Cannabis

Fluence Reports on Cannabis Lighting Market

Austin, TX – Fluence by OSRAM, a global provider of energy-efficient LED lighting solutions for commercial cannabis and agriculture production, released findings from its fourth annual “State of the Cannabis Lighting Market” report conducted in partnership with Cannabis Business Times, whose mission is to accelerate the success of legal cannabis cultivators.

The report, based on hundreds of responses from cultivators surveyed by nationally recognized, third-party researcher Readex Research, compares four years of LED lighting trends in North America, including purchasing behavior and cultivation challenges.

Key findings include:

  • Seventy-two percent of research participants noted that energy efficiency and light intensity are the most important factors when making lighting purchases.
  • Since 2016, LED use has grown faster than any other type of lighting technology, with double-digit growth from 2016 to 2019 in all stages of plant growth (propagation, vegetation, and flowering).
  • More than a quarter of cultivators (26%) reported that lighting comprises a majority of their cultivation operations’ electricity costs: at 55% or more.

In his opening letter for the 2019 report, Fluence CEO David Cohen wrote, “The increasing conversions to LEDs – whether through retrofitting or in initial facility design – says more about their viability than I or anyone else ever could. Early adopters are systematically ridding the industry of any lingering suspicions of the role LEDs play in critical areas like cannabinoid and terpene production, crop uniformity and yield, and energy efficiency.”

“The cannabis industry is rapidly evolving, and this research is just one way cultivators can either confirm or challenge commonly held beliefs about the most effective methods for growing cannabis,” said Cannabis Business Times editor, Michelle Simakis. “Lighting is one of the most integral factors in building a high-yield cannabis facility, and this research has helped build year-over-year comparisons of first-ever industry data to help cultivators monitor industry trends and best practices in lighting.”