Part of the Cannabis Intelligence Briefing series.
Branded Cannabis: Revolutionizing the Industry, covers the rapid evolution of cannabis-derived consumables in the U.S. from its illicit roots to legal retail legitimacy. Both cannabis-based products containing THC and hemp-derived CBD have earned high demand status in both adult-use dispensaries and mass markets. The United States presents a current growth model expected to be replicated in Canada and other nations around the world over the next five years.
A few key highlights from the report:
- Cannabis legalization is on the brink of entering the sophisticated industry of consumer packaged goods. For now, Federal prohibition insulates cannabis start-ups from the competition of industry giants that would otherwise dominate the market. Few products, if any, have faced this extraordinary market potential.
- Increased access to cannabis has resulted in both a significant increase in sales and an expansion and diversification of the consumer base. Access to this new base has created vast opportunities for segmentation targeting and branding.
- The market opportunity for legal cannabis in the United States continues to be tremendous. U.S. legal cannabis sales exceeded $12.4 billion in 2019 and are expected to reach $31.4 billion in 2024, rising at a CAGR of nearly 23% from $9.1 billion in 2018.
- The U.S. cannabis market is much more than just the licensed dispensary channel in legal cannabis states; it also includes the market for non-psychoactive cannabinoids, such as CBD derived from hemp—legally defined as Cannabis sativa bearing less than 0.3% THC.
- Total sales of CBD products in the U.S. reached nearly $2.6 billion in 2019 and are forecast to break $18 billion in 2024, growing at a CAGR of almost 52% from just $1.5 billion in 2018.
- The passage of the 2018 “Farm Bill” reinvigorated the market for CBD products by legalizing the cultivation of low-THC hemp in the U.S. Non-edible CBD products are proliferating. Manufacturers, even the giants of the CPG industry, now eagerly await FDA approval of CBD as a food additive—a move expected to throw the market wide open.