What You Should Know About COVID-19, Cannabis, and Horticulture Jobs

At M&F Talent, we are wishing health and safety for our network during these difficult times. While many people have had their careers disrupted, or perhaps are working from home, it’s important to stay positive and keep motivated. While business has slowed a bit, our recruiting team is still working hard to find people jobs. That being said, now is a great time to assess COVID-19, cannabis, and horticulture jobs.

The COVID-19 pandemic has challenged our personal and business lives in ways unthinkable just a few short months ago. Over the last weeks, the pandemic has made it all-to-clear that we simply cannot control mother nature. Even more, it is easy to feel helpless with such turmoil happening in the business world. However, while it’s evident that we can’t control the forces that “got us here,” we can still influence our lives through positive action.

As you spend time at home to await the passage of this crisis, it’s a great time to brainstorm ways to improve your career standing when things return to normal. For starters, you could finally take the time to revise your resume up to today’s standards. Similarly, cleaning up your LinkedIn profile or getting professional headshots are great ways to prep for a future career change. Finally, you take the time to research that dream job or industry that you have always thought about. In the end, the COVID-19 pandemic gives us the chance to better ourselves by affording us extra time at home. Why not spend this time being productive?

If you put some extra effort into improving your situation, you will be ready to enter the next chapter of your life when the world gets back to normal. For those looking to work in cannabis or controlled environment agriculture (CEA), perhaps there will be better opportunity than seen before the COVID-19 outbreak.

Market Resiliency, COVID-19, Cannabis, and Horticulture

The cannabis and horticulture industries are well-positioned to weather the COVID-19 storm. This notion applies to the business climate during market shutdowns as well as a potential recession. To this end, as long as people consume cannabis and fresh produce, businesses that provide these products should fare better than most – this notion includes plant-touching companies and ancillaries. Therefore, the cannabis and horticulture markets currently offer more career stability than seen in most other industries. Here are a few reasons why:

Essential Businesses

As of early May, 24 U.S. States have deemed cannabis businesses “essential” during the COVID-19 pandemic. Therefore, within markets such as California and Colorado, cannabis industry workers remain employed while many others not. Beyond job security, this notion is exciting because it reflects the changing view of cannabis in the public eye. As such, many people feel that the “essential business” classification for cannabis companies is a harbinger for things to come for federal legalization.

Cannabis as a Stress Reliever

The COVID-19 pandemic has left many of us concerned about the prospect of another recession as seen in 2008, or worse. However, it is worth noting that industries similar to cannabis in fact do well during economic recessions. To illustrate, the wine and beer industry remained healthy during the entire 2008 recession – namely because people look to alcohol as a stress reliever. Needless to say, cannabis has a similar relaxing effect for many consumers, and it is used for stress relief during difficult times. Even more, many people now prefer cannabis to alcohol as a healthier stress relief option.

Everyone Needs to Eat

Looking to the horticulture / CEA industry, you have to appreciate the fact that everyone needs to eat food. Therefore, this basic fact is an indicator of the present and future health of modern crop production. Even more, the COVID 19 pandemic has exposed some serious flaws in the global food supply chain that can only be rectified through more localized production. As such, during pandemic or recession, the CEA space is a good place to be professionally.

The Cannabis Industry “Darwin Effect”

It’s no secret that the cannabis industry had a difficult time over the last 6 months. For starters, news in Q4 of 2019 highlighted employee layoffs, business downsizing, the exit of high-powered CEOs. Secondly, 2020 continued this trend of downsizing with the added complexity of the COVID-19 pandemic. Yet, it’s worth noting that this market activity is indicative of an industry beginning to mature. Even more, as the current economy forces cannabis businesses to operate “lean and mean,” it will help to eliminate those companies not fit to survive in the long run. In the end, this “Darwin effect” will help create a more stable job market in the future.

Summary

It can’t be denied that COVID-19, cannabis, and horticulture are exposing some very interesting trends in the current business climate. While many other industries like tourism and hospitality are experiencing some real challenges with the pandemic, it seems that cannabis and horticulture are well placed to weather the storm. Even more, it’s entirely possible for these markets to come out stronger than they were prior to the pandemic.

If you would like to learn more about M&F Talent, as well as our business operations, please contact us at info@mandfconsultants.com.