Recreational Marijuana is Also Big Business

Every year on April 20, or 4/20, large crowds gather around the world to smoke marijuana. Considered a high holiday (pun intended) by cannabis afficionados, legend has it that 4/20 originated from a group of high school students in Marin County, California, who, back in 1971, would meet at 4:20pm to smoke. They used "420" as a code for marijuana amongst themselves. Later, one of them went on to work with the Grateful Dead, who helped popularize the term. Then, in December 1990, a group of Grateful Dead fans in Oakland handed out flyers inviting people to smoke “420” on April 20 at 4:20p.m., marking the first iteration of the holiday.

Today, 4/20 is observed by many, and recreational marijuana consumption has been legalized or decriminalized in a large number of countries around the world. In the U.S., recreational marijuana is legal in 24 states and the District of Columbia, with commercialization starting in Colorado on January 1, 2014. Canada fully legalized marijuana in 2018. The two countries now have well-developed commercial retail systems, and as our infographic shows, Statista's Market Insights project that the legal recreational marijuana market should generate over $38 billion across North America this year, making it by far the region in which the sale of the plant is most profitable. This includes all cannabis-based products, such as CBD or hemp products.

In Europe, a handful of countries have legalized or decriminalized the use of recreational marijuana products. Malta was first to legalize in 2021, and adults can now possess up to 7 grams and grow up to four plants at home. Rules are similar in Germany, Luxembourg, and the Czech Republic, where possession for personal use and home cultivation are legal (up to a point), while personal use and possession is legal in Georgia. In Spain and the Netherlands, personal use is tolerated and sales can happen in licensed coffee shops and cannabis clubs. In Switzerland, registered participants can legally purchase recreational cannabis in selected cities.