Weed, need and greed : domestic marijuana production and the UK cannabis market.

This study explores the phenomenon of domestic cannabis cultivation in the UK
and examines its impact on the wider cannabis market. Cannabis growers were
studied using both traditional and on-line ethnographic methods. Data was
analysed both to produce a description of cannabis cultivation (and cannabis
cultivators) in Britain and to analyse how domestic production of cannabis fits
into our wider understanding of illegal drug markets.
The thesis explores UK cannabis growing on a number of levels. Firstly it seeks
to describe how cannabis is grown in Britain. Some is grown outside in natural
conditions but most British cannabis is grown indoors with increasingly hi-tech
cultivation methods being utilised. The method employed by an individual
grower will depend on his opportunities, his intention for the crop and any
ideological position which may influence his choice.
We then explore who is involved in cannabis growing. At a basic level featuresdemographic
and' ideological' - common to cannabis growers are considered. At
a deeper level a typology of cannabis growers is offered based predominantly on
motivation and ideology. The key point here is that a large number of cannabis
growers seek no financial reward whatsoever for their involvement in what is
essentially an act of drug trafficking. Others grow cannabis to make money, but
are equally motivated by non-financial 'drivers'. Still others are mostly or
entirely driven by financial considerations. These growers often display the same
hall-marks as other organised crime outfits. Consumer concerns can be seen to
influence the market with smaller independent 'social' and 'social/commercial'
growers offering an ideo logical - ethical, even - alternative to larger scale
organised crime outfits.
Finally explanations for the recent surge in domestic cannabis cultivation are
offered along with predictions for the future domestic production, not just of
cannabis but other drugs as well.