The Growing Pre-Roll Market and What It Means for Cannabis Business Operations

The pre-roll market is booming.

It’s the fastest-growing product category in cannabis and is projected to maintain that growth for years to come. If you’re a cannabis business owner, this growth presents a huge opportunity to:

Take market share
Boost organic revenue
Create a premium product line

Here’s the catch…

Demand won’t matter if you can’t meet supply. Scaling up pre-roll production, particularly infused pre-rolls, requires the right equipment AND an effective approach to infusion machine maintenance.

You’re about to discover:

How Big Is the Pre-Roll Market Right Now?
Why Infused Pre-Rolls Are Dominating the Market
How Does a Pre-Roll Infusion Machine Work?
Why Infusion Machine Maintenance is So Important
How Cannabis Businesses are Scaling Production the Smart Way

Let’s dive in.

How Big Is the Pre-Roll Market Right Now?

Pre-rolls are huge.

Across the United States, there were over 394 million pre-rolls sold that generated upwards of $4.1 billion in revenue. Not enough? Pre-rolls take the number three spot across all cannabis categories when it comes to revenue…behind flower and vape.

And demand isn’t slowing anytime soon.

Year-over-year sales increased by 12%, making pre-rolls the category with the highest revenue growth during that period. Market share rose from 13.2% to a record-breaking 15.9%. Month over month sales jumped from $181 million to $257 million.

If you’re looking for the fastest way to increase revenue and compete with other cannabis brands…look no further than pre-rolls. Well, infused pre-rolls specifically.

Why Infused Pre-Rolls Are Dominating

Let’s take it back for a second.

What’s driving pre-roll sales right now?

Infused pre-rolls. Products that infuse cannabis flower with high potency concentrates like live resin, distillate, or diamonds. Cannabis consumers love these products.

Infused pre-rolls now make up approximately 44% of the pre-roll market share, becoming the best-selling product within the category. That’s not a trend. That’s a complete shift in market share.

So why does this matter to your operations?

Producing infused pre-rolls at a commercial scale is completely different than manual production. Infused products require high levels of precision and consistency, which can only come from properly operating automated pre-roll machinery that is specifically designed for sticky materials.

Without automation your production will constantly be bottlenecked by manual processes and preventative maintenance will be impossible. In short: your operations will fall behind.

The cannabis businesses that will win this year are the ones prioritizing automation and proper equipment maintenance.

How Does a Pre-Roll Infusion Machine Work?

First things first: how does one even run an infused pre-roll line?

A pre-roll infusion machine evenly distributes concentrated cannabis oil INTO finished pre-rolls. The process is fairly simple:

Cannabis concentrate is stored in a machine’s custom reservoir
The concentrate is heated until it reaches the desired viscosity
Cannabis oil is pushed out through calibrated needles/nozzles
Pre-rolls are placed into a rotating cartridge or tray
Each pre-roll gets individually infused with cannabinoids in seconds

The end result?

A flawless batch of evenly infused pre-rolls that burn nice and provide customers with consistent effects. Some machines can even process one single pre-roll in under 5 seconds. Others can handle batches of 72 pre-rolls in just over 90 seconds.

Depending on the machine, operators can run the production line off of a tablet or touchscreen that allows them to dictate how far the rod goes, where the product gets infused, and how much is distributed at a time.

Many machines come with features that allow operators to easily switch out between live rosin, live resin, distillate, sauce, and more. Variety like this allows businesses to expand their product offerings without investing in additional equipment.

Why Infusion Machine Maintenance is So Important

Here’s a fun fact most cannabis business operators fail to realize:

Maintenance is JUST as important as the equipment you purchase. A machine that’s not properly maintained can cause your products to be unevenly dosed, eat away at your margins, and cause unscheduled downtime.

Here’s why…

Cannabis concentrates are sticky. As they constantly build up in your machine’s tubing, needles, nozzles, and valves you’re going to run into clogs. Clogs cause failed batches, wasted cannabis, and frustrated employees.

Standard infusion machine maintenance should include:

Daily cleanings of any part of the machine that will come into contact with cannabis concentrates
Calibration tests to ensure each pre-roll is getting the correct dosage
Routine inspections of machine parts like nozzles, gaskets, and seals
A thorough machine cleaning when switching between strains

The last bullet point is extremely important if you want to be considered a premium brand. Leftover concentrate from one strain can drastically change the flavour profile and potency of the next.

Machine maintenance is quality control. Neglecting it will hurt your brand.

Cannabis businesses that invest in preventative maintenance learn quickly how beneficial it can be. Preventative maintenance leads to:

Fewer machine breakdowns
Consistent product quality
Improved profit margins

Scaling Cannabis Operations the Smart Way

It’s projected that pre-rolls will continue to grow at the highest compound annual growth rate when compared to other major cannabis categories at around 10%.

This growth spells opportunity for cannabis businesses but only for those who have the capacity to scale with demand.

Smart cannabis business owners are…

Prioritizing automation as soon as possible. Automated equipment saves on labour costs by up to 90% and increases overall output capacity.
Scheduling infusion machine maintenance. By allowing a maintenance team to periodically inspect equipment, businesses can avoid unscheduled downtimes and keep product quality consistent.
Diversifying their product offerings. Since most machines can make hash holes, coated pre-rolls, blunts, and multi-packs operators can easily satisfy a variety of market segments.
Tracking their production data. Many machines have analytic software that keeps tabs on throughput, how the machine is operating, and whether or not products are being dosed correctly.

The cannabis businesses that treat their operation line as their competitive advantage will be the ones thriving. Equipment costs shouldn’t be viewed as an expense…they’re an investment.

The Bottom Line

Pre-roll sales are growing at an astronomical rate and infused pre-rolls are the products consumers can’t get enough of. Here’s what every cannabis business owner needs to know:

Pre-rolls are the fastest-growing major cannabis category
Infused pre-rolls make up close to half of the total pre-roll market
Automation has never been more necessary for cannabis businesses
Preventative infusion machine maintenance is critical for all commercial operators

Businesses that invest in quality equipment, maintain it religiously, and scale accordingly are going to come out on top. Those who don’t…will be left in the dust.

Simple as that.