Closing the Education Gap: Cannabis Trimming 101

From short, online courses to post-secondary PhD programs, cannabis-focused education is growing quickly. It makes sense; there are thousands of new jobs being created by the cannabis industry, and well-educated professionals are needed to fill them. You can specialize in cannabis genetics or work for a cannabis-focused private equity firm, become a testing lab analyst or even a lawyer focused on cannabis law. But there is one big gap that we noticed was lacking throughout the educational offerings: cannabis harvesting methodology and operations. There were dozens of courses available that focused on cannabis cultivation, but almost none that addressed what to do when it’s time to harvest. At Mobius, we saw this as problematic, especially because trimming is such a nuanced and important process. There’s so much that can go wrong at this critical point! Trim too close and you lose valuable weight in your dried flower products. Too long, and your product looks inferior. Improperly used equipment or cleaning chemicals can contaminate entire batches, costing hundreds of thousands of dollars. We’ve seen many trimming catastrophies, and unfortunately many LPs wait until things have gone very wrong until they call us. But trimming is simply too important to ignore: it can be a big driver of efficiency or a massive suck of resources, time, and money. We believed it was time to stop viewing the trim room as the first-stop for un-trained, entry-level employees, and something needed to be done to help provide LPs with education and leadership.

That’s why 8 months ago we introduced the Mobius Lead Certification program. It’s a full-day course delivered at our facility in Surrey, British Columbia. Students start with the basics in the Trim Theory 101 module, and progress through advanced operation and techniques in the hands-on modules with the Mobius Trimmer M108S.

We’re very proud of our students that have completed the course and received their certifications, and pleased to see that Canadian LPs are now viewing this certification as valuable training for their existing employees and an important distinction for potential job candidates.

“At Medisun, we are lucky to receive many qualified candidates when recruiting. But because the cannabis industry is so new, many of those candidates don’t yet have any industry experience or knowledge. That’s why applicants that have received any cannabis-specific training or education tend to stand out when looking through resumes. For positions where we have multiple, qualified candidates, having completed formal industry training can be the deciding factor for one candidate over another.”
Tina Furlan, HR Manager at MEDISUN

Several months ago we were approached by NorQuest College in Edmonton. Their forward-thinking educators had spotted the same gap we had seen in cannabis harvesting training and were planning to create a new course in Cannabis Trimming and Production. We were happy to offer our expertise to help them develop their own course.

“I want to thank Mobius for providing educational content on cannabis harvesting technology. Learners who take NorQuest’s Cannabis Trimming and Production course will benefit from exciting content and expert insights provided by companies like Mobius.”
Shaunaugh Whelan, Business Development Officer at NorQuest College.

We’re happy to announce that the NorQuest course is now accepting students! You can learn more about the curriculum and sign up on the Norquest site.

We approach our educational and training initiatives like we do our products: Good is never good enough! We are always innovating and always improving. We will continue to develop valuable content and harvesting education, and remain dedicated to improving the trim rooms and trimming processes at every LP in Canada.

Learn how to operate and maintain your Mobius equipment. Visit our Instructions library