Cannabis sales in the newly-legal recreational cannabis state of Missouri are off to a scintillating start. The Show Me State registered $102.9 million is consolidated medical & adult-use sales in its first full month post-legalization—the third highest aggregate total ever recorded by a single state in an opening month. Only California and Arizona did better (both with larger populations), pointing to a healthy in-state appetite for cannabis products.
Cannabis sales in Missouri are off to a flying start, with sales topping $100 million ????️ even though sales started Feb 3 and with February inherently being a short month.
For context, Michigan registered $28.6M in cannabis sales its first month, while Illinois were ~$40M. $MSOS pic.twitter.com/UD7bvTnsNG — The Dales Report (@TheDalesReport) March 5, 2023
The data table below ranks all the legal recreational cannabis states, when they opened and total consolidated sales totals in their first month of operation. Keep in mind these figures are based on publicly available open sources from state reporting agencies.
State Legalization Month Legalization Year Total Sales in First Month (in millions) Alaska February 2015 $1.70M Arizona January 2021 $109.8M California January 2018 $334.9M Colorado January 2014 $14.7M Connecticut January 2023 $13.3M Illinois January 2020 $39.2M Maine October 2020 $9.40M Maryland July 2023 N/A Massachusetts November 2016 $9.6M Michigan December 2019 $6.5M Missouri February 2023 $102.9M Montana January 2022 $24.3M Nevada July 2017 $27.1M New Mexico July 2022 $40.0M New York December 2022 N/A Oregon October 2015 $11.8M Rhode Island December 2022 $2.9M* Vermont October 2022 $2.6M Washington July 2014 $28.0M Note: The numbers do not adjust for dates where recreational cannabis sales did not begin on the beginning of the month. Therefore, a complete apples-to-apples comparison may not be made. *Through December 20, 2022
On November 8 2022, Missouri Amendment 3, the cannabis legalization initiative, was approved by voters and subsequently passed into law. The initiative is legalized the purchase, possession, consumption, use, delivery, manufacturing, and sale of cannabis for personal use for adults over the age of 21. Prior to the 2022 election, possession of only 10 grams or more of cannabis was punishable as a criminal misdemeanor and punishable by fine.
The strong rollout has benefitted from a well-administered medical cannabis program, established in 2018, with the first dispensaries opening in late 2020. The program is overseen by the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services (DHSS) and aims to provide patients with qualifying medical conditions access to medical marijuana as a treatment option.
While Missouri’s medical cannabis program has also been praised for its strong regulations and testing requirements, it is generally regarded as restrictive compared to other states. Before legalization, its medical cannabis program was generally regarded as one of the more restrictive programs in the United States. This is owing to a limited list of qualifying medical conditions, and limited number of dispensaries and cultivation facilities, which have impaired access.
But with the DHSS issuing licenses to 207 dispensaries in February, the access issue soon aims to become a distant memory. Licenses were also issued to 72 manufacturers and 56 cultivation facilities.