The recent passing of laws by some states in the US legalizing marijuana for recreational and 
medicinal purposes has marked a deep and strong departure from the status quo in terms of the US “War on Drugs”. As with most sudden changes, it will take some time for the various levels of regulations—local, state, and federal—to adjust to the new circumstances – and currently, state and federal laws are at odds with each other when they address issues pertaining to marijuana cultivation and sale. However, as far as growers are concerned, the biggest concern at this time is the process of growing the plant.
Opportunities
Legal marijuana is touted as the fastest growing industry in the United States, with some estimates claiming that it has grown as much as 74% in 2014. This has piqued the interest of many growers and agricultural corporations, with many taking the plunge. As any new industry develops, several ancillary markets and channels arise. The development of the marijuana-growing industry will have immediate effects on the demand for materials involved in the process of growth; and this means that this opportunity extends in great measure to the manufacturers of pesticides, which will be required as more and more ventures will look to grow marijuana widely and in commercially more lucrative quantities to leverage economies of scale.
Hurdles
However, there continue to be many issues associated with entering the marijuana-growing industry. Since it has been legalized only recently, there is not much experience or precedent in the market for manufacturers to rely on. This added to the labyrinthine regulations means that entering the market at this time is quite risky. With the process of legalization still under strong oversight and mired in controversy, there is very little scope for non-compliance, leading to a cocktail of potential problems: many new players are entering the market, with best practices not yet established, and not knowing when they are and when they aren’t breaking the law. Chemical and agricultural industry regulations, coupled with the intricacies of marijuana legalization laws across multiple states, and the sometimes conflicting recommendations of the EPA and other State and Federal agencies, means that the agribusiness side of legalized marijuana is still an industry in chaos; if it is in fact a gold mine, that mine has yet to be explored.
Advantages
However, the gigantic potential for growth in this industry is undeniable, and the players who will eventually reap the benefits will be the ones who manage to navigate the tricky route between the various laws, EPA regulations, chemical industry regulations, and marijuana legalization laws first, and manage to sort out how to most effectively and efficiently grow this crop without ending up in legal hot water due to some unaccounted-for regulation. Since this information is not yet readily available, primarily due to the new nature of the industry, manufacturers of pesticides targeting the marijuana industry must be careful.
