Cannabis businesses in the U.S. continue to struggle to break even—let alone become profitable—and a new survey illustrates the situation in terms of robust, data-driven numbers.
On Wednesday, Whitney Economics, a cannabis and hemp business consulting, data, and economic research firm based in Portland, Oregon, announced preliminary findings from its 2024 Cannabis Industry Business Conditions and Sentiment Survey showing an alarming trend: Only around one in four American cannabis businesses are profitable, relatively consistent with similar findings over the past two years, with some slight improvements.
Businesses across the country were surveyed in June, and analysts compiled data on the potential impact that the plan to reschedule cannabis to a less restrictive classification—Schedule III—would have on small and minority-owned businesses.
An average of 27.27% of U.S. cannabis businesses polled by Whitney Economics said they were profitable in 2024. A remaining 40.56% said they broke even, while 32.17% said they were not profitable. The number of businesses that were profitable in 2024 fell from 42.40% in 2022 but it represented a slight improvement from 2023, when just 24.55% of businesses polled said they were profitable. Analysts received responses from 28 state markets, showing a good representation throughout the country.
H/T: www.forbes.com
