![](\"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Screenshot-2025-04-29-at-09.45.00-1024x590-2.png\")
<\/p>\n <\/p>\n
After a slow initial launch to its adult-use marijuana market<\/a>, New York in 2024 saw the number of legal stores nearly triple, according to a new Office of Cannabis Management (OCM) report, fueling total sales for the year of $869 million.<\/p>\n By the end of the year, says OCM\u2019s 2024 Market Report, 260 retail locations were operational statewide, stocking more than 500 brands of product. All told, since the launch of the retail market, licensed stores had sold more than $1 billion in legal marijuana.<\/p>\n Including sales so far in 2025, New York\u2019s legal cannabis market is now close to reaching $1.5 billion worth of purchases.<\/p>\n New York last year \u201cwitnessed significant sales growth and a substantial increase in tax revenue generated from licensed cannabis sales,\u201d the new report says, \u201creinforcing the positive impact of a well-regulated cannabis market.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThis market report reflects the dynamism of New York\u2019s cannabis industry\u2014an industry that is shifting rapidly as the market matures and encounters both opportunities and challenges,\u201d Felicia A.B. Reid, the office\u2019s acting executive director, said in a statement Tuesday. \u201cBut, as ever, OCM is deeply committed to ensuring that the industry is reflective of New Yorkers and creating meaningful and forward-looking opportunities for communities historically affected by cannabis prohibition.\u201d<\/p>\n As for the state\u2019s efforts toward building an equitable cannabis industry, the new state report says that social and economic equity (SEE) applicants hold 55 percent of licenses, including 81 percent of retail dispensary licenses and 58 percent of microbusiness licenses.<\/p>\n 2024 Market Report, NY Office of Cannabis Management<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Meanwhile operators licensed under the Conditional Adult Use Retail Dispensary (CAURD) program, designed to acknowledge disproportionate enforcement of cannabis laws against some communities, \u201caccounted for 70% of open retailers at the end of 2024,\u201d OCM said.<\/p>\n Perhaps unsurprisingly, sales were strongest in densely populated areas, such as Manhattan, Queens and Long Island.<\/p>\n The report is designed to provide regulators at the Cannabis Control Board (CCB) with information necessary to oversee and adjust the state system and promote the \u201cthe goals of inclusion, fairness, and sustainability set forth in the Marihuana Regulation and Taxation Act (MRTA),\u201d according to an OCM press release.<\/p>\n \u201cThe comprehensive data from this report enable us to understand the current state of the market and proactively advance regulatory and policy decisions that enhance the long-term viability of New York\u2019s cannabis sector,\u201d said John Kagia, OCM\u2019s executive deputy director of market policy, innovation and analytics. \u201cWith insights on sales trends, product diversification, and consumer behavior, we\u2019re equipping the CCB to support businesses navigating the market\u2019s competitive pressures and evolving demands.\u201d<\/p>\n The market has continued to expand since the end of the year, says OCM\u2019s press release<\/a> about the new report. As of April of this year, it says, 368 retailers have been licensed statewide, with total sales \u201cnearing $1.5 billion.\u201d<\/p>\n 2024 Market Report, NY Office of Cannabis Management<\/p>\n<\/div>\n In addition to updates on operational retailers, sales and licensing, the report also touches on market trends such as purchasing behaviors and consumers\u2019 increased use of non-flower products, such as vape products and edibles.<\/p>\n Flower products, including prerolls, accounted for less than half (45 percent) of sales, which the report says reflects \u201cthe strong demand for value-added products, including vaporizers, edibles, and concentrates, [which] has grown.\u201d<\/p>\n The findings align in part with a recent Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) report that found significant decreases in the use of flower, concentrates, oil, tinctures and topicals among U.S. consumers in certain states<\/a>. That report also found increases in the use of edibles, beverages and vape cartridges.<\/p>\n For those who do by flower in New York, nearly two-thirds (63 percent) buy products in 3.5-gram packages, or an eighth of an ounce.<\/p>\n 2024 Market Report, NY Office of Cannabis Management<\/p>\n<\/div>\n About 23 percent of flower sales, meanwhile, were of brands owned by state-licensed medical marijuana operators, known in New York as registered organizations (ROs). Prices of flower products from ROs were typically more expensive than those from adult-use brands, especially for larger packages.<\/p>\n As for prerolled joints, most (80 percent) were one gram apiece, with half-gram prerolls (15 percent) making up most of the remainder. Packages with five or more prerolls were most common, making up 60 percent of sales. Single joints made up 33 percent of preroll sales, meanwhile.<\/p>\n 2024 Market Report, NY Office of Cannabis Management<\/p>\n<\/div>\n The most popular flavors for edibles, meanwhile, were raspberry (7 percent), watermelon lemonade (5 percent), blueberry (5 percent), peach (4 percent) and watermelon (4 percent). Beverages were most popular in cans (78 percent), followed by concentrated drops (9 percent), powder (6 percent), tea bags (5 percent) or shots (2 percent).<\/p>\n Among the recommendations in the new OCM report include continuing to educate consumers about the legal market.<\/p>\n \u201cMost of New York\u2019s legal cannabis demand will come from consumers transitioning from the illicit market to the regulated market, not from new consumers who began using cannabis after it was legalized,\u201d it says. \u201cThe legal market is still in its early stages of growth, having captured less than one-fifth of the estimated total addressable demand in the State.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cMany consumers are unfamiliar with the products and brands they are encountering in the regulated market and rely on their experiences in the illicit market to inform their product purchases,\u201d it continues. \u201cConsumer education can therefore play a critical role in informing customer purchase decisions and enabling consumers to better understand the effects and experiences associated with regulated products.\u201d<\/p>\n Ahead of the 4\/20 holiday earlier this month, regulators rolled out a \u201chigher education\u201d campaign meant to provide adults with information<\/a> about how to \u201cmake informed, responsible decisions about cannabis,\u201d including how to locate state-licensed retailers.<\/p>\n The office also advises that \u201cContinued enforcement against the illicit market is critical to building a health regulated market,\u201d pointing to what it describes as successful enforcement efforts in 2024. Last spring, for example, officials in New York City launched Operation Padlock, an enforcement initiative meant to shutter illegal storefronts<\/a>. Within months, licensed shops that were open before the operation began saw sales climb 105 percent, according to an OCM survey.<\/p>\n OCM also recommends in the new report that all adult-use cultivators\u2014not just ROs and certain others\u2014be permitted to grow marijuana in indoor facilities, though it acknowledged that allowance could increase the industry\u2019s energy footprint.<\/p>\n \u201cAuthorizing adult use cultivator licensees to transition to indoor cultivation facilities will address the limited availability of indoor grown flower and increase supply chain stability,\u201d the report says. \u201cThis will ensure that all cultivators can grow in the environments best suited for their business models and address the market 61 imbalance created by having only a limited number of growers authorized to grow indoors.\u201d<\/p>\n Big picture, federal policy changes \u201cwill shape the next chapter of legal market growth,\u201d officials wrote, though they noted those changes \u201ccould still be years away.\u201d<\/p>\n The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), for example, \u201chad indicated that it would consider rescheduling in 2025,\u201d the report says, \u201chowever the start of the hearings process has been delayed by procedural challenges.\u201d<\/p>\n Earlier this month, a group of doctors who support drug policy reform withdrew its lawsuit against DEA over the rescheduling process<\/a>, in part to avoid \u201cmore delay\u201d in the already-stalled proceedings, the organization said.<\/p>\n With DEA\u2019s rescheduling process stalled indefinitely<\/a>\u2014tied up in a separate administrative challenge from pro-reform witnesses\u2014plaintiffs said maintaining the lawsuit \u201ccould have resulted in more delay.\u201d<\/p>\n Even if rescheduling proceeds, the OCM report<\/a> says, the administrative process \u201cwill likely take years to finalize as the proposed rules navigate the federal review process and the likely legal challenges that will follow.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cOCM is working to better understand the full potential implications of federal reform, and to prepare the market for changes that may be necessary under a new federal regime,\u201d it adds. \u201cWhere appropriate, OCM will also continue to offer federal policymakers New York\u2019s assessment of how current and proposed federal rules impact the operations and outlook of New York\u2019s legal market.\u201d<\/p>\n Earlier this month in New York, meanwhile, state cannabis regulators and labor officials announced the launch of a workforce training program<\/a>\u00a0aimed at \u201cproviding comprehensive safety education to workers\u201d in the state\u2019s legal marijuana industry.<\/p>\n Separately, OCM\u2019s press secretary recently indicated the office is working on plans to expand permitting and licensing rules that\u00a0could allow adults to buy and consume marijuana at movie theaters<\/a>. Authorizing sales of cannabis products at theaters would set New York apart as it continues to build upon the state\u2019s legalization law.<\/p>\n Days before that, Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) signed a pair of companion bills into law that are meant to expand New York\u2019s marijuana farmers market program<\/a>, allowing for more partnerships between licensed cannabis businesses and standalone \u201cpop-up\u201d events.<\/p>\n New York initially\u00a0authorized cannabis farmers market events in 2023<\/a>, aiming to expedite consumers access as traditional retailers were being approved and help producers bring their products directly to market. Last December, Hochul separately\u00a0signed legislation to revive the program after it sunsetted<\/a>\u00a0in January 2024.<\/p>\n The farmers market events as originally authorized were largely responsive to the slow roll-out of New York\u2019s adult-use marijuana program, which\u00a0faced multiple delays in implementation amid litigation<\/a>. But the state\u2019s industry has gradually expanded, with officials in January\u00a0touting $1 billion in total sales since the market launched<\/a>.<\/p>\n State officials also recently launched a grant program that will award up to $30,000 apiece to retail marijuana businesses<\/a>\u00a0to help cover startup costs.<\/p>\n Also, earlier this year, a collective of\u00a0businesses licensed under the CAURD program called on Hochul to forgive tens of millions of dollars in high-cost loans<\/a>\u00a0issued under a governor-created social equity loan fund.<\/p>\n Assembly Majority Leader Crystal Peoples-Stokes (D)\u00a0said in December that there\u2019s a need to extend financial aid to CAURD license holders<\/a>, many of whom are struggling under the high-cost loans.<\/p>\n Critics\u2014including the NAACP New York State Conference, Black Cannabis Industry Association, Minority Cannabis Business Association, Service Disabled Veterans in Cannabis Association, Drug Policy Alliance, NYC NORML and VOCAL-NY\u2014wrote to the governor earlier that month\u00a0to express dismay at what they described as marijuana regulators\u2019 \u201cefforts in service of big corporations at the expense of small business and equity outcomes.\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n The advocates said at the time that since the\u00a0departure of the state\u2019s first chief cannabis regulator, Chris Alexander<\/a>, last may May, state officials had demonstrated a \u201cshift toward corporate interests at the expense of small business, justice-involved entrepreneurs, and Conditional Adult-Use Retail Dispensary (CAURD) licensees who are directly impacted by prior marijuana arrest.\u201d<\/p>\n Last month, regulators also\u00a0launched a new resource meant to connect licensed marijuana businesses with banks that are willing to work with the industry<\/a>, even as federal prohibition continues to pose barriers to financial services.<\/p>\n In 2023, the governor signed legislation that aims to make it slightly easier for financial institutions to work with state-licensed cannabis clients.<\/p>\n The law authorized OCM to\u00a0provide financial institutions with information about marijuana business licensees or applicants<\/a>, which is meant to ease compliance with reporting requirements. Licensees and applicants would first have to consent to information being shared.<\/p>\n A recent budget proposal from Hochul aims to empower\u00a0police who claim to smell marijuana to force a driver to take a drug test<\/a>\u2014a plan that\u2019s drawing pushback not just from reform advocates but also from the state\u2019s Assembly majority leader and the governor-appointed head of OCM.<\/p>\n Meanwhile in New York, the state Senate earlier this month\u00a0approved a bill to expand housing protections for registered medical marijuana patients<\/a>, aiming to prevent evictions based solely on their lawful use of cannabis.<\/p>\n Senators this session have also introduced\u00a0a bill for the 2025 session to broadly decriminalize drug possession<\/a>.<\/p>\n Several\u00a0psychedelics bills have also been filed in New York<\/a>\u2014including one calling for the legalization of certain entheogenic substances such as psilocybin and ibogaine for adults 21 and older.<\/p>\n The governor argued in June, meanwhile, that there\u2019s a\u00a0direct correlation between stepped-up enforcement and \u201cdramatically\u201d increased legal sales<\/a>. A report by state officials last year\u00a0found both \u201cgrowing pains\u201d and \u201csuccessful efforts\u201d in New York\u2019s marijuana market launch<\/a>.<\/p>\n White House Drug Czar Could Endorse Marijuana Legalization Under New Bill To Repeal \u2018Ludicrous\u2019 Restriction<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n The post New York Marijuana Sales Near $1.5 Billion Total As Number Of Stores Nearly Tripled Last Year, State Report Says<\/a> appeared first on Marijuana Moment<\/a>.<\/p>\n
After a slow initial launch to its adult-use marijuana market, New York in 2024 saw the number of legal stores nearly triple, according to a new Office of Cannabis Management (OCM) report, fueling total sales for the year of $869 million. By the end of the year, says OCM\u2019s 2024Continue Reading<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":24,"featured_media":81098,"comment_status":"false","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1335,18],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/81097"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/24"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=81097"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/81097\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":81099,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/81097\/revisions\/81099"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/81098"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=81097"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=81097"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=81097"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"New](\"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Screenshot-2025-04-29-at-09.45.00-1024x590-1.png\")
<\/p>\n![\"SEE](\"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Screenshot-2025-04-29-at-09.47.42-1024x640-1.png\")
<\/p>\n![\"Product](\"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Screenshot-2025-04-29-at-09.56.23-1024x409-1.png\")
<\/p>\n![\"Average](\"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Screenshot-2025-04-29-at-10.01.14-1024x291-1.png\")
<\/p>\n\n
\n
\nRead More: New York Marijuana Sales Near .5 Billion Total As Number Of Stores Nearly Tripled Last Year, State Report Says<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"