Combined cannabis sales in Missouri last week topped the $1 billion mark, according to state Division of Cannabis Regulations data outlined by KRCG. Medical cannabis sales in the state commenced in October 2020, while adult-use sales began last February.
Since the launch of adult-use sales on February 3 through the end of May, adult-use sales have totaled $256.2 million while medical cannabis sales have totaled another $94 million, the report says.
According to the Missouri Cannabis Trade Association (MoCannTrade), there are now more than 14,800 direct cannabis industry jobs in Missouri. The trade group also notes that more than 31,000 cannabis-related criminal records have also been automatically expunged. Missouri was the first state to include automatic expungement of non-violent cannabis crimes as part of its legalization initiative.
The state’s cannabis industry was rocked last month by the recall of nearly 63,000 cannabis products that regulators said were not tracked in the state’s seed-to-sale tracking system.
The state’s Auditor’s Office also announced last month that it planned to investigate the state’s adult-use and medical cannabis programs to make sure they are operating legally. That audit will review a five-year period from 2018 through June 30, 2023. Auditor Scott Fitzpatrick noted that the cannabis legalization amendments “represent some of the most substantial changes” to the state’s constitution “in recent memory” and “now make up more than one-fifth of the language” in the state constitution.
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