. That’s obviously the point of using the strain database in the first place.
Altho we don’t import any hemp, we are offered it at good prices every single day practically; we can’t touch it legally. But it’s out there.
Much of this ‘illegal in EU’ hemp ends up in places like Switzerland who are not part of the EU, (more the wild west) where a lot is now suddenly legally processing into isolates etc and resold bulk and cheap into the EU.
That might be ok for the quick buck merchants, but not for branded companies who need to be clued up about where their products really come from. Do you think Switzerland is covered in snow-grown hemp?
These isolates might well, and legitimately added to extracts to raise CBD levels; so a 1000mg CBD product might be 500mg of isolate and only 500mg from the initial full spectrum extract. The label may be accurate but still not actually what you think.
We also get offered produce from places like India, China etc. Same as with most things above tho, the commodity is the sun, it’s a sustainable product, why would we import 10,000 miles here? Of course, we can’t, they still have the same rules, they don’t have advantages if playing by the same rules.
If not using the same rules, then it’s irrelevant. Same as its irrelevant if tests show contamination such as the amount of weed and pesticides we see in crops from some of the eastern European countries like Poland.
As a client or customer, you should know what seeds, where it’s grown, where it’s processed and where extracted. Maybe you will see instances of a Canadian company, with a London address, shipping to Switzerland, and packaging in Italy. It’s your responsibility to have that knowledge, not just with hemp but probably everything we consume.
When all these things have been considered and you then still believe we are expensive, let us know ;}
