Arkansas medical marijuana sales down 4% through June

by Michael Tilley (mtilley@talkbusiness.net)

Arkansas’ medical marijuana sales totaled $135.5 million in the first half of 2024, down from the $141 million in the same period of 2023, a year with record sales of $283 million, according to the state’s Department of Finance and Administration.

The Arkansas Department of Health reports 105,039 active patient cards as of July 23, up 7.9% compared with the 97,374 active patient cards as of Jan. 9. State tax revenue collection on medical marijuana during the second quarter was $7.9 million, bringing the total since the industry launched in 2019 to $136 million.

Taxes collected are 6.5% of regular state sales tax with each purchase by a patient and a 4% privilege tax on sales from cultivators to dispensaries. Most of the tax revenue is placed in the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences National Cancer Designation Trust Fund. The state also collects a cultivator privilege tax, which means tax revenue is not always tied to how much product is bought by consumers at dispensaries and the price for the product sold to dispensary customers.

Arkansas medical marijuana sales down 4% through June

Arkansas medical marijuana sales set record in 2023

by Talk Business & Politics staff (staff2@talkbusiness.net)

Arkansas medical marijuana sales set a new record in 2023 with a 2.53% increase over 2022, and the number of Arkansans with active marijuana patient cards rose 8.4% in 2023, according to the Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration (DFA).

The DFA report posted Tuesday (Jan. 9) shows that medical marijuana sales totaled $283 million for the year, up from the previous record of $276 million in 2022. The state’s 38 dispensaries sold 62,227 pounds of marijuana in 2023, well above the 50,547 pounds in 2022. The state has licensed eight cultivators to provide products to the dispensaries.

The Arkansas Department of Health reports 97,374 active patient cards as of Jan. 9, up 8.4% from 89,855 at the end of 2022.

Arkansas medical marijuana sales set record in 2023

Arkansas medical marijuana sales up 5.2% through June

by Talk Business & Politics staff (staff2@talkbusiness.net)

Arkansas medical marijuana patients have spent $141 million on purchases in the first half of 2023, up 5.2% compared with $134 million in the same period of 2022, according to figures from the Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration (DFA).

There were 29,057 pounds purchased in the first six months of 2023, up 26% compared with the same period in 2022. Medical marijuana purchases generated $16 million in tax revenue in the first six months of 2023. Since the first dispensary opened in mid-2019, $105 million in state tax revenue has been collected, according to DFA data.

“Since the first dispensary opened for business in 2019, approximately $900 million has been spent on medical marijuana purchases in Arkansas,” DFA Spokesperson Scott Hardin said in a statement. “With a sales average of $23.5 million monthly, we should surpass $1 billion in overall sales toward the end of this year. Patients are spending an average of $785,000 a day at the state’s 38 dispensaries.”

https://talkbusiness.net/2023/07/arkansas-medical-marijuana-sales-up-5-2-through-june/

Medical marijuana product sales up 1.1% in April

by Michael Tilley (mtilley@talkbusiness.net)

Medical marijuana patients spent $24 million in April at the state’s 38 dispensaries to obtain 4,213 pounds, up from the 4,166 pounds sold in March. Hot Springs is home to two of the top five dispensaries for the amount of product sold.

Sales for the first four months of 2022 total $89.8 million, and 15,678 pounds, according to the Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration (DFA).

Following are the top five dispensaries for product sold in April.
• Natural Relief Dispensary (Sherwood): 417.92 pounds
• The Releaf Center (Bentonville): 332.02 pounds
• Suite 443 (Hot Springs): 279.46 pounds
• CROP (Jonesboro): 274.44 pounds
• Green Springs Medical (Hot Springs): 222.84 pounds

https://talkbusiness.net/2022/05/medical-marijuana-product-sales-up-1-1-in-april/

Two groups gathering signatures for Arkansas recreational marijuana proposals

KUAR | By Laura Isensee

Two groups are hoping to place proposals on the November ballot in Arkansas that would legalize the recreational use of marijuana. This comes six years after voters approved the use of marijuana for people in the state with certain medical conditions.

Backers of the separate proposed state constitutional amendments are working to gather enough valid petition signatures before a July deadline.

The proposal by Responsible Growth Arkansas would expand the number of grower licenses in the state to 20 and dispensary licenses to 40. Campaign Chairman Eddie Armstrong says it would enable more craft products to be grown.

https://www.ualrpublicradio.org/local-regional-news/2022-05-10/two-groups-gathering-signatures-for-arkansas-recreational-marijuana-proposals

Npr.Org/NPR News

Signatures are being collected by two groups hoping to legalize recreational marijuana in Arkansas.

Arkansas marijuana sales top $21 million in February; tax revenue was $2.3 million

by Michael Tilley (mtilley@talkbusiness.net)

Medical marijuana sales in Arkansas totaled $21.1 million in February, with sales based on tax revenue topping February 2021. Sales for the first two months of 2022 total $41.69 million and 7,389 pounds, according to the Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration (DFA).

The DFA reported Tuesday (March 22) that tax revenue from the state’s 37 licensed marijuana dispensaries was $2.333 million in February, above the $2.309 million in February 2021. Taxes collected are 6.5% of regular state sales tax with each purchase by a patient, and a 4% privilege tax on sales from cultivators to dispensaries. Most of the tax revenue is placed in the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences National Cancer Designation Trust Fund.

https://talkbusiness.net/2022/03/arkansas-marijuana-sales-top-21-million-in-february-tax-revenue-was-2-3-million/

Medical marijuana sales in Arkansas near 67,000 pounds through October

KUAR | By Michael Tilley/ Talk Business & Politics

Almost 67,000 pounds – roughly the weight of two F-35 fighter jets – of medical marijuana have been sold in Arkansas since May 2019, with the state collecting just under $45 million in taxes on the sales.

Licensed dispensaries in the state have sold 66,994 pounds of medical marijuana since the first dispensary opened in May 2019, with the value of the sales at $447 million.

Medical marijuana patients purchased 3,527 pounds of medical marijuana from the state’s 37 dispensaries in October, according to the Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration, the parent agency of the Arkansas Medical Marijuana Commission. Most of the tax revenue is placed in the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences National Cancer Designation Trust Fund.

The Arkansas Department of Health reports 78,585 active patient cards.

https://www.ualrpublicradio.org/local-regional-news/2021-11-16/medical-marijuana-sales-in-arkansas-near-67-000-pounds-through-october

Almost 67,000 pounds of medical marijuana worth $447 million has been sold in Arkansas since the first dispensary opened in May 2019, according to the Department of Finance and Administration.

Arkansas Topping Out on Dispensaries, Active Cases Rise and Collecting Stories of Medicaid

By KYLE KELLAMS

KUAF includes an update on medical marijuana dispensaries in Arkansas, an uptick in active cases of COVID-19 in the states, and the stories and experiences of people with Medicaid in Arkansas.

https://www.kuaf.com/post/arkansas-topping-out-dispensaries-active-cases-rise-and-collecting-stories-medicaid

Arkansas Medical Marijuana Sales Top 50,000 pounds

by Talk Business & Politics staff (staff2@talkbusiness.net)

Roughly two years after the first medical marijuana dispensary opened in Arkansas, the market has seen the sale of more than 50,000 pounds valued at $338.5 million, according to the Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration, the parent agency of the Arkansas Medical Marijuana Commission.

State taxes on the dispensary sales since May 2019 total just under $34 million. Most of the tax revenue is placed in the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences National Cancer Designation Trust Fund.

Following are the top five of the state’s 33 dispensaries with the most medical marijuana sales.
• Releaf Center (Bentonville), first opened Aug. 7, 2019: 5,374.92 pounds
• Green Springs Medical (Hot Springs), first opened May 12, 2019: 4,238.69 pounds
• Natural Relief Dispensary (Sherwood), March 17, 2020: 3,475.65 pounds
• Suite 443 (Hot Springs), first opened May 10, 2019: 3,311.22 pounds
• Acanza (Fayetteville), first opened Sept. 14, 2019: 3,272.23 pounds

ADOBE STOCK

More than 40,000 Pounds of Medical Marijuana Sold in Arkansas with Value of $285 Million

by Talk Business & Politics staff (staff2@talkbusiness.net)

More than 40,000 pounds of medical marijuana have been sold in Arkansas since the first dispensary opened in May 2019, according to the Arkansas Medical Marijuana Commission (AMMC). A dispensary in Bentonville has sold the most medical marijuana.

The 42,769 pounds sold is valued at $285 million, according to a press release from Scott Hardin, a spokesman for the Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration, the parent agency of the Arkansas Medical Marijuana Commission. State taxes on the dispensary sales since May 2019 total just under $30 million. Most of the tax revenue is placed in the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences National Cancer Designation Trust Fund.

The AMMC has issued licenses for 38 dispensaries, with 32 dispensaries in operation and six working toward opening. There are 12 dispensaries that have reached at least 2,000 pounds in sales. The Arkansas Department of Health reports 74,779 active patient cards. Over the last 30 days, patients across the state spent an average of $880,000 each day on medical marijuana purchases, according to the AMMC.

https://talkbusiness.net/2021/04/more-than-40000-pounds-of-medical-marijuana-sold-in-arkansas-with-value-of-285-million/