America's #1 Cash Crop is....

[nachomama]

I doubt this is the way the feds hoped the tobacco buyout program would turn out...

http://today.reuters.com/news/artic...A1.xml&WTmodLoc=NewsHome-C3-oddlyEnoughNews-2

WASHINGTON, Dec 18 (Reuters Life!) - U.S. growers produce nearly $35 billion worth of marijuana annually, making the illegal drug the country's largest cash crop, bigger than corn and wheat combined, an advocate of medical marijuana use said in a study released on Monday.

By comparison, the United States produced an average of nearly $23.3 billion worth of corn annually from 2003 to 2005, $17.6 billion worth of soybeans, $12.2 billion worth of hay, nearly $11.1 billion worth of vegetables and $7.4 billion worth of wheat, the report said.

 

[mainman]

WASHINGTON, Dec 18 (Reuters Life!) - U.S. growers produce nearly $35 billion worth of marijuana annually,

How does anyone even know this?

 

[nachomama]

How does anyone even know this?

I'm thinking that's the figure reported by those who grow it for medical purposes...Lord knows what the actual figure is. uffpuffcoughcough:

 

[Penn]

"The report, conducted by Jon Gettman, a public policy analyst and former head of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, also concluded that five U.S. states produce more than $1 billion worth of marijuana apiece: California, Tennessee, Kentucky, Hawaii and Washington"


Maybe he has some inside information on this.......?


Too bad we can't find a way to convert marijuana plants into a kind of fuel that we could burn in our cars/trucks.

 

[Redskinsmama]

no surprise to me

 

[vraiblonde]

How does anyone even know this?

They don't - they just make that crap up and Reuters releases it because they're onboard with the liberal agenda.

Think about the number of people in the US who consume corn or wheat on a daily basis (uh, that would be everyone). Now think about how many toke up on a daily basis (guessing here, but I would say probably not nearly as many). Now think about the corn that goes for livestock feed.

That report can't possibly be true.

 

[LordStanley]

I'm thinking that's the figure reported by those who grow it for medical purposes...Lord knows what the actual figure is. uffpuffcoughcough:

Its uffpuffgive: dear

 

[mainman]

They don't - they just make that crap up and Reuters releases it because they're onboard with the liberal agenda.

Think about the number of people in the US who consume corn or wheat on a daily basis (uh, that would be everyone). Now think about how many toke up on a daily basis (guessing here, but I would say probably not nearly as many). Now think about the corn that goes for livestock feed.

That report can't possibly be true.

This makes total sense to me....


You wanna share a spliff?

 

[MMDad]

They don't - they just make that crap up and Reuters releases it because they're onboard with the liberal agenda.

Think about the number of people in the US who consume corn or wheat on a daily basis (uh, that would be everyone). Now think about how many toke up on a daily basis (guessing here, but I would say probably not nearly as many). Now think about the corn that goes for livestock feed.

That report can't possibly be true.

Basic math:

Gettman's figures were based on several government reports between 2002 and 2005 estimating the United States produced more than 10,000 metric tons of marijuana annually.

He calculated the producer price per pound of marijuana at $1,606 based on national survey data showing retail prices of between $2,400 and $3,000 between 2001 and 2005.

The total value of 10,000 metric tons of marijuana at $1,606 per pound would be $35.8 billion.

I've never heard of corn going for $1606 per pund, so that comparison is pretty bogus.

 

[bohman]

MMDad beat me to it. I'm a little bit out of the loop these days, but I'll make an educated guess and say that pot goes for *slightly* more per pound than corn.

 

[vraiblonde]

Basic math:
I've never heard of corn going for $1606 per pund, so that comparison is pretty bogus.

Good point.

 

[Sadysue]

They don't - they just make that crap up and Reuters releases it because they're onboard with the liberal agenda.

Think about the number of people in the US who consume corn or wheat on a daily basis (uh, that would be everyone). Now think about how many toke up on a daily basis (guessing here, but I would say probably not nearly as many). Now think about the corn that goes for livestock feed.

That report can't possibly be true.

I was going to agree with you but, marijuana is worth a lil more than corn I would suppose.... They are talking the most money, not the most use.

 

[Larry Gude]

Let's look at it another way...

They don't - they just make that crap up and Reuters releases it because they're onboard with the liberal agenda.

Think about the number of people in the US who consume corn or wheat on a daily basis (uh, that would be everyone). Now think about how many toke up on a daily basis (guessing here, but I would say probably not nearly as many). Now think about the corn that goes for livestock feed.

That report can't possibly be true.

...US dopers annual output; 1,000 metric tons

US corn annual output; about 3 BILLION tons.

If dope is reaching $2-4 grand a pound, I believe it, but it's meaningless. How much would corn cost if it was illegal? Legalized dope would cost a few bucks a pound and, obviously, fall off the chart in terms of this kind of stoned statistics.

 

[Frank]

A bushel of corn goes for about 2-3 dollars and weighs about 56 pounds.

So we're talking about something that wholesale sells for about a nickel a pound being compared to something that sells for about 32,000 times more than that.

Does it surprise me that this comparison comes from a marijuana advocacy group? For crying out loud, corn is about the cheapest agricultural product we make, and one of the most important. The comparison IS bogus - I wonder how it would compare to sales per pound of say, Viagra?

 

[edinsomd]

Smokin' da spleef, mon! I'm sure they're quoting "street" value, at best a questionable figure.
Ed

 

[SamSpade]

Smokin' da spleef, mon! I'm sure they're quoting "street" value, at best a questionable figure.
Ed

Which doesn't compare well with the "street" value of a bushel of corn, which I guarantee never sells for 3 bucks no matter where you buy it.