Yo, what’s good, fam? It’s your boy Dan coming at you with the latest scoop on the cannabis scene in Ohio. So, check it, the Ohio Department of Commerce just dropped some knowledge that medicinal cannabis sales in the Buckeye State hit a new high in 2023, raking in a whopping $484.4 million. But hold up, before you start celebrating, there’s a catch. The growth rate was hella weak, only a measly 1.2% increase from the previous year. That’s right, my peeps, the market be slow as a snail out here.
Let me break it down for you. Back in 2016, they passed House Bill 523, making medicinal weed legal in Ohio. They thought it was gonna be lit, but the first year was a hot mess. Patients were mad as hell, licenses took forever to get approved, and the costs were sky-high. It wasn’t until January 2019 that they finally started selling medical marijuana. And let me tell you, in 2020, things went off the chain with a mind-blowing 297% increase in sales. Talk about making it rain!
But ever since then, it’s been a struggle. The growth rates dropped like a mixtape nobody wanted to bump. In 2021, sales only went up by 72%. Then in 2022, it was a weak 26% increase. And now in 2023, we’re talking about a miserable 1% growth rate. Yo, that ain’t gonna cut it! People are starting to worry about this market slowdown.
Andy Rayburn, CEO of Buckeye Relief and prez of the Ohio Cannabis Coalition, ain’t feeling too good about these numbers. He straight-up said that a 1% growth in a five-year-old medical market is straight-up whack! Like seriously? And to make things worse, the license holders had to step up their game and increase their product shipments by 20% to 30% just to keep up with the demand in 2022. That’s some next-level stress right there.
But listen up, my peeps, there’s still hope on the horizon. Despite the struggles, people like Andy Rayburn are getting ready for the launch of recreational sales. Ohio said “hell yeah” to legalizing adult-use weed in November, even though Gov. Mike DeWine wasn’t down with it. The law went into effect on December 7, but we still ain’t seen no recreational sales yet.
Right now, they got two bills, House Bill 86 and House Bill 354, being pushed through the state legislature to set up the rules for the recreational market. It’s gonna take some time, but trust me, it’s gonna be lit when it finally happens.
And you know what? Some smart operators like Green Thumb Industries Inc., Curaleaf Holdings Inc., and Cresco Labs Inc. are already making moves to get in on that recreational action. They’re strategizing and positioning themselves for the big opportunity. Cresco Labs CEO, Charlie Bachtell, calls Ohio’s move a “tipping point.” He knows that with more than 85% of Americans living in states where weed is legal in some way, and over 50% living in states where it’s legal for recreational use, we’ve hit a major turning point in the game.
So there you have it, my homies. Ohio’s cannabis market may be struggling right now, but don’t sleep on it. Recreational sales are on the way, and it’s gonna change the game for real. Stay tuned for more updates on this wild ride we call the Ohio cannabis scene.
And remember, stay lifted and keep it real! Peace out!
