Global legal cannabis market growth stable

The volume of the legal cannabis market is expected to soar nearly 14-fold within six years according to research by Euromonitor International. Legal cannabis sales reached US$12 billion globally last year with exponential growth ahead, will reach $166 billion by 2025, based on Euromonitor’s projections.

The global cannabis market, both legal and illicit, stands at $150 billion today, according to the firm’s new white paper. By 2025, legal cannabis will represent 77 per cent of the global market.

“Within 10 years, cannabis will be a regular part of daily routines,” said Zora Milenkovic, head of drinks and tobacco at Euromonitor International. “From a functional ingredient to an intoxicating buzz, cannabis will reshape fast-moving consumer goods, with food, beverages, beauty, health and tobacco having the most potential for disruption.”

The greatest potential for cannabis is to capitalise on health and wellness trends that are shifting consumption habits and consumer preferences across industries.

The growth of low- and non-alcoholic beverage consumption and the shift from cigarettes to vaping provide an opportunity for cannabis to replace alcohol and tobacco in social occasions.

From 2018 to 2025, legal cannabis is estimated to grow more than 2000 per cent globally, compared to alcoholic drinks at 1.4 per cent and tobacco at 1.2 per cent, according to the report.

In consumer health, Euromonitor expects vitamins and dietary supplements to be the largest cannabis-related category by 2025, with 2 per cent of sales to come from products containing THC or cannabidiol, better known as CBD. It projects global sales of packaged food with CBD to double over the next two years, further blurring the lines between consumer health and food.

Last week a US analyst singled out Starbucks as one of the first major companies globally to adopt CBD ingredients in consumer products, however the Seattle-based company denied it had any plans to develop such beverages at this time.