New Jersey is a highly desirable cannabis market for new operators because of its rapid billion‑dollar growth, strong consumer demand, and status as one of the most profitable yet undersupplied markets on the East Coast.

Cultivators came together at the recent IgniteIt event to share their perspectives on the market. Genetic preservation, price compression, the future of breeding, and what makes a great cultivator were among the key topics.

What Makes A Good Cultivator?

Aside from operational chops, a cultivator must be able to “read the room” in their cultivation facility. Panelist Chad Salute, Head of Cultivation at iAnthus, who has been growing since the 90s, says, “It’s not just a set-and-forget-it environment, light or irrigation strategy.” He added that great cultivators are the ones who can come in, read the plants, and push them as hard as they can to get the most expression.

Salute explained that top growers rely on constant observation and hands-on adjustments. They monitor subtle cues like plant color, structure, and canopy variation, then fine-tune conditions daily. He compared the process to training athletes, noting that strong vegetative growth lays the foundation for peak performance later in the cycle. Ultimately, he said, the difference comes down to experience and instinct. The best cultivators can scan thousands of plants, spot small micro-environmental issues, and make targeted changes that bring out the highest quality results.

Josh Krane, Fractional Head of Innovation for Justice Cannabis, adds, “If someone doesn’t have those ‘goggles,’ the best SOPs, the best building, the best nutrients are not going to get you to the best expression of that plant.” He added, “On a per-cultivar basis, I need a few turns with the plant to really understand how it responded to the tweaks we made, and if we are getting the best out of this plant, and if it is going to stay in our cultivation long-term.”

Tanner Travers, founder of Pantheon Cultivation, described growing as “half science, half art.” He emphasized that growers must deploy data in their grow rooms, but also know that every strain and facility behaves differently, making trial and error part of the process. Krane added that cultivators rarely have the luxury of running single-strain rooms. Instead, they must use experience and judgment to set environmental conditions that support multiple genetics at once, constantly fine-tuning to keep diverse plants performing well.

David Todd, VP of Enterprise Solutions at GrowGeneration, pointed out that growers historically relied on heavy, often imbalanced nutrient inputs without fully understanding why certain techniques produced standout results. He said today’s advances in plant science and data are helping cultivators move beyond trial and error toward more precise nutrient strategies.

Salute added that some of the “fire” expression from legacy grows may have come from plant stress, which researchers are now studying in more depth. He said identifying controlled stress triggers that enhance terpene and cannabinoid expression without harming plant health is the focus for cultivation science.

Price Compression as an Opportunity

Krane advises operators to seize the moment before the race to the bottom forces growers to prioritize yield over craft product. “Now is the time to discover what your market wants, what works best for your strategy, your growth philosophy, and then dial that in,” he said. “Ultimately, we’re all going to hit our canopy cap. Then it’s going to be a race to see who can stay economically viable. So, a great lead now helps future-proof revenues tomorrow.”

There may be a silver lining to operating in state silos: it forces operators to get granular about consumer preferences to build their brands and inform product lines, rather than casting a wide net across state markets. This approach is creating a unique view of the different cannabis cultures across the U.S. that other industries don’t have.

Krane, who has led grows in other states, says he has learned that what works in one state doesn’t work in another. “This is a unique industry with a unique customer base that wants a very specific set of characteristics in their cannabis,” he explained. For example, he finds that California loves candy, while New Jersey is a haze-driven market.

Budtenders and buyers are a great resource for understanding consumer preferences, says Krane, but he urges brands to go directly to consumers to see what resonates with them. “They are a vocal market and want to share their opinion,” he said.

David Holmes, founder of Claude9, says they have hosted a very popular event for years, inviting a couple of hundred people to sample a variety of strains and gather data on what consumers want in their cannabis.

2026: The Year of Breeders and Genetics

As the cannabis industry grows, the need for stabilized seeds that reliably produce uniform plants over generations is becoming essential for scaling production and meeting market demand.

According to Holmes, breeding has picked up in the last five years, with large-scale meetings among breeders becoming more frequent, as breeders try to crack the code for hybrid seeds, where 500 to 1,000 seeds in an indoor facility could be uniform and replace clones. While he still thinks the ability to create true hybrid seeds is years off, he gave investors a shout-out, saying that if they want to keep their finger on the pulse, they should look at hybrid seeds for expansion opportunities.

Sounding the Alarm Over Genetics

Panelists also highlighted the growing urgency around long-term genetic preservation and the need for more genetic banking services. Travers pointed to emerging solutions such as cryogenic storage and tissue culture banking, which allow cultivators to preserve meristem tissue at ultra-low temperatures and potentially restore plants years later. He warned that without these tools, valuable cultivars can be lost due to pathogens, epigenetic drift, and the practical limits of maintaining mother plants.

Salute explained that tissue-cultured preservation is not without challenges; it does not always return with the same expression growers remember, while Krane added that even successfully revived legacy strains may no longer meet modern commercial needs for yield, consistency, or consumer preferences. Panelists did agree that as technologies mature, genetic banking will play an increasingly important role in protecting cannabis biodiversity and giving operators the option to reintroduce classic cultivars in the future.

Travers also noted that beyond preservation, tissue culture offers a practical operational benefit. By storing genetics in culture rather than maintaining large mother rooms, operators can significantly reduce the footprint required for long-term plant maintenance, freeing up valuable canopy and propagation space.

The Future of Exports

Panelists said that while many cultivators would welcome the opportunity to export cannabis internationally, significant regulatory and market hurdles remain. Holmes noted that export markets typically require expensive GMP-level facilities and strict testing standards, which can drive up costs and, in some cases, affect product quality. Krane added that large-scale exports would likely favor industrial agriculture models focused on yield and consistency rather than craft quality. They agreed that global trade could create a clear divide between high-volume export cannabis and smaller, premium cultivation.

Todd offered a more optimistic view of global expansion, particularly from a supply and technology standpoint. He said emerging European markets are creating strong demand for American cultivation inputs, expertise, and intellectual property. Rather than exporting flower, he sees major opportunities in exporting proven cultivation solutions that help growers learn from the U.S. market to raise all boats. As new international markets develop, Todd said products backed by real-world R&D and reliable data are resonating with cultivators worldwide seeking a competitive edge.

The post What Cultivators Are Talking About in New Jersey appeared first on Cannabis Industry Journal.