The retail and wholesale prices of pot in Oregon are falling with the proliferation of producers and recreational marijuana shops, according to an analysis by a state economist.
“The biggest thing is just competition,” said Josh Lehner, an economist with the Oregon Office of Economic Analysis in Salem. “As we get more stores, as we get more growers, (as we get) more processors, it becomes a price competition. Prices start to fall, particularly when supply is outpacing demand or supply is ramping up faster than demand is growing.”
Pot prices in Oregon are falling up to 20 percent a year, Lehner said. And he expects the prices to continue to drop.
As prices plummet, marijuana stores are competing to offer the best deals, said Greg Adrianse, the owner of New Millennium, a pot shop at 2893 Oak St.
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“Everybody wants to get those customers in, and if the customers can get a better deal elsewhere, they are going to go there,” he said.
Marijuana prices listed online by pot shops in Eugene and Springfield vary greatly, with differences in potency, quality and availability all likely affecting the sale price.
Retail pot prices can be as low as $2 for a single gram, or even less if a customer is buying a larger amount — for example, an ounce, or 28 grams, for $50, or $1.78 a gram.
Lehner found that the average retail price for recreational marijuana in Oregon late last year was slightly less than $7 per gram, down from nearly $10 just months prior.
Continually declining pot prices are “everything a consumer” wants, Lehner said.
“We’re seeing increased competition for the consumer dollar,” he said. “We’re seeing more stores, more retail outlets, so the availability of marijuana for recreational users continues to increase, and prices are coming down.”
