The year-over-year percentage change showing where people grow cannabis—warehouse/indoors, greenhouse or outdoors—was negligible when comparing 2019 to 2020. When looking further back in time, the number of people growing cannabis in warehouses has decreased by 20 percentage points since the first “State of the Cannabis Cultivation Industry” study in 2016, when a vast majority (80%) of participants grew indoors compared with 60% in this year’s study. Meanwhile, the number of participants growing in greenhouses and outdoors has increased steadily over the years, with some variations. However, some participants grow in multiple types of facilities, but there are more participants who only grow cannabis in warehouses than any other sole option, with 42% growing exclusively indoors. The number of people solely growing in greenhouses has increased since 2016, moving 8 percentage points from 4% to 12% in 2020.
![](/fileuploads/publications/38/issues/103696/articles/images/SOI-10_fmt.png)
![](/fileuploads/publications/38/issues/103696/articles/images/SOI-11_fmt.png)
![](/fileuploads/publications/38/issues/103696/articles/images/SOI-12_fmt.png)
![](/fileuploads/publications/38/issues/103696/articles/images/SOI-13_fmt.png)
![](/fileuploads/publications/38/issues/103696/articles/images/SOI-14_fmt.png)
Bigger Operations, More Facilities
Most participants operate single cannabis growing operations (59%), but examining five years of data reveals trends toward larger facilities and more grow sites. In 2016, 66% grew in a single facility/location. Between 2016 and 2020, the number of participants indicating they grow in two or more facilities/grow sites increased from 32% to 41%. The number of cultivators growing in five or more sites jumped by 5 percentage points compared with the first year of the study, moving from 6% to 11%. In addition, the number of cultivators who have 80,000 sq. ft. or more of production space has increased by 12 percentage points comparing the 2016 to 2020 studies, and now nearly a fifth of study participants (19%) indicate they grow in facilities that size or larger.
![](/fileuploads/publications/38/issues/103696/articles/images/SOI-15_fmt.png)
![](/fileuploads/publications/38/issues/103696/articles/images/SOI-16_fmt.png)
![](/fileuploads/publications/38/issues/103696/articles/images/SOI-17_fmt.png)
Read the rest of the 2020 State of the Cannabis Cultivation Industry Report
Letter: Five Years Inside the State of the Industry
Introduction: Tracking Data Reveals Industry Shifts, Sustained Growth
2020 Cannabis Research: Revenue and Profits Plateaued, But Solid
2020 Cannabis Research: Where Cultivators Grow
2020 Cannabis Research: Industry Optimism, Expansion Continues
2020 Cannabis Research: Challenges Are One Constant in a Dynamic Industry
![June 2020](/fileuploads/publications/38/issues/103696/June 2020Cover2.jpg)
Explore the June 2020 Issue
Check out more from this issue and find your next story to read.
Latest from Cannabis Business Times
- USC Athletics, Cookies Announce Trailblazing CBD Partnership for College Football, Basketball Sponsorship
- Trulieve Set to Open Medical Cannabis Dispensary in Clearwater
- Kentucky’s Medical Cannabis Program Attracts 5K License Applicants
- AYR Wellness Awarded Virginia’s HSA I Vertical Cannabis License
- Navigating the Green Line: How to Balance Selling and Profitability in Cannabis Retail
- DCC’s ‘Inadequate Oversight’ of $100M Undermined California Licensing Program for Cannabis Growers
- High Tide to Open Canna Cabana Store in Lucan, Ontario
- Whitney Economics Reduces 2030 Hemp Fiber and Grain Acreage Forecast by 4.5 Million Acres