Jamaica is known around the world for their cannabis. They were doing the weed thing way before it was cool — they’re the original stoners — cannabis is literally a religious sacrament for many Jamaican natives (even though, it’s only recently been ‘decriminalized’ and regulated by the government).

And now, in this foul year of 2021, Jamaica, home of the Rastafarians and the birthplace of reggae, is actually running out of weed.  

What has this world come to?

"It's a cultural embarrassment," said Triston Thompson, who works for a consulting and brokerage firm for Jamaica's legal cannabis industry, known as Tacaya.  

Thompson explains that after heavy rainfall last hurricane season, Jamaica went into a severe drought, which they’re still dealing with. On top of that, the country recently decriminalized medical cannabis, which has caused the number of users to spike. That’s made it hard for farmers to keep up with demand, and apparently many have simply stopped growing out of frustration with the newly added regulations and the stress that has come with them.   

That combination of factors has created the perfect storm, where there’s less weed to smoke and more people looking to smoke it. Street weed is more expensive than it’s ever been in Jamaica, which is becoming  problem for poor locals who can’t afford the spiking prices. 

“Last year was the worst year,” Thomson continues. “We’ve never had this amount of loss. It’s something so laughable that cannabis is short in Jamaica.”

Laughable, in the least funny way possible.