Cannabis Weekly Round-Up: US Sales Reach Over US$17 Billion in 2020

American cannabis sales hit US$17.5 billion in 2020, a research group’s new study shows.

Meanwhile, a Canadian cannabis producer began offering CBD beverages in the US, another move that shows how interested Canadians are in the overall US cannabis market at the moment.

Keep reading to find out more cannabis highlights from the past five days.

New data projects US$55.9 billion in global cannabis sales by 2026

In a statement, BDSA CEO Micah Tapman said the cannabis industry was challenged by the effects of the COVID-19 global pandemic. But in his research group’s view, the sector “not only survived, it thrived and legal cannabis gained considerable ground, exceeding our expectations in several markets.”

According to the firm, there was precise accelerated growth coming from key US markets like Colorado and Oregon, which both expanded by double figures.

Canada also grew exponentially thanks in large part to the launch of Cannabis 2.0 products late in 2019.

On a global scale, BDSA states that sales of cannabis reached US$21.3 billion in 2020. Thanks to this result, the researchers are now expecting to see a compound annual growth rate of over 17 percent, with sales reaching US$55.9 billion in 2026.

Canopy sells sparkling CBD water in the US

This past week, Canopy Growth (NASDAQ:CGC,TSX:WEED) began selling CBD-infused sparkling water beverages under the Quatreau brand in the US market, another move aimed at setting up a presence in the critical market.

David Klein, CEO of the Canadian producer, told CNBC the company relied heavily on its business partnership with alcohol-maker Constellation Brands (NYSE:STZ) to succeed with its beverage endeavor.

At the end of the day, Constellation Brands will lend its hand to Canopy by way of managing distribution to retailers in the US marketplace.

“When we look at opportunities on a global basis, Canadians and Americans have a lot of the same consumer insights but there’s no doubt that the United States is a larger population, and therefore a larger business opportunity,” Rade Kovacevic, Canopy’s president and chief product officer, told the Canadian Press.

While these drink offerings are CBD based, Canopy did not tiptoe around its future intentions with cannabis products once policy permits it. “You’ll see us try to really tap into that more and more over time with our Quatreau CBD drinks, and ultimately our THC-branded drinks when we can get them into the US,” Klein said during an appearance on the popular Mad Money show.

Cannabis company news

• Charlotte’s Web Holdings (TSX:CWEB,OTCQX:CWBHF) confirmed it’s pursuing an option into the US wellness market by way of an agreement with Stanley Brothers USA Holdings, a cannabis wellness incubator company.

• Halo Collective (NEO:HALO,OTCQX:HCANF) completed the acquisition of the two operators connected to its recent dispensary asset purchase in California.

• The Valens Company (TSX:VLNS,OTCQX:VLNCF) signed onto a partnership deal with Rubicon Organics (TSXV:ROMJ,OTCQX:ROMJF) in which the firm will offer its proprietary extraction capabilities for the production of novel Cannabis 2.0 products to the producer.

• Cronos Group (NASDAQ:CRON,TSX:CRON) issued its financial statement for Q4 2020, along with its end-year results. The company reported US$17 million in revenue, but that figure didn’t stop the firm from posting a quarterly US$14.9 million loss.

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Securities Disclosure: I, Bryan Mc Govern, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.