Adult-use marijuana impact on the Arizona economy five years later

It is the fifth anniversary of the legalization of adult-use marijuana in Arizona. Dispensaries have expanded, and hundreds of millions of dollars have been pumped into the economy.

Ann Torrez, Executive Director of the Arizona Dispensaries Association, joined “Arizona Horizon” to look at the numbers and the future of cannabis in Arizona.

As marijuana has become more readily available to adults in Arizona, more types of people are giving it a try and according to Torrez, there is a surprising influx of consumers over the age of 55 coming into dispensaries. “And what those consumers are looking for is very different that what somebody under the age of 30,” Torrez said.

Also with the influx of marijuana sales in the state, oversupply has become a challenge for dispensaries in Arizona but according to Torrez, this can be beneficial to the consumer as it drives prices down.”

As a consequence of the availability of recreational adult-use marijuana in Arizona, the medical industry has fallen. “Medical marijuana is still a strong program in Arizona… but we have a lot of patients who elect not to renew their medical cards for a variety of reasons but there is still a lot of medical use. Most people who come into use marijuana, even as an adult user are using it for a reason. They’re using it because they cant sleep or they have aches and pains and maybe it doesn’t qualify into the medical program so they use it as an adult-use purchase but that use is still there,” Torrez said.

According to Torrez though even though marijuana has been legal in the Grand Canyon State for 5 years the mainstream acceptance of marijuana is still not fully there. “There is still a lot of curiosity with the plant and what it can do,” Torrez.