Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration data shows the state is on pace for record medical marijuana sales by the end of the year.
Through the first nine months of 2023, medical marijuana dispensaries sold $211.3 million worth of products totaling 44,949 pounds of cannabis, the department reported Thursday. So far, the state has collected $23.5 million in tax revenue from medical marijuana sales in 2023, bringing the total to $113 million since the first dispensaries were opened in 2019.
In August and September, dispensaries sold about $23 million worth of products, totaling 10,765 pounds of marijuana. The August and September sales numbers closely resemble the 2023 monthly average of $23.4 million, according to data from the finance department.
"Overall, patients have spent more than $965 million on medical marijuana purchases since the industry launched in May 2019," according to a statement from Scott Hardin, a spokesperson for the Department of Finance and Administration. "This included $31 million in 2019, $182 million in 2020, $265 million in 2021, $276 million in 2022 and $211 million through September this year. With monthly sales averaging $23.4 million, we remain on track to set a new sales record this year."
Suite 433 in Hot Springs again led the state in sales, selling 575 pounds of medical cannabis in September. Natural Relief Dispensary in Sherwood sold 452 pounds; Crop in Jonesboro sold 325 pounds; High Bank Cannabis in Pine Bluff sold 314 pounds and The ReLeaf Center in Bentonville sold 252 pounds to round out the top five selling dispensaries for the month.
The sales numbers the finance department reported last week show continued high demand for medical cannabis after voters legalized the drug for medicinal use through a 2016 amendment to the state's constitution.
Since the first dispensaries opened in 2019, demand for medical marijuana has grown with 96,056 active medical marijuana ID cards issued in Arkansas compared with 89,855 in January 2023, according to the Arkansas Department of Health.