In collaboration with Cannabis Business Times, report details evolving grower sentiment toward lighting solutions and considerations for facility design

Fluence by OSRAM (Fluence), a leading global provider of energy-efficient LED lighting solutions for commercial cannabis and agriculture production, today released findings from its fourth annual "State of the Cannabis Lighting Market" report conducted in partnership with Cannabis Business Times, whose mission is to accelerate the success of legal cannabis cultivators.

The report—based on hundreds of responses from cultivators surveyed by nationally recognized, third-party researcher Readex Research—compares four years of LED lighting trends in North America, including purchasing behavior and cultivation challenges.

Key findings include:

Seventy-two percent of research participants noted that energy efficiency and light intensity are the most important factors when making lighting purchases.
Since 2016, LED use has grown faster than any other type of lighting technology, with double-digit growth from 2016 to 2019 in all stages of plant growth (propagation, vegetation and flowering).
More than a quarter of cultivators (26 percent) reported that lighting comprises a majority of their cultivation operations' electricity costs—at 55 percent or more.
In his opening letter for the 2019 report, Fluence CEO David Cohen wrote, "The increasing conversions to LEDs—whether through retrofitting or in initial facility design—says more about their viability than I or anyone else ever could."

"Early adopters are systematically ridding the industry of any lingering suspicions of the role LEDs play in critical areas like cannabinoid and terpene production, crop uniformity and yield, and energy efficiency," Cohen continued.

The research reflects the magazine's commitment to providing standardized research in a nascent market, delivering year-over-year comparisons and supporting insights from university researchers dedicated to studying the interaction between light and life.

"The cannabis industry is rapidly evolving, and this research is just one way cultivators can either confirm or challenge commonly held beliefs about the most effective methods for growing cannabis," said Cannabis Business Times Editor Michelle Simakis. "Lighting is one of the most integral factors in building a high-yield cannabis facility, and this research has helped build year-over-year comparisons of first-ever industry data to help cultivators monitor industry trends and best practices in lighting."

The full report is available on the Fluence website and in Cannabis Business Times' November issue. Reports will also be available in the Fluence and GIE Media booths, located at C3325 and C6333 respectively, at MJBizCon in Las Vegas from Dec. 11 to Dec. 13, 2019.

For more information on Fluence, visit www.fluence.science.

About Fluence by OSRAM

Fluence Bioengineering, Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of OSRAM, creates the most powerful and energy-efficient LED lighting solutions for commercial crop production and research applications. Fluence is the leading LED lighting supplier in the global cannabis market and is committed to enabling more efficient crop production with the world's top vertical farms and greenhouse produce growers. Fluence global headquarters are based in Austin, Texas, with its EMEA headquarters in Munich, Germany. For more information about Fluence, visit https://fluence.science.