The legal cannabis industry continues to grow in value, despite socioeconomic and geopolitical issues, price declines, oversupply and fluctuating regulatory measures. The adult-use category remains the main value growth driver, as innovation quickly develops and products become increasingly tailored to different consumers.
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This report comes in PPT.
2024 was a year of contrasting scenarios in the industry. Overall, global value sales grew by 4%, mainly driven by a double-digit increase in the adult-use category. However, value sales of CBD & other non-intoxicating cannabinoids products decreased for the second year in a row, as some markets reached high maturity levels and regulatory scrutiny of such products increases.
Regulatory developments in 2024 took different directions. On the one hand, more countries decriminalised cannabis use, more US states legalised adult-use cannabis, and pilot programmes expanded. On the other hand, active commercial markets did not emerge as expected (such as in Germany), federal US legalisation stalled, and stricter rules were implemented in Asia.
Products with hemp-derived intoxicating cannabinoids continue to expand rapidly, predominantly in the US, as unclear legislation and loopholes provide the conditions for the category to evolve. Whilst different hemp-derived formats are available, beverages are attracting most investment from cannabis companies.
In developed markets, product innovation continues to touch on a variety of features, such as mixed cannabinoid content, dosage control, ingredients blending, infusion, flavours, terpenes and need states proposals. Such innovations are not only present across legacy formats, but also across non-smokeable and emerging ones, such as vapour, edibles and beverages.
Despite current geopolitical and socioeconomic challenges and uncertainties, the global cannabis industry is expected to continue to expand in value terms. Whilst macroeconomic tensions might delay regulatory progress, current and emerging markets, most notably the US adult-use category, will continue to drive the global industry forward.
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