Ethical« weed grown and sold in Mexico

While the Mexico is expected to legalize cannabis this year, a few independent cannabis producers are taking the initiative to grow and sell cannabis without the usual intermediaries—the cartels. In doing so, they aim to lay the groundwork for an ethical, violence-free trade.

Alongside other producers from the Mexican state of Sinaloa, Lazaro, a farmer, said to VICE that he was now growing cannabis in indoor and in greenhouse, equipped with the necessary equipment to simulate the daily light cycle and circulate air.

Like California's legal producers, the growers Mexicans grow varieties imported from the United States and Europe, and also extract concentrates.

«We have to innovate,» explained Ricardo, another farmer from Sinaloa. «Innovation is what drives business these days. The seeds arrived a few years ago from Europe and the United States, but at first, people just grew them at home and didn’t want to share them. Now, they have to—out of necessity.»

For now, independent farmers deal directly with buyers, with little or no interference from cartels. But that could change if small farmers grow too large.

«We don’t have any structures or mechanisms in place to protect against cartels,» security analyst Jaime Lopez told VICE. «Even though the high cartel protection fees primarily protect the business owner from the cartel imposing the fees, the protection fees can also protect the farmer from other cartels that might not appreciate a small disruption to the illicit cannabis market caused by gangs. Protection fees can also keep corrupt cops at bay, who often demand bribes or bite, otherwise they'll take the farmer to jail.»

«As long as you keep a low profile and don’t draw too much attention to yourself, you might be able to avoid the vultures,» Lopez continued. «But that’s a big »if.’”

Will the ethical cannabis currently on the market—which likely targets «trendy» consumers in major cities—be able to hold its own against Big Cannabis?

«Based on my understanding of the spending habits of the millennials and post-millennials, », "Ethical marketing seems like a good path to follow. I know it would certainly make a difference to me," says Jaime Lopez.