Your Complete Guide to Cannabis ERPs

Why cannabis businesses need more than spreadsheets 

The cannabis industry is maturing fast. What started with boutique growers, makeshift processing facilities, and a handful of dispensaries has evolved into a multi-billion-dollar market with complex supply chains, investor scrutiny, and regulatory oversight that rivals those of the alcohol and pharmaceutical industries. The industry’s economic footprint is expected to contribute about $123.6 billion to the U.S. economy in 2025. That kind of growth brings opportunity—but also complexity. 

 Despite this progress, many operators still rely on spreadsheets, seed-to-sale mandated systems, or basic accounting tools to maintain their entire business and compliance. These tools may meet the minimum requirements, but they lack the visibility and discipline necessary to drive growth. The outcome is predictable: profit margins decrease, audits loom, and growth plans slow down due to manual and non-scalable processes. 

The profitability picture drives the point home. A recent survey found that only about 27% of U.S. cannabis businesses are profitable. When more than two-thirds are breaking even or losing money, visibility into costs, clean financials, and reliable compliance become survival gear, not nice-to-haves. That’s why more operators are looking to Velosio’s and SilverLeaf’s cannabis ERP as the foundation for sustainable growth. 

What a cannabis ERP really is 

ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) brings your financials, inventory, production, distribution, and reporting into one system. SilverLeaf’s Cannabis ERP system goes further. It connects day-to-day operations to the realities that define this industry: product quality control, seed-to-sale traceability & compliance, inventory availablity and cost recognition, profit margins, Section 280E tax constraints, and an ever-shifting patchwork of state rules.  

With a cannabis ERP like Velosio’s SilverLeaf CBC built on Microsoft Business Central, compliance events are not an afterthought you reconcile later; they live in the same dataset as your inventory, cultivation / manufacturing, costs, yields, and sales. That alignment helps you plan with confidence, close the books faster, and prove what happened—down to the gram—when regulators or investors ask. 

Seed-to-sale matters, of course. States like Michigan and California (and many others) require licensees to integrate with a state tracking system (Metrc) that records each plant’s lifecycle from propagation through sale. A cannabis ERP makes that data actionable across your business—so cultivation, production, quality, finance, wholesale / distribution and retail work from the same integrated truth instead of stitching together spreadsheets.  

Why choose a cannabis ERP over a generic one 

The case for cannabis ERP starts with two unavoidable realities: taxes and regulation. Indeed, compliance costs remain the top concern cannabis operators face. IRC Section 280E continues to restrict normal deductions at the federal level, which means your chart of accounts, allocations, and reporting need to reflect cannabis-specific rules if you want to make sound decisions and stay audit-ready. At the same time, state-by-state variation creates complexity. Different license types, testing requirements, and packaging rules demand a system that can adapt without constant workarounds or costly customization. 

These pressures influence the day-to-day operation of your business. You must accurately cost batches, trace each lot through processing and distribution, reconcile sales and taxes by jurisdiction, and close the books on schedule. Even smaller operators benefit from establishing discipline early—such as maintaining clean, 280E-aware charts of accounts or standardized SKUs—so that, as the business expands, your foundation remains solid. 

Additionally, generic ERP systems—especially those supported by delivery and development teams without proven success in the cannabis industry—often start from square one. This means your operation ends up footing the bill not only to educate them on cannabis-specific workflows, but also to fund the development of custom software tailored to your needs. Building Metrc integrations, connecting to disparate cultivation or quality systems to their ERP, developing unique state tax and license requirements, and tracing Metrc tag fields throughout the entire system can quickly become costly – and that is just the tip of the requirements iceberg. Worse, it can lock your operation into a highly customized setup that’s difficult to scale or adapt. 

What you gain when ERP fits your industry 

When compliance, costing, and operations share a single system, three outcomes follow. 

1. You gain line-of-sight across the entire chain— from cultivation to processing to wholesale and retail— allowing you to identify yield trends earlier, product and strain availability, protect margins, and fulfill commitments to customers. 

1. You gain agility as you expand, because adding a state or a new product line doesn’t require re-engineering your back office.  
2. And you build credibility: investor-grade financials and repeatable processes reduce surprises and shorten diligence when you’re raising capital or pursuing an acquisition. 

A practical way to evaluate options 

When evaluating cannabis ERP options, prioritize fit over features. Look for these essentials: 

• Industry fit: Can the system model your world—multi-entity structures, THC and CBD lines, state licensing, cultivation, lab testing and quality control, wholesale and retail, and the reporting states, lenders or boards demand? 

• Compliance integration: Are seed-to-sale integrations proven in the states you operate in today—and ready for the ones on your roadmap? 

• Financial rigor: Does the ERP provide 280E-aware financial design, accurate inventory valuation, and cost accounting that flow seamlessly into analytics your team can actually use—without constant IT help? 

• Experienced partner: Who implements and supports the system matters. In the cannabis industry, working with a partner who knows the field often dictates the pace and quality of your rollout. The people behind the software are just as important as the software. Trust your partner. 

SilverLeaf ERP, powered by Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central 

SilverLeaf is an ERP solution built for cannabis operators. It brings your core processes—cultivation and manufacturing, inventory and quality, distribution and retail, financials and reporting—into a single platform.  

Because SilverLeaf is powered by Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central, you benefit from a modern, secure cloud foundation and native connections to familiar tools like Teams, Outlook, and Power BI. Your team works where they already collaborate; leadership sees live dashboards that reflect the same operational reality your compliance team reports to the state. 

For operators expanding into multiple states (MSOs), SilverLeaf provides a consistent backbone across entities—consolidated financials you can trust and quality controls that scale with you, rather than requiring reinvention in every market. 

Proof from the field

Cura Cannabis Solutions started in Portland with a simple mission deliver consistently high-quality cannabis oils under the Select brand. Rapid growth soon pushed them beyond spreadsheets and basic accounting. By partnering with Velosio and adopting SilverLeaf ERP, Cura gained a scalable backbone to manage manufacturing, inventory, compliance, sales distribution, finance, and multi-entity operations across the country. 

That strong foundation positioned Cura for its next chapter. In 2019, Cura was acquired by Curaleaf Holdings, now one of the largest publicly traded cannabis operators in the world. At which time, Cura had implemented SilverLeaf in OR, CA, AZ, NV, MI, an international CBD company and a consolidated financials company Today, Curaleaf continues to expand nationally (and internationally), however as part of the acquisition of Cura they decided to go a different software direction choosing to adopt Microsoft Finance & Operations, which Velosio has the capabilities and teams to support as well as Microsoft Business Central. 

Why act now 

Regulatory timelines rarely wait for your systems to catch up. Markets open, rules change, taxes shift, and illicit competition pressures pricing. Building a cannabis-ready ERP foundation now helps you respond faster and with fewer surprises. It protects licenses, streamlines your month-end tasks, and provides the data to improve yield and margin in a market where every point counts. In a landscape where only about a quarter of operators report profitability, those that master cost and compliance discipline gain a significant edge over the competition.  

SilverLeaf Cannabis ERP can help you get there. It’s a comprehensive ERP solution, built for your industry and powered by Microsoft, that lets you grow with confidence. 

Book a SilverLeaf walkthrough to see how a cannabis-ready ERP foundation can support your next stage of growth. 

FAQ: Cannabis ERP Systems Explained

1. What is a cannabis ERP system?

A cannabis ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) system is business management software that unifies cultivation, manufacturing, distribution, finance, and compliance in one platform. It gives operators full visibility from seed to sale while managing costs, batches, and regulatory data in real time.

2. How is a cannabis ERP different from a generic ERP?

Generic ERP systems can’t handle cannabis-specific needs such as seed-to-sale tracking, Section 280E compliance, or multi-state tax reporting. Cannabis ERPs like SilverLeaf by Velosio are purpose-built with these capabilities, helping operators stay compliant and profitable without heavy customization.

3. Why do cannabis operators move away from spreadsheets?

Spreadsheets work for early-stage operations but quickly create errors, version confusion, and data silos. A cannabis ERP automates tracking, costing, and reporting—giving you reliable financials, faster audits, and better decision-making as your business scales.

4. Can a cannabis ERP integrate with seed-to-sale systems like Metrc?

Yes. Leading cannabis ERPs integrate directly with state-mandated systems such as Metrc to synchronize plant, batch, and sales data automatically. This eliminates double entry, reduces reporting errors, and keeps compliance data aligned with operational and financial records.

5. How does a cannabis ERP support Section 280E compliance?

A cannabis ERP maintains a 280E-aware chart of accounts, cost allocations, and reporting structure. This ensures non-deductible expenses are tracked separately, giving finance teams the documentation needed to support tax filings and audits.

6. Who should consider implementing a cannabis ERP?

Any operator managing multiple licenses, states, or product lines can benefit—especially those scaling from startup to multi-state operator (MSO) status. Whether you cultivate, manufacture, or distribute, an integrated ERP system streamlines every step of the process.

7. What is SilverLeaf ERP by Velosio?

SilverLeaf is a cannabis-ready ERP built on Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central. It connects cultivation, production, distribution, and financials in one secure cloud platform. Operators gain real-time insights, automate compliance, and scale confidently across states.

8. How can I see SilverLeaf ERP in action?

You can schedule a personalized walkthrough to see how SilverLeaf supports compliance, inventory control, and cost visibility.
👉 Book a SilverLeaf walkthrough to explore how a cannabis-ready ERP foundation can help your business grow.