Missouri posts fourth straight month of +$100 million in marijuana sales
Missouri seems to have found a healthy average in marijuana sales in the state.
For the fourth month in a row, Missouri dispensaries combined to sell in excess of $100 million in marijuana product.
While medical marijuana sales continue to slide, medical marijuana sales for May were nearly $9 million dollars less than in January, the addition of adult use sales continues to propel the state forward among other more established markets in the cannabis industry.
Within the first two days of the month, Missouri surpassed the $1 billion mark in cumulative sales since the first legal sale in October of 2020. Now the state seems to have hit its stride bringing in more than $120 million in each of the last three months following a shortened February launch.
By the numbers
In February Missouri dispensaries made $71.7 million in adult use sales and $31.2 in medical marijuana sales. In March recreational sales hit $93.5 million while medical sales rebounded slightly to $32.7. In April, both medical and adult use sales slid somewhat. Consumer sales for the month totaled $91 million while medical patients purchased $30.1 million in product at dispensaries.
May marks the first month in more than a year that Missouri’s licensed retailers processed less than $30 million in medical sales in a month. Adult use sales remained strong at $92.6 million.
While the Missouri market has experienced some growing pains as cultivators ramp up expanded canopies and increase harvest schedules, the demand that has created limited supply in some areas bodes well for the long-term success of the state’s cannabis operators.
As the patient population continues to see a decline, the number of active patients has fallen by more than 20,000 since December of 2022, numbers indicate that Missouri is not losing individual buyers, they are simply converting to adult use purchases. With the discrepancy in sales tax rates between medical marijuana, where taxes are locked at 4%, and adult use, where the beginning tax rate is 6% but some localities are expected to reach 12% in total sales tax on rec purchases, it’s possible Missouri may see a resurgence in the patient population in the future.
For now, the $120 million monthly sales figure appears to be a stable benchmark for the future. The influx of summer residents and tourism will help to continue pushing recreational sales, and as wholesale flower prices and biomass costs begin to decline in the coming months, Missouri operators find themselves in a position for growth and opportunity.
