st companies to identify HLVd and develop a testing protocol for it.
Hop Latent Viroid: The Devastating Threat to Cannabis and the Underground Market
Attention all cannabis enthusiasts and hipsters alike: there’s a new enemy lurking in the shadows, and it’s not the DEA. No, this threat is much more insidious and destructive. It’s called Hop Latent Viroid (HLVd), and it’s wreaking havoc on the cannabis industry, causing an estimated $4 billion in financial losses each year. But here’s the real question: is the underground market safer than the legal, recreational mega-farms that have been decimated by HLVd?
For those not in the know, HLVd is the worst thing to happen to cannabis since the creation of the DEA. This tiny viroid is considered one of the biggest threats to both the global cannabis and hop industries. And let’s not forget, viroids are the smallest known infectious agents that can cause diseases in plants. The first viroids were found in potatoes in 1971, and now HLVd is wreaking havoc on two out of three varieties of hops in Spain since 1987.
But here’s the real kicker: many plants affected by HLVd show no symptoms or signs of infection early on. It’s only later that the viroid fully expresses itself and ruins a plant’s yield and vigor. And for cannabis, this means a plant can’t reach its full potential when producing cannabinoids and all the other good stuff. The financial toll of HLVd on the cannabis industry has now reached billions, and it’s safe to say that the underground market has also taken a hit of over $1 billion.
The Dark Truth About HLVd: Insights from Industry Experts
In April 2024, High Times Magazine reached out to some hitters from both sides of the fence to get their take on HLVd’s impact on the underground cannabis market. And the results were eye-opening.
Last year, researchers in Canada and Japan consolidated all the known data about HLVd to get the clearest picture yet. Their findings, published in the scientific journal Viruses, cited a 2021 survey conducted by Dark Heart Nursery. And according to Dark Heart’s founder, Dan Grace, HLVd has been a problem for much longer than we thought.
“All the genetics we have now came out of the illicit market, that stands to reason,” Grace told High Times. “It’s just a matter of historical facts. The virus was all over the place way before 2017. I mean, we learned about it in the Emerald conferences. Maybe like [in] 2013, people were calling it PCIA for ‘Putative Cannabis Infectious Agent.'”
Grace went on to explain that HLVd was a hot topic at The Emerald Conference, a cannabis and psychedelics science event put on by MJBiz Science. And while people were presenting qualitative data about HLVd, no one really knew what it was at the time. But now, thanks to transparency and honest communication, companies like Dark Heart are able to identify and develop testing protocols for HLVd.
So, what does this mean for the underground market? According to Grace, back when everyone was operating in the illicit market, no one had the resources or knowledge to deal with HLVd. But now, with the legal market, there’s more transparency and communication, allowing for the problem to be addressed and solved.
So, hipsters and cannabis enthusiasts, beware of HLVd. It’s a threat to both the legal and underground markets, and it’s not going away anytime soon. But with transparency and communication, we can work towards finding a solution and protecting our beloved cannabis industry.
