‘Aside from vape hardware, we can find sources that supply most of our core products in Canada and internationally,’ Tilray CEO says

Amid a widespread market selloff due to investor concerns about the COVID-19 outbreak, cannabis companies also have to contend with disruptions involving vaporizer hardware, the vast majority of which is produced in China.

In a normal year, weed companies buying vape hardware from China expect a winter disruption of roughly a month surrounding Lunar New Year, but coronavirus is expected to extend that pause another three to six weeks, according to KushCo Holdings Inc. KSHB, -2.00%  Chief Executive Nick Kovacevich. Many companies stocked up ahead of the new year’s celebrations, Kovacevich said.

“People will stay in business, but it’s frustrating and a little disruptive,” Kovacevich said over the phone. “The reason it’s taking a long time is the workers couldn’t get back to their factories to restart production.”

Canada legalized the sale of vapes and other cannabis-derived products in mid-December, a change referred to as “Cannabis 2.0” in the industry. However, like with the original rollout of recreational legalization in Canada, there have been widespread supply shortages as products fly off the shelves.

“We can’t make enough of these products to fulfill demand,” Tilray Inc. TLRY, -3.92%  CEO Brendan Kennedy told MarketWatch this week. “We shipped product to Alberta that sold out in six days and we will continue to ramp supply as demand ramps.” [Read More @ MarketWatch]