We haven’t posted extensively on the economics of cannabis, which is becoming a significant nation and world-wide story.
Here’s one forecast of just how big that will be going forward… …for example the site estimates the medical market will be between 3.7 and 5.1 billion dollars a year within a few years, and when combined with legal personal use sales, around 37 billion per year by 2024.
By comparison, the site forecasts that sales of pharmaceutically manufactured cannabinoids could reach over 50 billion dollars annually by 2024 (!!).
For perspective, add the above figures together and you have an industry about the size of Microsoft Corp. in 2016, which had total revenues of 85 billion. (See http://ift.tt/2eoNO8C)
Which is real money in any economy in the world.
The site linked below doesn’t mention it, but TRUCE feels that much of the advantage projected for the drug companies is due to several factors:
1. Full flower medical cannabis products are generally much less expensive for patients (while being generally as or more effective in a majority of the limited studies comparing them), so more patients can be served at a lower cost.
Remember that TRUCE’s credo from the first has called for safe, legal… …and affordable…. …access to cannabis medicines for all who can benefit.
2. The pharmaceutical companies are benefitting from being favored by the FDA (which has had many former pharma execs in its highest ranks for decades), that is, full spectrum, multi-cannabinoid dispensary-grade products can’t be certified for FDA trials because of arbitrary regulations which make no sense for the case of cannabis.
The expensive trials are mainly designed to ensure safety from the often highly toxic synthetic drugs developed by drug companies – while thousands of years and much current research have already established cannabis’ complete lack of fatal toxicity and major side effects – so multi-cannabinoid cannabis should logically be allowed and be fast-tracked to later stage trials.
3. The pharmacos further benefit from differential treatment by the DEA, as when one of their single molecule cannabinoid drugs is approved after spending billions to pass through the eye of the FDA needle, the drug is reclassified to DEA’s Schedule 2, allowing what are essentially less effective cannabis-like drugs to be legally sold via pharmacies in all states. At those premium prices.
(You could almost consider this “cannabinoid laundering,” except it’s legal.)
These considerations aside, however, no mater how the pie is sliced, legal cannabis is becoming an industry on a scale that seems most unlikely to be held back for long despite continuing rear-guard opposition.
Interesting times for cannabis advocates to be alive, indeed….
#MMJ #Economics #USpol #UTpol #UtahNext #TRUCE
See full article – Medical marijuana retail sales US 2013-2021 | Statistic
