I respect the attempt to accurately create a report on vape cartridges, however I'd like to note a couple important inaccuracies. My source for this is myself -- I worked in the cannabis industry for about 4 years (worked in California for 2 years, then in Massachussetts for 2 years - up until about a year ago).
The first inaccuracy I noted was the $ amount per gram extract and the 10x markup remark (they REALLY don't make sense, where do you get these numbers?). Also related, in most states, a company would actually lose money if they were to process their flower for vape cartridges. Vape cartridges are often only worth the investment because the byproducts of plant trimming and packaging aren't sellable otherwise.
The second inaccuracy is in regards to cartridge filling; forgive me if I'm wrong, but it sounds like you were talking directly to the people marketing the vape-cartridge filling machines? The reason I say this is because it's very difficult to machine-fill extract in carts due to how highly variable the viscosity can be from batch to batch (trim from different strains is enough to create the inconsistent viscosity). This makes it incredibly difficult to fill without the injectors getting clogged; a manual employee process is often needed. Personally, it sounds a lot like someone was trying to get some free advertising from you.
Outside of that, there were some minor issues or discrepencies, but I won't harp on them as the article does seem to make an honest effort at giving an unbiased report.
To add to iaw's response, it's worth noting that a large amount of value flower has is in relation to it's presentation and appearance. Trimming of flower is done to both remove excess plant material as well as create a more favorable product for consumers.
Because this process of trimming is necessary for the sale of flower, any vertically integrated business that both grows and sells their own flower will inevitably create this excess of trim byproduct.
There are non-negligible amounts of THC is the trimmings of the flower even though they aren't comparable to the actual flower. These used to be a waste product sold/given away but now it is turned into distillates/oils.
The first inaccuracy I noted was the $ amount per gram extract and the 10x markup remark (they REALLY don't make sense, where do you get these numbers?). Also related, in most states, a company would actually lose money if they were to process their flower for vape cartridges. Vape cartridges are often only worth the investment because the byproducts of plant trimming and packaging aren't sellable otherwise.
The second inaccuracy is in regards to cartridge filling; forgive me if I'm wrong, but it sounds like you were talking directly to the people marketing the vape-cartridge filling machines? The reason I say this is because it's very difficult to machine-fill extract in carts due to how highly variable the viscosity can be from batch to batch (trim from different strains is enough to create the inconsistent viscosity). This makes it incredibly difficult to fill without the injectors getting clogged; a manual employee process is often needed. Personally, it sounds a lot like someone was trying to get some free advertising from you.
Outside of that, there were some minor issues or discrepencies, but I won't harp on them as the article does seem to make an honest effort at giving an unbiased report.