The Cannabis Market That Could Grow 700% By 2020
$LAGBF
Debra Borchardt , CONTRIBUTOR
I write about retail and cannabis.
Opinions expressed by Forbes Contributors are their own.
Cannabidiol vapor products are displayed during the Cannabis World Congress & Business Expo at the Jacob Javits Center on June 17, 2016 in New York City. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)
Cannabidiol (CBD) is the part of the cannabis plant that doesn't get you “high” like the THC side of the plant. It is typically used for health reasons instead of for recreational purposes. The CBD products are either derived from industrial hemp plants or marijuana plants.
The Hemp Business Journal estimated that the CBD market will grow to a $2.1 billion market in consumer sales by 2020 with $450 million of those sales coming from hemp-based sources. That's a 700% increase from 2016. In 2015, the market for consumer sales of hemp-derived CBD products was $90 million, plus another $112 million in marijuana-derived CBD products which were sold through dispensaries – bringing a total CBD market to $202 million last year.
Matt Karnes of Greenwave Advisors is even more optimistic about the growth of the CBD market saying, “In terms of the CBD market size, I estimate an almost $3 billion market by 2021. Right now there are 15 states that allow CBD only -- this is in addition to the 28 states plus DC that have legalized medical marijuana.”
There is also evidence that traditional marijuana users are willing to give CBD a try. Outco, the largest licensed cultivator in Southern California learned that 38% of users and non-users said they wanted to learn more about CBD oil. They too believe that the market is poised for growth.
