Montana is enjoying significant revenue from its recreational marijuana market
Montana may not be a big state like California or Colorado, but that doesn’t limit it from having record sales in its adult-use cannabis market. August appears to have been a month full of positive results for licensed cannabis retailers. After posting a record $26.8 million, these establishments gained continued growth for one of the newest adult-use markets in the country. The data was shared by the state Department of Revenue.
July was a positive month for the industry, but August represented a 1% increase over that month. It should be noted that July had five Fridays and five Saturdays, the two biggest selling days of the week for cannabis retail, which should be a driver for much larger numbers.
Montana saw $7 million in medical marijuana sales and $19.8million in adult-use cannabis sales last month. The latter represented 74% of the market and is growing. Montana’s expanded retail market was launched in January 2022. Adult-use sales made up 58% of monthly total sales when it first opened.
Montana dispensary owners have sold over $201 million worth of cannabis in 2022. This is despite the state having only 1.1 million people. These sales have generated nearly $29.3 million in tax revenue for the state.
This revenue stream is possible despite the fact that only half of Montana’s 56 counties participated in August’s state-run adult-use cannabis retail program.
Yellowstone County was responsible for around $3.2 million in adult-use sales and $1.3 million in medical sales in August. This was more than any other county in the state. It represents about 16.6% of the combined retail market for August.