Since the legalization of marijuana in the state of Colorado, there has been a variety of  bills and ordinances passed that create a unique situation in the industry. Legalization began with the passing of Amendment 20 for medical use in 2000, and Amendment 64 for recreational use in 2012. 

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Because marijuana is regulated by state legislature, and is technically still illegal in terms of federal law, certain holes in the law exists that create a complex, layered market. 

Some media outlets like the Denver Post are calling this the "gray market", but others are simply just calling it an easier way for the black market to thrive. 

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The Gray Market is described as a market of marijuana contributing to black market sales, with grow operations that are completely legal. Colorado marijuana law allows people 21 and up to grow twelve plants for recreational use outside grow facilities.  Co-op grows allowed this number to be larger under a warehouse setting shared by multiple people, but have now been restricted because of black market sales booming from easier access to more plants. However, medical grows can be granted an "extension" to grow more plants for the creation of edibles that need a larger yield for desirable dosages.  Some policymakers and citizens wish to change the ways this extension works, but restricting plant count could also negatively affect medical patients that need a larger yield to produce their own medicine. 

 

Another "gray" area of the marijuana industry is the implications of the hemp plant and CBD products. Many people disagree on whether the hemp plant, or a cannabis plant not harvested for its THC properties but is instead used for various products like papers and CBD lotions,  should be legal to grow, use and manufacture across state lines. 

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Green, Gray, & Black takes an inside look at three various aspects of the Marijuana situation in Colorado since the state legalization of the plant. Press explore to indulge in these stories.