The legalization of Marijuana is doing wonders across the globe. The Cannabis economy is finally kicking-off. A historic number of Marijuana sales has been recorded in the US as domestic sales crossed north of $17.3 billion on a year-on-year basis.
In the US, there are fifteen states that allow adult-use of Marijuana and another thirty-five that allow it for medical purposes.
The United State?s biggest Marijuana consumer, the state of California witnessed a $586 million increase in sales while other states like Florida witnessed $473 million growth in sales. Colorado?s sales soared by more than 25% as compared to 2019 and reached a whopping $2.2 billion. The state of Oregon also saw a 29% increase in sales. (Source: BDSA)
Why Have The Sales Increased?
While there are many factors behind the historic sales figure of Cannabis, few major factors are as follows:
- COVID 19 Pandemic: Medical Marijuana Dispensaries were regarded as essential services during the pandemic closures and lockdowns. Many illegal dispensaries in San Diego were shut and the legal medical marijuana dispensaries prompted an increasing number of people to utilize their services.
- Increased Use of Cannabis: People have been using Cannabis in record numbers. There has been a 25% increase in people that say they use more Cannabis even before the pandemic. Medical Marijuana Doctors, the top Medical Marijuana network in the US registered increasing viewer traffic during the lockdown period. It connects patients to find the doctors they need and makes obtaining Marijuana treatment effective.
- New Adult-Use Markets: Adult use of Marijuana includes ?recreation? which means you consume Marijuana to get high. Arizona and Illinois were amongst the target states for new adult-use markets.
What Is Medical Marijuana?
Medical Marijuana (known as Cannabis) means that the treatment of patients, for diseases like epilepsyis is done using Cannabis containing drugs.
Delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and cannabidiol (CBD) are the two main cannabinoids having therapeutic benefits. The only difference is that THC has a psychoactive effect whereas CBD is anti-psychoactive. THC is the one you choose when you consume Marijuana for recreational purposes (to get high) and CBD is the one you should prefer if you want to stay moderate. CBD also helps with anxiety.
Cannabis contains cannabinoids and almost 300 other non-cannabinoid chemicals that help to reduce nausea and vomiting during chemotherapy, can also help in improving appetite in people with HIV/AIDS, or to treat chronic pain and muscle spasms.
Certified Marijuana Doctors recommend cannabis-based (THC and CBD) prescriptions to their patients and there is increasing acceptance for such treatments.
There are many on-going pieces of research about Medical Marijuana’s application to treat type 2 diabetes, schizophrenia, tumours and some inflammatory bowel diseases.
The Marijuana Economy
The US is home to the largest legal Marijuana market on earth. California tops the list in being one of the biggest marijuana economies across the world.
Majority of the states in the US have legalized Marijuana for any one of the two reasons: Recreational and Medicinal. They are reaping the benefits from the growing Marijuana economy where people are more and more engaged with cannabis substances.
Some of the states yet to join the party are Virginia, Kentucky, South Dakota, Wisconsin, e.tc. Euromonitor International forecasts the global legal cannabis market to reach $95 billion by 2025, which would be more than triple the market of $28 billion in 2020.