Is New Mexico’s Weed Boom Impacting Mexican Cartels? Discover the Surprising Shift!
DONA ANA COUNTY, New Mexico (KVIA) — Many Mexicans are reversing a longtime trend of smuggling marijuana from Mexico into the U.S.
For decades, the marijuana business involved moving weed from Mexico into the United States. However, with the drug’s legalization in several U.S. states, many Mexican residents now choose to source their products at legal dispensaries in the U.S.
According to the source, They take these products back over the border to Mexico, where the drug remains criminalized.
“It’s not about getting into trouble or shady places; it’s like going to an Apple Store. Good lighting, you can see what you’re getting, you can smell it, you can try it,” said Diego, a Juárez resident who sources marijuana products in New Mexico.
Recreational marijuana became legal in New Mexico in April 2022. Marijuana remains illegal in Mexico, where you could spend up to 20 years in jail if caught.
In Texas, possessing up to two ounces of marijuana is a misdemeanor punishable by up to 180 days in jail and up to a $2,000 fine. Despite the risk for Mexico and Texas residents, marijuana has attracted thousands to New Mexico.
Diego acknowledges the risks but doesn’t feel afraid of getting into trouble. “It’s a risky game, but taking chances on the streets is also a risky game,” he said.
Many Mexicans are hopeful cannabis will be decriminalized in their country soon. This would allow them to have marijuana without facing jail time and buy it without supporting cartels or going to the U.S.
According to official statistics, in 2023 alone, New Mexico gathered more than $400 million in cannabis sales. Sunland Park is currently the fourth-ranked city in sales in New Mexico.
“This comes with legalization. We are about open doors for things like this, education and quality. You don’t have to go to another country to buy good quality marijuana.
We just have to follow the CCD’s rules and you can get it here,” said Armando Flores, head budtender at Yerba Viva dispensary in Sunland Park.
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The CCD, or Cannabis Control Division, is a government office in charge of handing out and regulating cannabis dispensary permits in New Mexico. The CCD requires dispensaries to check customers’ ID but not where the person lives.
Flores understands why people choose to cross the border to buy marijuana, even with all the risks involved. “It’s a safer way of knowing what you’re getting and from where,” he said.
Diego is optimistic that things will change soon in Mexico. He, like many other Mexicans, hopes to buy from legal marijuana growers and sellers and avoid the black market.
“I don’t think Mexico is that far from getting near the quality and level of U.S. dispensaries, but getting it back to Mexico… I find it like an inside joke,” he said.