Michigan's recreational cannabis sales were up 482% in 2020, because what else were we going to do?

Our plans weren't the only thing to go up in smoke last year. Michigan's recreational marijuana sales reached more than $500 million in 2020 — proving that we smoked and dosed ourselves silly because, honestly, what else were we to do?

New data from Headset, a company that analyzes cannabis consumer trends, revealed that recreational weed sales in Michigan rose by 482% between January and December of last year. In January, rec weed sales were somewhere around $9.8 million, and by December had reached $57.2 million.

Medical sales were up too, and were higher than rec sales during the first half of 2020. But by years end, the rec weed market surpassed medical sales by more than $32 million.

So, how were Michiganders getting their weed on? According to the data, good old fashioned flower accounted for 47.8% of recreational sales, with vape pens trailing behind at 20.6% and edible users making up 14.9% of last year's rec windfall.

Things really ramped up by the end of the year. Cannabis delivery service Lantern reported an 89% increase in orders three days before Christmas and a 55% increase three days before New Year's Day.

This aligns with a recent study published in the journal Drug and Alcohol Dependence, which found that marijuana use increases around 13% by the end of the year and is often down in January, likely due to post-holiday debts and the growing popularity of dry January, in which many folks abstain from using booze or weed — only to use it later in the year as shit gets worse. (OK, the study didn't say the last part, but we know how this goes.)

Of those products that Michigan weed users enjoyed the most in 2020, Lantern reports that Kushy Punch's indica gummies topped the list, along with Cloud Cover's White 99 flower, Fluresh Critical Hog flower, and pre-packaged flower from Fluresh Critical. As for strains, the top ten includes No. 1 favorite, Cloud Cover's White 99, as well as four entries from Pleasantrees, including Tiki Rain, Tiki Cookies, Triple Scoop, and Monkey Mints.

While it may be too early to make any predictions, we have a feeling that recreational weed sales might not dip because, as one Twitter user described it, “so far 2021 is just 2020 with bangs.”

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