With increasing legalization across the nation, cannabis sales are reaching the levels of more established products and brands.
- Last year, Americans spent an estimated 10.4 billion dollars on cannabis.
That’s about the same as we spent at Taco Bell. The amount spent on medical and adult-use cannabis has risen by nearly two billion dollars in two years. It’s also about three times more than Americans spent on e-cigarettes. As the industry continues to expand, it’s having an impact on the economy. There are currently more legal cannabis-industry workers in this country than there are steelworkers. In 2018, the cannabis industry added 64,000 jobs. There are a number of reasons behind the industry’s huge growth spurt. Regulated adult-use sales commenced in California, making it the biggest legal market in the country. Utah and Oklahoma legalized medical cannabis. The public perception of marijuana and products such as CBD oil is quickly changing. Consumers typically spend about $900 million on Goldfish crackers and are spending $10 billion on cannabis. Cannabis products can’t quite compete with the $72.2 billion Americans spent on wine, but who knows what the future will bring. Cannabis will likely surpass the $15 billion generated by the NFL last year. It’s going to take a long time to overtake McDonalds, which brought in $36 billion, or alcohol consumption, which adds up to $254 billion. No matter how the numbers play out, cannabis is obviously a fast-growing industry. Hopefully, this will inspire further research into the medical benefits of both CBD and THC. While many are interested in profits, there are a lot of people looking for relief from serious medical conditions.