Over the past year, I’ve noticed a trend that’s becoming impossible to ignore.

More and more Oregon cannabis products are moving from reusable, recyclable pop tops into mylar bags.

I understand why.

The economics are difficult to argue with.

For an eighth of flower, a stock mylar bag can cost around 8 cents, compared to roughly 13 cents for a pop top. As package sizes increase, the savings become even more dramatic. When a processor is packaging hundreds of thousands of units each year, those pennies quickly become tens of thousands of dollars.

I’ve spoken with retailers that have already made the switch because of these savings. I also know processors planning to transition before the end of the year because investors are demanding lower packaging costs.

Nobody is making these decisions because they dislike sustainability. They’re making them because they’re trying to survive in one of the most competitive cannabis markets in the country.

The trend is real.

My concern is where it leads.

Unlike a polypropylene pop top, a mylar bag has virtually no realistic path to reuse. Recycling options do exist, but they rely on specialized processors and are far less common than the infrastructure available for rigid #5 plastics. Once Oregon’s market shifts toward flexible packaging, it’s going to be very difficult to reverse course.

And I don’t think this trend stops at Oregon.

If interstate cannabis commerce becomes reality, I believe most nationally distributed flower will be packaged in mylar. It ships efficiently, weighs very little, occupies less space, and offers meaningful cost savings. From a logistics standpoint, it simply makes sense. Glass jars and rigid pop tops will struggle to compete for products traveling hundreds or thousands of miles.

That’s exactly why I believe Oregon has an opportunity.

For decades, Oregon has built a reputation around quality flower, knowledgeable budtenders, and a deli-style purchasing experience that allows customers to see and smell the product before they buy it. That’s something many legal states have already lost as they’ve moved toward fully prepackaged cannabis.

Rather than trying to compete with interstate commerce on cost alone, I believe Oregon should lean into what makes it different.

We should protect the deli-style experience that has made Oregon cannabis unique. We should continue giving consumers access to premium flower in a way that emphasizes quality instead of convenience. And we should continue building packaging systems that support reuse and practical recycling rather than accepting disposable packaging as the inevitable future.

This isn’t an argument against businesses trying to save money. They’re responding to the incentives in front of them.

It’s a question for all of us.

As our industry evolves, what kind of cannabis market do we want Oregon to become?

I believe we have an opportunity to build something that other states can’t easily replicate.  A market known not only for exceptional cannabis, but for thoughtful packaging, sustainability, and a customer experience worth traveling for.

In the coming weeks, I’ll be exploring this topic further. I’ll dive deeper into the economics of mylar versus rigid packaging, the challenges and opportunities surrounding reuse, and why I believe Oregon has a chance to lead the nation instead of following it.

The packaging decisions we make today will shape the cannabis industry we leave behind tomorrow. Let’s make sure we’re building one that’s worth protecting.