{"id":4722,"date":"2022-06-27T04:20:19","date_gmt":"2022-06-27T11:20:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.dispensaries.com\/blog\/?p=4722"},"modified":"2022-06-27T07:10:38","modified_gmt":"2022-06-27T14:10:38","slug":"black-market-weed","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.dispensaries.com\/blog\/black-market-weed\/","title":{"rendered":"Legal Marijuana in Maine Reducing Sales of Black Market Weed"},"content":{"rendered":"

The state of Maine is doing a better job than many of its peers in curbing the sale of black market weed, according to a new report. About 64 percent of all marijuana use in the state late in 2021 came from legal sources, higher than what officials expected.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s good news in a country where many states continue to struggle with black market weed sold through illegal means. The unregulated weed can prove dangerous to consumers, who may buy it because it\u2019s offered at a discounted price.<\/p>\n

Cannabis consumers can fight the illegal marijuana problem<\/a> by making their purchases from a legal cannabis dispensary. In Maine, which began adult-use cannabis sales in the fall of 2020<\/a>, that\u2019s apparently what is happening.<\/p>\n

Black Market Weed Sales Drop in Maine<\/strong><\/h2>\n

The report<\/a> on Maine cannabis sales came from the state\u2019s Office of Cannabis Policy (OCP). It estimated that 64 percent of cannabis used by people in Maine between November and December 2021\u00a0 came from a legal source. The remaining 36 percent came from illicit sources.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen accounting for the time since the first adult-use store was opened in Maine, the current in-state illicit market is likely smaller than in most other states with adult-use cannabis laws, suggesting Maine is likely effectively curbing the illicit market at a greater rate than most other states with adult-use laws when accounting for how long adult-use stores have been open,\u201d the report stated.<\/p>\n

The report also found that younger cannabis consumers who prioritize their source of cannabis are more likely to buy from a legal dispensary. Maine currently has 90 adult-use cannabis dispensaries.<\/p>\n

Sales Growing in Maine<\/strong><\/h3>\n

After a long delay in starting recreational marijuana sales – voters first approved the measure in 2016 – Maine sales have taken off quickly. Adult-use sales reached $82 million in 2021. Through May 2022,\u00a0 sales totaled $51.5 million and remained on pace to surpass the total from 2021.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are pleased to release this report that highlights the successful launch of Maine\u2019s adult use market,\u201d\u00a0 OCP Director Erik Gundersen told<\/a> MaineBiz. \u201cThe findings in this report point to policies and practices that promote and preserve public health and safety, while allowing legal businesses to compete.\u201d<\/p>\n

In searching for reasons why people choose legal over illegal cannabis, the report found that having a dispensary in their zip code seemed the No. 1 indicator. The report found that living in a zip code with at least one adult-use dispensary is associated with a significant increase in people buying legally, no matter their age, gender, or medical cannabis patient status.<\/p>\n

Also, the report found that those who used legal cannabis did not report the negative health behaviors often reported by those who use black market weed. Those behaviors include driving under the influence of cannabis.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A new report from the state shows that Maine is likely reducing the illegal cannabis market in the state at a faster rate than other legal cannabis states.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":4723,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[19],"tags":[1290,152,466],"yoast_head":"\nLegal Marijuana in Maine Reducing Sales of Black Market Weed<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"A new report shows that Maine is likely reducing the illegal cannabis market at a faster rate than other legal cannabis states.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dispensaries.com\/blog\/black-market-weed\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Legal Marijuana in Maine Reducing Sales of Black Market Weed\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"A new report shows that Maine is likely reducing the illegal cannabis market at a faster rate than other legal cannabis states.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.dispensaries.com\/blog\/black-market-weed\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Dispensaries\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:author\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/dispensariescom\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2022-06-27T11:20:19+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2022-06-27T14:10:38+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.dispensaries.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/06\/sales-of-black-market-weed.jpeg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1000\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"650\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Dispensaries Editor\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@dispensariescom\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Dispensaries Editor\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.dispensaries.com\/blog\/black-market-weed\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.dispensaries.com\/blog\/black-market-weed\/\",\"name\":\"Legal Marijuana in Maine Reducing Sales of Black Market Weed\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.dispensaries.com\/blog\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2022-06-27T11:20:19+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2022-06-27T14:10:38+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.dispensaries.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/b2935feeb3a368f3c87819d4c4d4cad0\"},\"description\":\"A new report shows that Maine is likely reducing the illegal cannabis market at a faster rate than other legal cannabis states.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.dispensaries.com\/blog\/black-market-weed\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.dispensaries.com\/blog\/black-market-weed\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.dispensaries.com\/blog\/black-market-weed\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.dispensaries.com\/blog\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Legal Marijuana in Maine Reducing Sales of Black Market Weed\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.dispensaries.com\/blog\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.dispensaries.com\/blog\/\",\"name\":\"Dispensaries\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.dispensaries.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.dispensaries.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/b2935feeb3a368f3c87819d4c4d4cad0\",\"name\":\"Dispensaries Editor\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.dispensaries.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9d30250f23451474024d7b90b1b0b748?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9d30250f23451474024d7b90b1b0b748?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Dispensaries Editor\"},\"description\":\"The editorial staff at Dispensaries.com are industry insiders, focused on bringing you authoritative and in depth coverage of the legal marijuana industry. 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