Expogrow 2016: review

This weekend, we were at Expogrow, the Spanish cannabis expo located 5 minutes from the French border, with our friends from Soft Legalization. Summary.

The fifth edition of Expogrow has cemented this trade show’s position as one of the most important in Europe. Its proximity to the French border facilitates an open discussion of a topic that does not exist on the other side, except for Jacques, who grows weed—a new strain of cannabis (Sorry, we're repeating ourselves, but this will at least last us the week.).

More than 1,200 trade visitors and 1,000 exhibitors gathered in Irun over the course of three days. According to preliminary figures, a total of 17,000 visitors toured the four exhibition halls over the weekend, despite the less-than-ideal weather. Last year, 60% of the visitors were French.

What can you see there?

Let’s not beat around the bush—that’s not our style. The professionals attending Expogrow showcase their latest innovations in cannabis cultivation and consumption: fertilizers, growing media, horticultural LEDs (HPS lights are virtually nowhere to be seen at the booths), water retainers, hydroponic systems, grow tents, exhaust fans, trimmers, consumption accessories, solvent-based and solvent-free extraction systems…

You can also meet seed specialists, hemp growers who produce CBD-based cosmetics, sellers of aquaponics systems, and vendors of cannabis-flavored confections…

Compared to Spannabis, Expogrow is still a relatively small-scale event for now. The professionals are more approachable and available to showcase their products and explain them. Since most of them are French or speak French, it’s also easier to communicate with them.

We would therefore like to thank Biosmoz, BioTabs, Canebounes, Canna, and the Dinafem Cannabis Seed Bank, Exotic Seeds, French Touch Seeds, Guano Diffusion, GreenHouse, Hempulse, Horticoled, Nicolas Trainerbees, Pax, Scorpion CBD, SensiSeeds, SmartPot (and anyone else we may have forgotten) for welcoming us to their booths and for the conversations we had.

On the other hand, the conference rooms are not very crowded. The International Cannabis Social Forum had invited numerous experts but is struggling to draw an audience. Perhaps the exhibition format isn’t well-suited to this kind of presentation, but it’s a shame to see so few people at certain times of the day.

Organizations like Chanvre & Libertés were also tucked away in the back of the expo, between the first-aid station (which didn’t have much to do—it’s not a wine fair, after all) and the «free-fall simulation» activity sponsored by Advanced Nutrients. It wasn’t easy for them to get noticed and make their voices heard!

That said, it’s always a pleasure to see so many French people working in a field that’s often more of a passion than a job. Big shout-out to everyone—see you next year!