Arkansas medical marijuana patients bought more cannabis but spent less money in 2024, as softening prices drove sales higher but cut into dispensary revenue.

The state’s 37 licensed retailers sold 75,598 pounds of medical marijuana last year, up 21.5% from 2023. But total sales fell 2.5% to $275.9 million, according to figures released this week by state regulators and first reported by KNWA-TV.

“Lower prices were a key reason for the increase,” Scott Hardin, spokesperson for the Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration, said in a news release.

The state collected more than $31 million in marijuana taxes during the year, including nearly $16 million from the standard 6.5% sales tax and $15.2 million from a special 4% tax on sales between growers and dispensaries.

Suite 443 in Hot Springs, which was Arkansas’ first dispensary, led December sales with 730 pounds. Natural Relief Dispensary in Sherwood sold 547 pounds, while CROP in Jonesboro moved 419 pounds. Eleven stores sold less than 100 pounds for the month, according to Cannabis Business Times.

The Arkansas market had been looking to expand, but in October, the state Supreme Court blocked a ballot measure that would have let more patients qualify and grow plants at home, ruling 4-3 that the proposal’s language was misleading.

Arkansas’ medical marijuana program, which serves about 110,000 patients, has generated more than $1.3 billion in sales since the first store opened in May 2019. December sales hit $24 million on volume of 6,721 pounds.

The state has collected roughly $150 million in total tax revenue from the program since its launch.

Arkansas medical marijuana sales are down slightly year-over-year through the end of October, according to newly released state data, which shows total cannabis sales for 2024 at $227.8 million, as opposed to $234 million for the first full 10 months of 2023.

According to the Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration, the state’s 37 dispensaries sold $23.9 million worth of cannabis in August, followed by $21.9 million in September and $23.4 million in October. While those figures are all up from a summer lull, the actual volume of marijuana products being purchased has increased solidly.

“While the overall spend is down this year, there is a significant year to year increase in total pounds purchased, reflecting lower prices,” Scott Hardin, spokesperson for the ADFA, said in a press release. “We will have to see two extremely strong months in November and December to surpass the 2023 sales record of $283 million.”

Dispensaries sold a combined 19,516 pounds of medical marijuana between August and October, the ADFA announced, including 6,714 pounds in August, 6,196 pounds in September and 6,606 pounds in October.

Total medical marijuana sales in Arkansas have topped $1.2 billion thus far since the market launched in 2019, Hardin said.

The Arkansas cannabis market had a chance to expand even more this year through a proposed ballot measure, but that initiative was nullified even though it appeared on the November ballot, due to a state Supreme Court ruling last month which found that the ballot measure name and title were misleading.

The Daily Hit is a recap of the top financial news stories for Wednesday, November 20, 2024.

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