Licensed Marijuana Sales in 2021 Eclipsed Coffee Giant Starbucks

By Therin Miller | May 5, 2022

The running joke about Starbucks being on every corner could soon be coming to an end as regulated cannabis sales in the United States have outstripped its oddly competition by at least a third, according to the 2022 MJBiz FactBook.

With 39 states and the District of Columbia legalizing some form of marijuana, sales rose 30% last year as people turned to cannabis for a variety of uses from aiding sleep or just having fun; it likely received another boost when they were drawn by its many therapeutic benefits such as reducing pain caused by arthritis among other things - all without any significant side effects.

The Consumer Healthcare Products Association reports that sales of OTC sleep aids have remained virtually unchanged in the last year while pain relievers, another common use for cannabis products, grew by 5%. Cannabis popularity seems to be growing not just medically but also among adult consumers with 30% more people purchasing these items than before.

With the legalization of cannabis, there are more questions than ever on how it will affect our society. Some outlets have tracked sales numbers in comparison to opioids which can be found through legal channels--and they've noted slowing growth during COVID-19 pandemic years when hospitals were restricted by availability or reduced hours for treatment sessions for patients who required medical attention urgently but did not want them stored away until necessary because access was limited.

There's no way to determine the direct impact of cannabis legalization on opioid use, but current estimates place legal marijuana markets in America at slightly larger than global opioids. This is considered a good sign for those concerned about both issues as it may mean fewer people are turning towards hard drugs like heroin or prescription painkillers which have dangerous side effects when taken incorrectly (like death).