Although the United States cannabis industry has been reporting impressive growth, the sector remains under pressure and we believe our readers need to be aware of the data that supports our thesis.
According to the Marijuana Policy Project, states that legalized recreational cannabis generated more than $3.7 billion in tax revenue in aggregate from recreational cannabis sales in 2021. Going forward, we expect cannabis tax revenue to continue to climb and highlighted 9 states that are reporting stronger growth than we forecasted.
- According to Illinois’ Department of Financial and Professional Regulations (IDFPR), the state has generated more than $620 million of recreational cannabis sales in the first five months of the year.
- According to state data, Michigan sold more than $1.3 billion of recreational cannabis and $481 million of medical cannabis in 2021. In December 2021, the state reported more than $135 million of recreational cannabis sales which was a record at the time and we expect 2022 to be a period of strong growth for it.
- According to the Colorado Department of Revenue (CDOR), the state generated more than $2.2 billion of cannabis sales in 2021. Although many analysts believe the market is nearing peak annual cannabis revenues, we consider to be bullish on the opportunity.
- According to the Cannabis Control Commission (CCC), Massachusetts sold more than $1.3 billion of cannabis products in 2021 and we expect cannabis sales to exceed this amount in 2022.
- According to Arizona’s Department of Revenue, the legal cannabis industry generated more than $1.2 billion of cannabis sales and more than $190 million of tax revenue in 2021. The state recently started to allow for the sale of recreational cannabis and we expect the industry to record strong growth in 2022 and beyond
- New Jersey’s recreational cannabis industry recorded approx. $24 million of sales in the first month and we expect this number to ramp higher on a going forward basis. We expect sales to increase as more dispensaries open and we are bullish on the market.
- According to New Mexico’s Cannabis Control Division (CCD), $22 million of recreational cannabis products were sold in April. Since recreational cannabis was legalized a few months ago in the state, we will monitor how sales increase throughout the year and are impressed with the initial data
- According to Washington State data, the cannabis industry reported more than $1.5 billion of cannabis sales in 2021. This makes Washington State one of the largest cannabis markets in the US and we believe the state is flying under the radar.
- According to Montana’s Department of Revenue (DOR), the legal cannabis industry (medical and recreational) has generated more than $123 million of sales since the opening of the recreational market on January 1st.