How Much Weed Is Being Sold In America? Analysis Reveals State-By-State Trends, Surprising Leader

After the rollercoaster that cannabis sales were on during the last four months, things settled down in March, and have remained flat since.

Sales significantly dropped in January after a sharp month-over-month bounce in December, only to get back onto a growth trajectory in February.

In addition to the ongoing pressure from declining flower sales, overall cannabis sales were down year-over-year in 6 markets. In total, sales across the 11 markets totaled $1.49 billion during the month.

Western Markets

According to BDSA, in west-coast markets during March, year-over-year growth ranged from -28.8% in Nevada to 50.3% in Arizona.

Arizona

• Combined sales totaled $111.7 million, up 50.3% compared to a year ago and up 9.5% from February.
• Medical sales amounted to $45.7 million, down 39% from a year ago and up 5% sequentially.
• Adult-use sales of $66.1 million increased 13% from February.

California

• California sales grew by 9.5% quarter-over-quarter to $282.8 million and declined 18.9% compared to a year ago.
• Flower sales continue to drag down overall sales, declining 28%, with pre-rolls gaining 2%.
• Ingestibles fell 14%, while concentrates dropped 17% from a year ago during March.

Colorado

• Sales increased 7.5% in March compared to the month before, declining 19.1% from a year ago to $167.4 million.
• Flower, which was down 24%, drove overall sales lower, with pre-rolls declining 8%, with ingestibles dropping 17% and concentrates 16%.

Nevada

• Sales increased 0.2% compared to February, dropping 28.8% from a year ago to $59.9 million.
• Flower sales are the main driver of the drop here as well, with March sales declining 37% from a year ago.
• Concentrates decreased 16%, while ingestibles declined 28% and pre-rolls fell 17%.

New Mexicans Bought $22.1M Worth Of Cannabis In The First Month Of Legal Rec Sales 

In April 2021, New Mexico became the latest state to legalize adult-use cannabis after Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham signed the Cannabis Regulation Act. A year later, the Land of Enchantment kicked off recreational marijuana sales. In the first weekend of sales, New Mexicans purchased $3.5 million worth of cannabis.

Now, after one month, the state’s cannabis sales reached $22.1 million in April, according to new data released by the Cannabis Control Division (CCD.)

Albuquerque hit a record with $8 million in recreational cannabis sold for the period, reported KRQE News. Las Cruces came in second, selling $2.06 million. Santa Fe sold over $1.8 million worth of recreational cannabis in the previous month.

“The new industry is projected to generate $300 million annually in sales, create 11,000 jobs and bring in $50 million in state revenue in the first year alone,” according to the CCD.

• Find out what happened with sales in Oregon as well as in East Coast and Mid-West markets (Florida, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan and Pennsylvania) in this analysis by New Cannabis Ventures.

Photo: Courtesy of Thought Catalog on Unsplash