This story was republished with permission from Crain’s Cleveland Business.
Three months into the launch of adult-use marijuana in Ohio, cannabis prices are ticking down, and sales are trending up significantly.
Sales of non-medical marijuana to adults 21 and older began on Aug. 6. Dispensaries were selling between $36 million to $37 million in medical cannabis per month over the last few months leading up to that.
In the time since the non-medical market opened up, however, monthly sales have effectively doubled.
Across periods of roughly four weeks in August, September and October, combined sales of adult-use and medical cannabis totaled approximately $75.64 million, $71.85 million and $71.66 million, respectively, according to data from the Division of Cannabis Control.
That comes out to an average of more than $73 million for those three months.
These are approximate figures as DCC’s seven-day reporting periods don’t always start or end neatly at the beginning or end of each month.
With October stretching across five calendar weeks, for example, which includes a couple of days of September and November – the reporting period would be from Sept. 29 through Nov. 2 – combined marijuana sales over that span totaled approximately $89.92 million.
Non-medical products compose roughly 60% of total sales over these past few months. For that five-week period spanning October plus a few extra days, adult-use products composed about 63% of that $89.92 million total.
Prices, meanwhile, have continued to come down since the launch of rec marijuana in August.
During that first week of adult-use, prices on average for cannabis flower in the state were $26.59 per one-tenth of an ounce (or “day unit”) and $9.40 per gram while manufactured products cost $31.06. on average, according to DCC.
As of the last week of October, prices on average for cannabis flower were $21.49 per one-tenth of an ounce and $7.59 per gram and $29.01 per manufactured unit. Those prices are down 19% for flower and about 7% for processed or manufactured products.
While prices have been settling down some, according to a September analysis by Headset, a provider of cannabis market data, Ohio had the highest prices for legal marijuana products in the country with an average price per item of approximately $38.90.
Headset collects its data from in-market retail partners and estimates that its sample size at this time includes about 35% of Ohio retailers.
Based on a per-capita analysis, Headset estimates that Ohio’s combined legal cannabis market could ultimately grow to $2.1 billion in annual sales at maturity.
Meanwhile, New Frontier Research, another cannabis research firm, has previously estimated that Ohio’s marijuana market could grow to as much as $3.88 billion in annual sales by 2030, with 74% of that coming from adult-use sales and the remainder coming from medical.
Cannabis sales will likely see a boost as the market continues to mature, more dispensaries come online and new regulations are put in place, including those allowing for the sale of pre-rolled products, which tend to be a popular product segment in other markets.
While prices have been ticking down, cannabis products in Ohio are still the most expensive in the U.S. Read More