February Cannabis product demand continues steady national growth, but stalls in some states
- February’s monthly demand for legal cannabis products increased 1.8% in the U.S.
- Year-over-year, the growth rate in demand continues at a strong 25.7%.
- Between January and February, growth in demand for legal cannabis products increased slightly at the national level.
EAST LANSING, MI—May 18, 2021—Anderson Economic Group’s monthly AndCan® Index indicates that demand for cannabis products in the United States grew slightly from January to February. This increase reflects a continuing trend of slower, but more even growth than we saw earlier in the pandemic.
Kenan Cosguner, AEG’s lead analyst for this market, expects to see a continued rise in cannabis product demand fueled by the COVID-19 relief stimulus that passed in March. “We saw demand track closely with the passage of the initial federal economic relief program last spring,” explains Cosguner. “Now that millions of Americans have received new stimulus payments, it is likely we will see a similar acceleration in demand growth during March and April this year.”
Cosguner and the rest of AEG’s cannabis market experts develop this monthly measurement by closely following 50 state trends for both the recreational and medicinal marijuana markets. Monthly calculations are based on benchmarks developed when AEG first began assessing the market in 2015.
While cannabis product demand increased nationwide between the first two months of this year, sales trends varied greatly from state to state. Illinois, for example, saw cannabis sales drop by 9%, while February sales in Michigan were roughly the same as January’s.
For additional insight regarding AEG’s AndCan® Index and trends in the legal cannabis space, contact our industry experts online or at 517.333.6984.
Cannabis in the News
The cannabis industry’s next war: How strong should its weed be?
As a growing number of states legalize cannabis, state legislators are beginning to call for caps on the THC content of legal cannabis products. Research on the health impacts of cannabis consumption is incomplete, but advocates for THC caps have pointed to studies raising concerns about THC’s impacts on brain development in young adults.
Texas’ medical cannabis program could expand under bill preliminarily OK’d by House
In Texas, medical cannabis program eligibility is currently limited to patients with relatively rare medical conditions. For this reason, the state has only registered 3,500 participants. A new bill introduced in the Texas House of Representatives would expand the list of qualifying conditions to include chronic pain, PTSD, and non-terminal cancer. The bill would also increase the current THC cap from 0.5% to 5%.
Florida medical marijuana legislation stalls as public employees are fired for legal use
Although medical cannabis is legal in Florida, public entities that receive federal funding default to federal rules in cases of employee cannabis use. As a result, teachers and other public employees in the state have been fired after disclosing their medical cannabis use or testing positive on a drug test. State legislators introduced a bill with protections for public employees in February, but it has since stalled.
About the AndCan® Index
Launched in June 2017, the monthly AndCan Index reflects observed demand from U.S. states with legalized markets, along with estimated latent demand in states without legal markets or lacking credible sales data. Both medical and adult-use products are included.
The AndCan Index builds upon:
- Over six years of analysis of the U.S. cannabis market by Anderson Economic Group consultants.
- A rigorous methodology that was presented in an award-winning 2020 article in the journal Business Economics.
- More than two decades of relevant experience with alcoholic beverages, franchised industries, and public policy.
Current benchmark: The AndCan Index is currently on the March 2019 benchmark, which reflects several methodological and data improvements over the 2017 benchmark. We expect to complete a 2021 benchmark revision in the coming months.
About Anderson Economic Group
Since its founding in 1996, Anderson Economic Group has become one of the nation’s premier boutique consulting firms, specializing in business valuation, expert testimony, and public policy. AEG has assisted governments, universities, large corporations, and businesses across the U.S. and abroad. All of the firm’s work is grounded in the core values of professionalism, integrity, and expertise.
AEG has offices in East Lansing, Michigan and Chicago, Illinois.
CONTACT
Lisa Wootton Booth
AEG—East Lansing, Michigan
517.333.6984
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