Maryland’s medical marijuana industry in April reached more than $1 billion in total retail sales since launching 40 months earlier on Dec. 1, 2017.
The second billion dollars will take about half that time to reach, predicted Maryland Medical Cannabis Commission Executive Director William Tilburg, the Baltimore Business Journal reported.
Quarterly sales of $60.5 million in 2019 nearly doubled to quarterly sales of $115 million in 2020. Sales in the first three months of 2021 surpassed $135 million.
While the quarterly sales increase has slowed, Tilburg said the industry is on pace to hit $550 million in sales this year.
Tilburg attributed the growth to more patients and more businesses. From December 2019 to January 2021, the state’s pool of patients certified to receive MMJ swelled from 87,019 to 125,335, the Baltimore Business Journal reported.
The number of approved dispensaries grew by about 10% in that time.
The patient increase has spurred demand, prompting several of the state’s licensed cannabis growers to expand their production capacities.
