The global medical cannabis market is estimated to grow from $8.28 billion in 2017 to $28.07 billion in 2024 and at a CAGR of 19.1 percent, according to data provided by Energias Market Research.
Factors driving the advances of the medical cannabis market include increasing recognition of medical benefits, stronger demand for cannabis in the treatment of various diseases, and rising number of research and development activities. Sales of recreational cannabis products are also expected to increase, as California’s new recreational cannabis laws went into effect on Jan. 1, 2018.
While sales in California are ramping up, there are concerns that supply will fall short of demand. According to a report by the Chicago Tribune, Charles Boldwyn, chief compliance officer of ShowGrow in Santa Ana, explained, “We’re looking at … hundreds of licensed cultivators and manufacturers coming out of an environment where we literally had thousands of people who were cultivating and manufacturing … So the red tape is a bit of a bottleneck in the supply chain.”
Despite the concerns, the market in California is expected to witness strong growth. Data published by New Frontier Data projects that legal cannabis sales in California will reach $2.8 billion in 2018 and $6.6 billion by 2025.
