Cannabigerol (CBG) has yet to gain as much mainstream hype as its cousin cannabinoid cannabidiol (CBD). Although it’s getting easier for customers to find CBG online and in hemp shops, there’s still not as much variety in the CBG market. Also, most people who aren’t involved in the hemp market have probably only heard about CBD oil.

Although some consumers rave about using CBG, a few factors are holding it back from mainstream adoption. If you’re wondering why it’s more challenging to find CBG versus CBD, you may be interested in the following three factors. 

What’s Holding CBG Back? — Three Reasons Behind CBG’s Lack of Popularity 

There’s Literally Less CBG To Go Around 

“Supply vs. demand” is the core issue in every industry, including CBD hemp flowers. Since the 2018 US Farm Bill passed, demand for hemp cannabinoids has skyrocketed. However, even today, there aren’t enough hemp farmers to meet the growing appetite for hemp extracts.

These supply issues hit the CBG industry especially hard. Why? Most hemp flowers only have about one percent CBG content! By contrast, CBD is the most abundant cannabinoid in hemp flowers, and it usually accounts for over 20 percent of a strain’s total cannabinoid content. 

Since extractors need more hemp flowers to produce less CBG extract, there’s less economic incentive to favor CBG over CBD. Not only is there less CBG in hemp buds, there’s less demand for CBG relative to CBD. 

CBG Tends To Be Pricey  

Since CBG is so scarce, it usually costs more than CBD products. In fact, people in the hemp industry have already nicknamed CBG the “Rolls-Royce cannabinoid!” 

Unless customers are particularly interested in CBG’s benefits, it’s less likely they will splurge on CBG versus CBD. Please remember that CBD and CBG are non-psychoactive and have many similar traits. Until we learn more about CBG’s unique value propositions — or extractors find a way to reduce its price — customers will likely gravitate to CBD goods. 

CBG Needs More Clinical Studies 

Most of the recent research into hemp has focused on CBD oil. Not only is CBD more abundant in hemp flowers, it’s more widely used in North America. There’s more of an incentive from hemp manufacturers and health regulators to figure out how CBD works.

Since CBG is costly to obtain and relatively unpopular, there are far fewer laboratories looking into this cannabinoid. Although a few trials show CBG has potential antioxidant and anti-stress properties, customers know far less about CBG’s effects versus CBD. 

Until the scientific community better understands how CBG interacts with the endocannabinoid system, it’s unlikely to overshadow CBD. 

Real Tested CBD Now Tests CBG Oils! 

When you search for “CBG near me” on websites like Google, you won’t find as many results as “CBD near me.” However, that doesn’t mean finding CBG near me is impossible. Many prominent CBD brands now offer a few CBG oils, tinctures, or flowers for sale. 

If you’re shopping for “CBG near me,” please remember to treat these products with the same scrutiny you would CBD oils. That means always requesting third-party lab results and scanning average customer reviews. 

The best way to start your CBG journey is to check out the latest reviews on Real Tested CBD. Although we focus on CBD and delta-8 brands, you can find plenty of unbiased CBG reviews on our website.