Cannabis Inventory Adjustment Reasons in Metrc, Explained

Your cycle count says 46 vape carts. Metrc says 48. Before you can fix it, Metrc makes you answer one question: why?

That answer is your cannabis inventory adjustment reason. It's the code you pick from a dropdown every time you change a package quantity in Metrc, and it becomes part of the permanent record regulators read during an audit. Pick the wrong one and a two-unit miscount starts to look like diversion.

Here's the short version. A Metrc inventory adjustment is a formal correction to a package's quantity, and every one needs a reason from a list your state regulator sets, plus a note that explains what happened. This guide walks through the reasons states actually use, when to pick each one, and how to cut down on adjustments in the first place. If you're stuck on broken, moldy, or expired product specifically, our Metrc waste vs. damage guide goes deep on that one decision.

What Are Cannabis Inventory Adjustment Reasons?

Cannabis inventory adjustment reasons are the state-approved codes you select in Metrc to explain why a package's quantity changed outside of a normal sale, transfer, or production run. You can't type your own reason. You choose from the dropdown, then add a note.

The part most operators miss: the list isn't the same everywhere. Metrc's own Maryland bulletin says adjustment reasons are set by the state regulator and that Metrc can't change them. So a reason that exists in Illinois may not exist in Nevada, and the names differ even when the idea is the same.

That's why the dropdown in your own Metrc account is the final word. The lists below come from current state guidance (checked Oct 2026) so you can see the patterns, but always match what your state shows you.

Metrc Adjustment Reasons, Grouped by What Happened

Most Metrc adjustment reasons fall into about a dozen groups: data errors, moisture loss, scale and packaging variances, pull errors, waste and destruction, spoilage, theft, unexplained variances, samples, regulator activity, API errors, and plants. Here's each group with the exact reason names four states use today.

1. Data entry errors. Illinois and Maryland call it Entry Error. Ohio calls it Data Entry Error and says to use it only when no other reason fits. Nevada limits it to typos like transposed or extra digits. Illinois adds that you should use it only when the package can't be discontinued. No state on this list lets you use it to fix sales.

2. Drying and moisture loss. Flower loses weight after packaging. Illinois, Maryland, and Nevada use Drying, Maryland also has Moisture Loss for pre-packaged items, and Ohio uses Plant Material Moisture Gain/Loss for bulk plant material. Nevada ties Drying to the moisture content on the CoA.

3. Scale variance. Use it when two scales disagree, not for drying. Maryland and Nevada both say the difference shouldn't exceed about 0.9 grams per pound.

4. Packaging and processing loss. Illinois has Packaging Loss (product lost while packaging) and Package Material (the jar or bag got weighed with the product). Nevada has Product Packaging Scale Variance. Ohio has Loss Due to Packaging Activity and, for processors, Loss Due to Processing Activity.

5. Over pulled and under pulled. Nevada uses a matched pair. If you pull too much from one package, you adjust it with Over Pulled and the other with Under Pulled, and each note has to reference the other package.

6. Waste and destruction. This is where states differ most. Illinois uses a single Waste reason for bud, shake and trim, pre-rolls, concentrates, recalls, and state-mandated destruction. Nevada uses Package Destruction/Waste and wants it reported the same day the product is physically destroyed. Ohio splits it into Destruction-Failed Testing, Destruction-Recall, Destruction-Expired, and Destruction-Waste/Other, and gives dispensaries a Destruction-Damaged code.

7. Spoilage and expiration. Illinois, Maryland, and Nevada use Spoilage for edibles and non-edibles past their expiration date. Ohio uses Destruction-Expired.

8. Theft and loss. Every state treats this one seriously. Illinois and Maryland want the state notified and a Metrc support case opened. Nevada only allows Theft after a formal incident report is filed in Accela. Ohio's Loss, Theft, or Diversion code requires notifying the Division within 24 hours.

9. Unexplained variances from an audit. When a count is off and you can't find the cause, Illinois uses Inventory Audit, Maryland uses Unaccounted Product, Nevada uses Unaccounted Product Variance, and Ohio uses Inventory Reconciliation. Nevada also expects a detailed note and documented investigation results you can hand the CCB on request.

10. Samples and testing. Illinois has Trade Sample and Consumed During Testing (labs only). Maryland has Employee Sample. Nevada has Test Sample Consumed in Testing for labs.

11. Regulator activity. Maryland has MCA Inspector Obtained Product for when an inspector removes product. Nevada reserves a code for its Department of Agriculture.

12. API and transfer errors. Maryland and Nevada both have API Adjustment Error for fixing an adjustment your software sent by mistake. Nevada adds Transfer Error for a wrong quantity sent or received that nobody caught at the time.

13. Plants Unpacked. Cultivators in Maryland and Nevada use it when immature plants come out of a package for planting.

Sources: Metrc Illinois bulletin IL_IB_0023 (Nov 2025), Metrc Maryland bulletin MD_IB_0098 (Feb 2025), Nevada CCB package adjustment reasons (Aug 2025), and Ohio DCC Metrc package adjustment guidance (Oct 2025).

How Do You Pick the Right Adjustment Reason?

Pick the most specific reason that matches the real cause, and only fall back to an audit or unaccounted code when you truly can't find one. Run through these questions in order.

1. Is it a sales mistake? Then it's not a package adjustment. Maryland and Illinois both say to fix sales errors on the sales receipt, not by adjusting the package.
2. Is the product being destroyed? Use your state's Waste or Destruction reason and follow its disposal rules. This is where the waste vs. damage question comes in.
3. Was it stolen or lost? Notify the state first, using the steps your state requires, then adjust with the Theft or Loss reason.
4. Do you know the physical cause? Drying, scale variance, packaging loss, or a pull error each have their own reason. Use it.
5. Was it a typo? Use Entry Error or Data Entry Error, and say exactly what was mistyped.
6. Still can't explain it? Use your state's audit or unaccounted code, and document the investigation.

Waste vs. Damage: The Reason Operators Mix Up Most

Damage describes what happened to a product. Waste describes what you're doing with it. Most states don't have a reason called Damage at all, so broken or contaminated product usually leaves Metrc through a Waste or Destruction adjustment with a note that explains the damage.

Ohio dispensaries are an exception with a dedicated Destruction-Damaged code. The rules for witnesses, grinding, and the 50% mix also change by state. We broke all of it down, with examples, in Metrc Waste vs. Damage: Which Reason to Use and When.

Why Do Metrc Inventory Discrepancies Happen?

Metrc inventory discrepancies happen when a physical change in your vault doesn't get recorded the same way in Metrc. Usually it's a person, a scale, or a timing gap, not theft.

Wrong-batch sales. A budtender grabs an eighth from Batch A but scans the tag from Batch B. Now one batch shows a shortage and the other a surplus. Fix the receipt, not the packages.

Receiving typos. You received 100 units and logged 110. Every count after that inherits the error.

Moisture and packaging loss. Bulk flower dries out and pre-roll production crumbles some flower. The grams are real, they just aren't recorded yet.

Unrecorded destruction. Someone tossed a cracked jar and never adjusted the package.

Transfer miscounts. A package arrives light and gets accepted anyway.

Theft. It happens, and it's the one reason that triggers state notification.

Do Cannabis Dispensary Inventories Change Daily?

Yes. Every sale, delivery, return, and adjustment changes a dispensary's on-hand inventory, so counts move every day the doors are open. Metrc has to reflect those changes on the timeline your state requires.

That daily churn is why small errors pile up fast. A store that sells a few hundred units a day and only reconciles monthly can end up with dozens of tiny discrepancies, each one needing its own adjustment and note. A quick end-of-day reconciliation catches most of them while the cause is still obvious.

How to Document a Metrc Adjustment So It Holds Up in an Audit

A good adjustment note explains who found the issue, what changed, when it happened, and why, in enough detail that a regulator reading it a year later understands it. The reason code says what kind of change it was. The note proves it.

Compare a note that just says "Damaged" with this one: "1-unit discrepancy found during weekly cycle count on 10/14/2026. 3.5g jar of Blue Dream broken during shelf reorganization. Destroyed on-site per SOP. See waste log dated 10/14/2026." The second one answers every follow-up question before anyone asks.

A few habits from current state guidance:

• Reference any outside log that holds more detail, like a waste destruction log. Ohio's guidance gives exactly that kind of example note.
• Include the Metrc support ticket number if the adjustment relates to one (Ohio).
• Keep supporting evidence like video footage or written logs (Maryland).
• Review your adjustments in Metrc's Packages Adjustment report so you spot patterns before a regulator does (Maryland).

How to Submit a Package Adjustment in Metrc

If you're working directly in Metrc, the steps look like this:

1. Go to Packages, find the package, and select it.
2. Click Adjust.
3. Enter the change in quantity based on your physical count.
4. Select the reason from your state's list.
5. Write the note: who, what, when, and why. Many states require it.
6. Click Adjust Packages, then check the package history to confirm the note and quantity saved.

How to Reduce Inventory Adjustments and Discrepancies

You reduce adjustments by catching errors close to when they happen and by entering each change once. A handful of habits does most of the work.

• Run regular cannabis inventory audits and cycle counts so discrepancies show up in days, not months.
• Reconcile physical inventory against Metrc at the end of each day for high-velocity SKUs.
• Write an SOP that says who can make adjustments, which reasons they can use, and what every note must include.
• Limit adjustment permissions to a few trained people.
• Train staff on scanning, receiving, and the difference between a sales fix and a package fix.
• Stop entering the same change in two systems. Every retype is another chance for a typo.

Making Metrc Adjustments Without Double Entry

If your team adjusts a package in your inventory system and then again in Metrc, you've doubled the work and the chance of a mismatch. The fix is to make the change once, in one place, with the right reason attached.

That's how Distru, a Cannabis AI ERP with a built-in B2B wholesale marketplace, handles it. You adjust the package from the package list or product page in Distru, choose from the same adjustment reasons your state has set in Metrc, add the note, and submit. Distru then syncs that adjustment to Metrc in real time through its two-way Metrc integration. Nothing goes to the state until someone on your team submits it.

Our help article on adjusting package quantity walks through it step by step, including why you should keep adjustment permissions to a few trusted users. Distru is the #1 Metrc integration partner by API call volume, and it's used by 440+ customers across 30+ states.

Want to see a real adjustment go from Distru to Metrc, reason code and note included? Book a demo and we'll walk through it with your own state's list. Fewer adjustments, cleaner notes, and a lot less time in Metrc.