What We’ll All Be Talking About in 2023

Responses to consumer desires, including product innovation, demands around increased environmental and social responsibility, and impressive progress in global legalization will continue to shape the cannabis landscape in 2023. Look out for these top five influential developments that just may be the buzz of the industry in the coming year.

Exciting New Category: The Pre-Bowl by CupCakes

The hottest topic of conversation in 2023 could be the introduction of a brand-new category, the Pre-Bowl, a ready-to-light pre-formed bowl designed to fit perfectly in most cannabis smoking devices. Created by Colorado company CupCakes, the Pre-Bowl is an innovative new delivery method to eliminate the hassle, mess and inconvenience of grinding and loading flower into your pipe or bong to give the consumer the same experience every time. 

“Not only does our product deliver our consumer a better experience, but it provides cannabis manufacturers and cultivators a brand-new outlet for their flower,” says Jason Santos, CupCakes president and co-founder. 

Environmentally Friendly Tech: Ciro Bong Cleaner

In response to consumer demand, environmentally friendly cannabis products will surely become a focal point in 2023. Using patented proprietary technology, Humboldt County, CA-based Laura Costa and Cara Cordoni created Ciro, the fastest, easiest, most eco-friendly way to bring your dirty bongs, pipes and other glassware back to sparkling newness.

“The cannabis industry is loaded with waste,” Costa says. “We have created something that eliminates a lot of something else, like plastic waste and harmful chemicals.”

Ciro is a sleek and compact cleaning appliance made from recycled and biodegradable materials. No more nasty, weird-smelling chemicals and single-use plastics. Goodbye dirty chemicals, hello clean chemistry. 

Social Justice: Cannabis Prisoner Reform

Prisoner reform campaigner Craig Cesal served 18 years of a life sentence on drug conspiracy charges after being convicted of leasing vehicles to smugglers. While incarcerated in a maximum-security prison, Cesal used his time to help his fellow prisoners achieve freedom. And he continues to fight for them on the outside, too.

Since being granted clemency by former President Trump in his final hours in the Oval Office, Cesal has teamed up with lawyers and allies to form a nonprofit, the Second Chance Foundation. He’s currently working with more than 267 federal cannabis prisoners in the clemency process to extricate them from their cells to freedom—while also working to unify the cannabis industry. 

“I’m hoping to unite the cannabis industry,” Cesal says. “The industry needs to work together to get laws changed.”

Hot Products: Category Growth & Innovative Formulations

Increasingly, cannabis consumers are attracted to infused products such as edibles and beverages. Mikey Beaudry Jr., vice president of business development at HERBL, predicts that beverages, while still a comparatively small percentage of the market, will continue to grow as a category in 2023. Additionally, more brands “will shift to or develop their offerings in affordable pre-roll and vape products to meet consumer desire for value and convenience,” Beaudry says. 

According to experts, cannabis brands will have more opportunities than ever as consumers shop for products to help them achieve their health and wellness goals.

Using innovative formulations, Plantwise has developed a world-first range of muti-path formulas that target specific issues, including sleep, immunity and focus. The ingredients list includes regeneratively grown, organic whole hemp plant phytocannabinoids along with a spectrum of additional proven nutrients, nootropics, adaptogens, herbs, vitamins and minerals.

“We focused our formulas on the core needs of top-performing individuals and delivered a convenient and efficacious supplement to allow them to show up at their very best every day,” says Plantwise CEO & Co-Founder Jimmy Brophy. 

Legalization: Green Wave Will Continue

In a move that could start a domino effect for the rest of Europe, Germany looks likely to make it legal for adults to purchase and own up to 30g of cannabis for recreational use and to grow up to three plants privately. With some 82 million inhabitants, legalization would make Germany the world’s largest adult-use market and give rise to a wave of cannabis-related mergers and acquisitions, including businesses falling in the categories of production, distribution, real estate and retailing, among others. 

In the US, voters in Maryland and Missouri voted to approve ballot measures to legalize adult-use cannabis in the November midterms. Maryland’s ruling will go into effect on July 1, 2023 and allow possession of 1.5 ounces or two plants.

This story was originally published in the print edition of Cannabis Now.