US Nonprofits Launch Paid Cannabis Smoking Study

At the beginning of this week, the Cannabis Research Coalition and The Network of Applied Pharmacognosy (NAP), two US-based nonprofit organizations, announced a partnership with DaySavers, a company specializing in pre-rolled cannabis cigarettes and rolling papers. The goal of this collaboration is to conduct a unique experiment focused on studying the quality of smoke produced by cannabis during consumption. This project, called the “Science of Smokeability” (SOS), aims to explore the phenomenon of subjective perceptions of cannabis quality based on the smoke it produces.

Volunteers Will Be Paid to Smoke Cannabis

To carry out this project, the partnership is currently seeking adult volunteers who are willing to regularly smoke various pre-rolled cannabis cigarettes in exchange for payment. The planned study is expected to last about two years. Throughout this period, participants will consume different types of cannabis and evaluate their subjective quality—not by the psychoactive effects, but by the aromas and overall pleasantness of the experience.

According to the project organizers, the study will focus on the relationship between the concentration of active compounds in the plant—specifically cannabinoids, flavonoids, and terpenes—and their combined influence on consumer interest in different cannabis strains. Harrison Bard, the sponsor of the project and head of DaySavers, notes that both business professionals and scientists have long observed that the most popular and beloved cannabis strains are not always those with the highest cannabinoid concentrations.

“For many in the industry, it’s become clear that chasing the highest THC content in the final product doesn’t always pay off, since cannabis quality is determined by many factors, not just the strength of the effect,” Bard said in a press interview. “That’s why, when I heard that scientists wanted to study what actually makes certain cannabis strains ‘high-quality’ and ‘successful,’ I immediately agreed to provide everything needed for the research. I hope that, in the end, we’ll be able to develop our own cannabis quality rating scale that takes into account consumers’ subjective experiences, not just the concentration of specific compounds.”

Study Details and Compensation

The partners plan to select 200 volunteers who will periodically smoke different types of cannabis in the form of pre-rolled cigarettes and share their subjective impressions with researchers. During each test session, which will take up a workday, participants will smoke two pre-rolls with different cannabis strains and receive $4.20 for each day of testing.