The Massachusetts Cannabis Control Commission (Commission) this week published the “Review and Assessment of the Massachusetts Adult- and Medical-use Cannabis Industries” report, a comprehensive review of the Commonwealth’s adult- and medical-use cannabis landscape based on more than six years of data.
The Industry Report, drafted and published to satisfy the Commission’s statutory research mandate, covers topics from product sales trends and testing data to demographic information for license owners and employees working in the regulated industry. The Commission’s Research Department, led by Chief of Research Dr. Julie Johnson, presented the report using datasets beginning with the inception and implementation of Massachusetts’ adult-use marijuana retailers in November 2018 up to April 2024.
The Industry Report, which was presented to Commissioners and the public at the agency’s Feb. 25 public meeting, also includes the first release of data on the medical market and patients, as well as cannabis product testing. The report was released prior to the Commission’s public listening session on the Medical Use of Marijuana Program on Feb.27, where the agency will hear from patients and Medical Marijuana Treatment Centers (MTCs) about the program and patient experience, as well as potential policy changes that could increase access to the program.
As the cannabis industry in Massachusetts marks significant recent milestones, including a $1.64 billion sales record in 2024, the release of proposed social consumption regulations, and the issuance of the 700th notice to commence operations in September 2024, the Industry Report provides data that will enhance the public’s understanding of how the regulated cannabis marketplace continues to evolve.
Highlights from the industry report include:
- Patient and Medical Program Data: There were nearly 100,000 patients registered with the Commonwealth’s Medical Use of Marijuana Program as of July 2023. The largest age group was patients 36-45 years old; less than 6% of patients were under age 21 or over age 75. Approximately half of patients identified as male, and half identified as female. Mental and behavioral disorders comprised 53% of all diagnoses and were more than twice as prevalent among the youngest patients than among the oldest. By contrast, diseases of the musculoskeletal system and connective tissue (31%) and cancers (3%) were far more common among older than younger patients.
- Testing: Testing data was available from April 12, 2021, through December 31, 2023, for three test result types: THC, THCA, and Total Yeast and Mold (TYM). 121,061 THC results were reported from April 2021 to December 2023. Reported THC results trended upward, from a median value of 0.4% in 2021 to 0.6% in 2023. 121,060 THCA results were reported from April 2021 to December 2023. Reported THCA results trended upward, from a median value of 20.2% in 2021 to 24.1% in 2023. 116,626 TYM test results were reported from April 2021 to December 2023. There were 10,457 (9.0%) failing results and 106,169 (91.0%) passing results, with the overall failure rate decreasing from 10.0% in 2021 to 7.5% in 2023. Notably, the majority of results reported each year (67.2% across all three years) were 0 CFU/g.
- The Research Department excluded 39,547 results where the “Test Comment” field noted that a test had not been run, and the result had been entered only to satisfy Metrc’s upload requirement. They also excluded 841 results where the “TestComment” field indicated that the test was incomplete. A plurality of the excluded test results (40.7%) were TYM. It is probable that unidentified null results remain, complicating results from a research perspective. Following these exclusions, the dataset included 358,757 results, which increased from 71,197 reported in 2021 (April-December) to 149,524 in 2023.
- Agent diversity: Between 2019 and 2023, the percentage of female employees in the industry increased from 35% to 40%, and in senior-level roles that number increased from 17% to 35%. Additionally, the percentage of Black and Hispanic/Latino registered agents increased in both the general and senior-level categories compared to their White counterparts. For Black general-level employees, the percentage increased from 3.8% to 8.9%, and in senior-level roles it increased from 3.3% to 7.4%. For Hispanic/Latino general-level employees, the percentage increased from 7.1% in 2019 to 11.5%, and in senior-level roles there was an increase from 3.3% to 4.9%. General-level employees who identified as White in 2019 accounted for 73.9% of that population, and 85.6% of senior-level roles. However, by 2023, both numbers declined; 61.9% of general-level employees and 75% of senior-level employees identified as White.
- Licensing: Since cannabis businesses first came under the purview of the Commission and through April 30, 2024, 1,747 applications for licensure had been received in just over six years. Within the study period, 650 licensees were operating, and 259 of these were establishments with Registered Marijuana Dispensary (RMD)/MTC priority. Growth was greatest over the first 24 months that the adult-use market was operational, with 67 businesses commencing operations in 2019, and 107 commencing in 2020. Retailer growth peaked later, with the greatest number commencing operations in 2021 (97) and 2022 (70). 41 retailers commenced operations between January 1 and April 30, 2024.
- Product Use: Sales from November 20, 2018, through April 30, 2024, totaled $6,063,229,651.92, including a total of $524,478,611.31 in 2024. Buds accounted for the largest portion (42.2%), followed by Vape cartridges (18.4%), Pre-rolls (15.0%), Infused edibles and beverages (14.7%), and Concentrates (7.6%). Year-over year sales increased most from 2018 to 2019 (537%), and least from 2022-2023 (5%), with a slight uptick again from 2023-2024 (7%).
- Market Saturation: Across all municipalities, there was an average of 5.1 Marijuana Retailers per 100,000 residents, with large variability across regions. Saturation of cannabis retailers was highest in the western counties of Berkshire (18.9) and Hampshire (16.6) and was lowest in Norfolk (1.4) and Middlesex (3.7). Density of retailers with RMD/MTC density was highest in Nantucket (6.9) and Hampshire (6.8) counties, and lowest in Hampden and Norfolk (0.7) counties.
- Pricing: The price per gram of adult-use cannabis, calculated as a monthly average, fell from $14.09 in November 2018 to $5.36 in April 2024, a 62% decrease. The price per ounce of adult-use cannabis similarly fell from $401.50 in 2018 to $153.73 in 2024, also a 62% decrease. The report notes that some decreases are expected as the market saturates across the Commonwealth. As the price of cannabis decreases, occasional adult-use cannabis consumers in Massachusetts may enter the market. However, as more East Coast states implement adult-use cannabis legalization, Massachusetts may expect decreases in overall purchases as out-of-state consumers may no longer cross borders to buy cannabis from Massachusetts.
Data for this report came from two sources. Data on licensees, product sales, and plant activity are centralized under the Open Data Catalog via the publicly facing Tableau server 9 for regulation and monitoring purposes, are regularly updated, and are all freely available to the public. Data related to agent demographics, patient demographics, and product testing are kept on the Commission’s internal Tableau server and were obtained via the Commission’s Information Technology Department.
The Industry Report is the newest entry in the Research Department’s legislatively mandated body of work, which requires the Commission to conduct research into the social and economic trends of cannabis. The public can access past work on the department’s webpage. Additionally, the Research Department recently issued a call for papers to be featured in a specialty issue of Elsevier, publisher of Clinical Therapeutics, titled, “Cannabis Research and Policy: A Joint Exploration of Past and Future Therapeutic Agency.”
Additional information is available by visiting MassCannabisControl.com.
