A SNAPSHOT OF DEMAND FOR

ADULT-USE CANNABIS IN ILLINOIS

A Snapshot of
Demand for
Adult-Use
Cannabis in
Illinois

A SNAPSHOT OF DEMAND FOR

ADULT-USE CANNABIS IN ILLINOIS

WRITTEN BY:

JOHN HUDAK, PH.D.

Senior Policy Advisor of Freedman & Koski, Inc.

ANDREW FREEDMAN
Senior Director and Co-Founder of Freedman & Koski, Inc. Former
Director of Marijuana Coordination for Governor Hickenlooper

LEWIS KOSKI, MBA

Senior Director and Co-Founder of Freedman & Koski, Inc. Former
Director of the Colorado Marijuana Enforcement Division.

This independent project was funded by Senator Heather Steans and Representative Kelly Cassidy

PREPARED FEBRUARY 2019

A Snapshot of
Demand for
Adult-Use
Cannabis in
Illinois

TABLE OF CONENTS

Executive Summary....................................................................................... 4

Estimating Demand and Tax Revenue for

Adult Use Cannabis in Illinois....................................................................6

Conclusion........................................................................................................25

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 A SNAPSHOT OF DEMAND FOR
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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

This study offers insight into what a legal, adult-use cannabis system
may look like in the state of Illinois. The goal in any legal system should
be to provide safe, regulated, consistent cannabis to consumers, while
effecting greater social justice, displacing illegal markets, decreasing
problems related to substance abuse, and maintaining public safety.

This analysis makes specific recommendations about a prospective

legal cannabis system in Illinois, suggests policy alternatives, advises
on practices to be avoided, and highlights regulatory goals that must
be achieved in order to meet public expectations. The highlights of this
report include several top-line takeaways:

kkDemand is likely to be between approximately 350,000 lbs-

550,000 lbs. of dried cannabis per year for a fully mature market
in which consumers are broadly aware of the program and the
manner in which legal cannabis can be purchased and suppliers
are sufficiently able to meet that demand. The range accounts for
varying assumptions for consumption rates for residents and out-
of-state visitors as well as other caveats.

kkIllinois can expect the existing medical cannabis market to have

the capacity to supply between 35 percent and 54 percent of the
mature, adult-use market, subject to the caveats and assumptions
listed in this report.

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kkThe state should expect initial demand in the adult-use cannabis

market to be significantly lower than the demand of a fully mature
market, as consumers, businesses, communities, employers, and
others adjust to a new policy reality. Such ramp up of demand has
been seen in previously legalizing states.

kkThe state should expect initial market dynamics to keep prices

above criminal market pricing, and subsequently some consumers
will prefer the criminal market. In the longer term, but still within
the first few years, initial regulatory costs will decrease; economies
of scale will push prices down; and the regulated market will
capture or displace the criminal market. These market dynamics
should be taken into account when considering tax rates and
limitations on product variety.

kkIf existing medical cannabis companies are used as the first

entrants into the adult-use cannabis industry, the state must be
sensitive to those companies’ continued role as meeting the needs
of medical cannabis patients and the expected growth in the
medical program.

kkAll states that have legalized adult-use cannabis have also had
legacy systems for medical cannabis in place. Successful programs
have been opened by incorporating as many of the stakeholders
from the legacy programs as possible, while not sacrificing the
broader goals of legalization.

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 ESTIMATING DEMAND AND TAX REVENUE FOR ADULT
USE CANNABIS IN ILLINOIS

Approximating demand for cannabis is a complex and challenging

process. The current market for recreational cannabis in Illinois is illicit,
and individuals are less than willing to be forthcoming about their use
of an illicit substance. As such, it is difficult to assess how many Illinois
residents will seek out the substance. This section will break down and
detail some of the major hurdles in offering a cannabis market snapshot
for post-legalization Illinois.

CHALLENGES TO A MARKET SNAPSHOT FOR CANNABIS

Because adult-use cannabis is currently illegal in Illinois, understanding

the size of the prospective market is challenging. Changes in markets
(prices, supply, quality, accessibility, etc.) can have dramatic effects on
consumer behavior. Under the current proposal in Illinois, not only would
consumers have the choice between using or not using cannabis, but
cannabis users have alternatives: purchasing from a legal, commercial
market; homegrowing cannabis; or continuing to buy from the criminal
market. Those choices are influenced by consumer preference ex ante as
well as the dynamics of the market as it matures.

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Illinois

One way to understand consumer taste for cannabis involves

surveys. One of the most relied upon surveys of drug use in
the United States is the National Survey on Drug Use and
Health (NSDUH). NSDUH is produced by the US government’s
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration and
surveys thousands of Americans about their use of a variety
of legal and illegal substances. While the survey results are
useful, it is not surprising that challenges exist with regard to
respondents’ honesty, especially regarding the use of illegal
drugs.

Another way to understand Illinois’ demand for cannabis could

be to look at the existing medical cannabis market that has
been functional for a few years. The medical cannabis system
in Illinois has been operational for several years, is subject
to significant regulations, and operates via cultivations and
dispensaries that serve qualifying patients. The challenge here,
however, is that cannabis consumers in an adult-use market
can differ dramatically from medical cannabis patients—both
in terms of purpose and quantity consumed. At the same
time, the medical cannabis market is relatively small (just over
50,000 registered patients) and nowhere near approximates
the broader demand for cannabis in the state.

In addition, under a legal cannabis regime, visitors are able

to purchase cannabis, as well. Some of those visitors will
consume the product while in Illinois; others will remove
that product from the state (in violation of laws in multiple
jurisdictions). Estimating how many visitors will purchase
cannabis, how much they will purchase, and how often they
purchase depends heavily on who visits the state. In addition,
the opening of a new cannabis market can induce cannabis-
specific tourism—that is, individuals visiting the state for the
primary purpose of purchasing cannabis.

Demand from the legal, regulated, commercial market will

also depend on individuals’ proximity to and the accessibility
of dispensaries. Illinois is a large state with significant swaths
of rural, conservative counties. Historically in other legal
states, those counties are most likely to opt out of cannabis
legalization—choose to prohibit cannabis cultivation facilities
and/or dispensaries. In that context, consumers have the

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A Snapshot of
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Cannabis in
Illinois

choice among traveling to a dispensary, homegrowing

cannabis, or purchasing from the criminal market. The same
is true for visitors to Illinois. Although approximately half of all
Illinois tourists visit Chicago—a city that will have a significant
number of dispensaries, the remaining half of the 114 million
people who visit the state annually will visit other areas that
may or may not have access to the legal market.1

In other states where researchers have estimated demand,

prices, economic activity, and tax revenue, those researchers
have relied on original survey data in an effort to understand
more clearly consumer demand, taste, and behavior. Such
data are not available in a significant way for Illinois, further
hindering an accurate assessment. In addition, the legalization
of cannabis will encourage some people who may not
otherwise have consumed to begin doing so. For other casual
users, they may increase their use under a legal regime for a
variety of reasons.

Beyond consumer access to cannabis, the types of products

they seek to consume can have significant market effects.
As legal cannabis markets mature, consumers are exposed
to a variety of different products including edibles, vapes,
concentrates, tinctures, and other products. In legal states,
there has been a steady shift away from the traditional
(flower) and toward newer products. Because of price
differences and the differences in inputs (flower and trim)
required to produce the ultimate consumer good, such
behaviors can affect wholesale product sold, revenue
generated, and tax revenue collected.

Finally, price will be largely dependent on both supply and

demand. States that have already legalized have had varying
experiences with supply. States like Oregon have faced the
challenges of dramatic oversupply, encouraged by too many
licensees producing far too much product for the market.
This has led to significant drops in prices that have caused
challenges for businesses’ ability to operate and incentivized
out-of-state diversion that has been documented as far away
as the East Coast. Other states like Colorado and Nevada,
after overcoming the expected, initial supply shortages

1 See https://media.enjoyillinois.com/press-releases/illinois-tourism-announces-
record-growth/ and https://www.choosechicago.com/media/news/post/mayor-
emanuel-announces-a-record-57-6-million-visitors-to-chicago-in-2018/

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A Snapshot of
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Cannabis in
Illinois

have stabilized, as licensees are opting not to maximize their

approved canopy space (size of cultivation space/number of
plants allowed) to produce close to what the market demands.
Choices made by Illinois regulators will have significant effects
on price and revenue, and until such choices are made,
revenue estimates will be challenging to estimate.

Despite, these many challenges, it is possible to identify some

of the contours of a legal cannabis market in Illinois based on
state demographics, what we know about cannabis use in the
state, and the experience of legalization in other states.

A BRIEF NOTE ON A CHANGING MEDICAL CANNABIS

MARKET

This analysis focuses largely on a snapshot of the prospective

adult-use market in Illinois. However, as a state with a
relatively new medical cannabis market, it should also
experience medical market growth over the coming years
for a variety of reasons. First, like any system, the early years
of a medical cannabis system encounters a lack of public
knowledge and understanding of the system. There is a limited
understanding a) that medical cannabis is even legal, b)
about which conditions qualify for medical cannabis, c) about
the processes by which a patient can register, d) regarding
the efficacy of medical cannabis for one’s condition, and
e) as to how to find a doctor who will recommend medical
cannabis. Each of these limits the size of the system. As public
information increases, more people will access it. Such growth
has been apparent already in Illinois’ system. Between January
2017 and December 2018, the number of registered, qualified
patients rose from 15,900 to 52,365, and the number of
unique patients served rose from 10,175 to 29,954. 2

Second, when a state approves adult-use cannabis, it can

reduce taboos about the product and help legitimize cannabis
more generally in the population. This legitimization can
motivate prospective medical cannabis patients (people
with qualifying conditions who have not sought to access
the program) to begin the process of becoming a qualified
patient. Such increases were seen in Colorado in the early days
of adult-use legalization.

2 https://www2.illinois.gov/sites/mcpp/Pages/Updates.aspx
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Third, the state’s passage of the Alternatives to Opioids

Act of 2018 and the 2017 approval of PTSD as a qualifying
condition (a condition affecting approximately eight percent
of the population) can expand eligibility and access to the
medical cannabis market. The Alternatives to Opioids Act
offers medical cannabis as an alternative for those individuals
who are not registered medical cannabis patients to have
temporary access to medical cannabis as an alternative to
opioid use. This could have a meaningful effect in a state that
does not have chronic/intractable pain as an explicit qualifying
condition.3

Approximately 10-20 percent of the U.S. population

experiences chronic pain,4 and in 2015, about 1 in 3 Americans
were prescribed opioids for an acute or chronic condition.5 A
non-trivial number of chronic pain patients are already able
to access the Illinois medical cannabis program because their
conditions already qualify and are among the most common
for which opioids are prescribed, including HIV/AIDS, cancer,
spinal cord injuries, rheumatoid arthritis, severe fibromyalgia,
CRPS, and others. However, there are many conditions not
listed that involve chronic pain and for which opioids are
often part of treatment. What’s more, the Illinois system—like
many medical cannabis systems in the U.S. focus on chronic
conditions when determining eligibility for medical cannabis.

However, opioids are frequently prescribed for acute or

temporary illness or injury—recovery from surgery, a broken
bone, a joint injury, etc. In those cases, individuals would have
a type of pain for which opioids can be used effectively; yet,
they would be ineligible to access the traditional medical
cannabis program. Sadly, individuals using opioids for short
periods of time can develop dependence and the Alternatives
to Opioids Act seeks to provide a different option. Those
individuals could access medical cannabis as an alternative
to using opioids during their recovery. Challenges would exist
for temporary patients to find a doctor willing to recommend
them to the program, particularly if a surgeon or emergency
department doctor is the prescribing physician for opioids.

3 A case is currently percolating through the Illinois courts that seeks to force the
Department of Health to list “intractable pain” as a qualifying condition. The
patient bringing the case won an initial judgment in Cook County court, but the
case has since been appealed by the state and awaits future adjudication. The
case is titled, Mednick v. Illinois Department of Health.
4 https://nccih.nih.gov/news/press/08112015
5 https://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/americas-heroin-epidemic/one-three-
10 americans-took-prescription-opioid-painkillers-2015-survey-says-n788246
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One’s recovery from surgery or an acute injury could also

limit one’s ambulatory ability to seek out another doctor
willing to recommend entry into the Opioid Alternative Pilot
Program. However, the program dramatically increases the
number of potential patients who could be eligible—even in
the short term—for medical cannabis and has the potential to
impact the demand for medical cannabis in time. Currently,
no state has implemented a program similar to the Illinois
Opioids Alternative Pilot Program and understanding the
types of patients willing to access it, the duration for which
they will access it, the quantity they will consume, and the
willingness of physicians to participate in the program, is quite
challenging. As the program is implemented and expands,
data will help inform those critical details.

A CANNABIS MARKET SNAPSHOT

One approach to estimating how much cannabis might be

sold in Illinois once the market has stabilized involves looking
at the amount of cannabis sold in other states and adjusting
for population differences and usage rates. Take Colorado,
for example. Colorado legalized cannabis for adult use in 2012
and began commercial sales in January 2014. The market has
largely stabilized in terms of prices and production, though
growth remains fairly solid. According to the state’s Marijuana
Enforcement Division’s 2017 annual report, Colorado, in 2017,
produced 612,333 lbs. of cannabis for the adult-use market
(and another 386,689 lbs. for the medical market).6 That figure
for adult use does not well reflect what should be expected in
Illinois for multiple reasons.

First, Colorado is a much smaller state—with only 43.3 percent

of the population of Illinois. Adjusting for population alone,
would bring Illinois’ production level to 1,414,163 lbs. However,
Colorado and Illinois have dramatically different usage rates.
Second, according to the NSDUH, 17.12 percent of Colorado
residents reported using in the last month (a rate that has
been above the national average since before legalization was
approved). Meanwhile, only 8.06 percent of Illinois residents
reported using cannabis in the last month.7 Adjusting for
those differential usage rates, Illinois’ production level would

6 This is marijuana product of which a large portion was sold as whole flower
cannabis and the remainder was processed into other products (i.e., concentrates,
edibles, tinctures, etc.)
7 Data for both Colorado and Illinois is based on the 2015 National Survey on Drug
11
Use and Health, available here: https://www.samhsa.gov/data/sites/default/files/
NSDUHsaeShortTermCHG2015/NSDUHsaeShortTermCHG2015.htm
A Snapshot of
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Illinois

be 666,071 lbs. Third, Illinois has dramatically higher levels

of tourism than does Colorado—38 percent more. Given the
estimates from the Colorado Department of Revenue suggest
that visitors to the state account for 19 percent (116,343
lbs) of the cannabis supplied to the market and assuming
that visitors’ usage rates approximate the national average
(7.6 percent) rather than the Colorado average, additional
adjustments can be made to account for Illinois’ expanded
tourism, by increasing the amount produced for tourists by
38 percent. That would place Illinois’ pre-population- and
use-adjusted production at 656,543 lbs. When that figure is
adjusted for population and use differentials, the expected
production would be 714,161 lbs.

This figure represents a snapshot of what Illinois consumers

might need grown, based on the supply of cannabis. However,
that assumes that underlying factors affecting the Colorado
market would also similarly affect the Illinois market. What’s
more, Colorado has seen growth in the market year-over-year,
and while such a figure may look more like Illinois a few years
after commercial sales begin, the early years of legalization are
difficult to estimate based on the possibly wild fluctuations in
supply, prices, costs, and regulatory uncertainty.

Estimating price from a supply-side estimation is also difficult

because that raw product can be sold as flower or it can be
used to produce concentrates, edibles, tinctures or other
products. Each of those products and even products within
the same category require varying levels of raw material,
making it impossible to have a clean equation to translate raw
material into dollars.

One insight into understanding revenue would come from

building an understanding of the base of users, the expected
amount they would use on average, and the base price of
product. From there, you can begin to estimate possible
revenue. This functions as a demand-side approach to
evaluating the market. Let’s look at some basic data that we
know about Illinois:

The Census Bureau estimates that in 2016, there were

12,802,000 residents in Illinois, of who 9,386,000 were over
the age of 21. Per the NSDUH, 8.06 percent of Illinois residents
reported using cannabis in the last month. In 2017, the Illinois
Office of Tourism reported 114 million visitors to Illinois,8 and
12

8 https://media.enjoyillinois.com/press-releases/illinois-tourism-announces-record-
growth/
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Illinois

a 2016 report shows that Illinois visitors stay for an average

of 2.55 days.9 In 2013 (the most recently available data),
the Department of Commerce reported that approximately
195,000 individuals worked in Illinois and commuted from
another state10. From this, we can also add a few assumptions.
First, we assume that there is an underreporting in cannabis
use. To overcome this, scholars often use a correction of 1.25
percent), suggesting that 25 percent of cannabis users do
not report use in a survey.11 Next, research from Colorado and
Washington suggest the average cannabis user consumer
5 ounces of cannabis per year, while NSDUH suggests the
number is 7.9 ounces per year, offering a range of possible
usage (see the NY State Demand study, 2018).12 Finally, other
research in this area has assumed that visitors to a state use at
the national average and that cannabis-using visitors consume
the equivalent of 1 gram of cannabis per stay-day13.

This gives us the skeleton to produce a market snapshot for

Illinois.

kk9,386,000 Illinois residents aged 21 and up who use

at a rate of 8.06 percent would mean a resident base
of consumers of 756,512. Adjusting for underreporting
(1.25) gives us 945,640 consumers.

kk114 million visitors, using at the national average rate

of 7.6 percent would mean a visitor user base of
8,664,000, when adjusted for underreporting is
10,830,000.

kk10,830,000 visitor users who stay an average of 2.55

days means there are 27,616,500 visitor user-days.

kk195,000 out of state individuals employed in Illinois,

using at the national average rate of 7.6 percent would
mean employee visitors who use equals approximately
14,820, when adjusted for underreporting is 18,525.

9 https://www.enjoyillinois.com/assets/Illinois-and-Chicago-2016-Leisure-Visitor-
Profile.pdf
10 http://www.ides.illinois.gov/LMI/Pages/Commuting_Patterns.aspx
11 https://www.rand.org/pubs/research_reports/RR466.html
12 See the New York State Demand Study, available here: https://www.health.ny.gov/
regulations/regulated_marijuana/docs/marijuana_legalization_impact_assessment.
pdf
13 See “Market Size and Demand for Marijuana in Colorado: A 2017 Update” by the
13 Marijuana Policy Group, page 13. Available here: https://www.colorado.gov/pacific/
sites/default/files/MED%20Demand%20and%20Market%20%20Study%20%20
082018.pdf
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kkUsing the assumption that 1 gram of cannabis is used per

visitor user day would mean 27,616,500 grams—974143
ounces or 60,833 lbs.

The 5-ounce and 7.9-ounce per year estimates provide a

range for the rest of the user base. Relying on the 5-ounce
estimate, 945,640 in-state residents would use a total of
4,728,200 ounces. While 18,525 employee visitors would use
a total of 92,625 ounces. Combining the two figures produces
a subtotal of 4,820,825 ounces or 301,302 lbs. Adding that
to the visitor consumption (60,833 lbs.) produces a total of
352,135 lbs.

Relying on the 7.9-ounce estimate, 945,640 in-state residents

would use a total of 7,470,556 ounces. While 18,525 employee
visitors would use a total of 146,348 ounces. Combining
the two figures produces a subtotal of 7,616,904 ounces or
476,057 lbs. Adding that to the visitor consumption (60,833
lbs.) produces a total of 536,890 lbs.

This creates a significant range of 352,135-536,890 lbs. Once

again, applying prices to these numbers are difficult because
pounds or equivalent can group flower with other products,
and those products vary in price.

DEMAND FOR CANNABIS IN

COLORADO AND ILLINOIS

Colorado
Illinois
(2017)

Population (2016) 5,540,545 12,801,539

Past Month Use (2014-15) 17.12% 8.06%

Tourists (2017) 82.4 Million 114 Million

Adult-Use Cannabis Consumed 612,333 Lbs. 714,161 Lbs.*

* Adjusted for differences in population, usage rates, and tourism.

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Illinois

However, if one applies the market rates for cannabis to this,

we can get a snapshot of the possible revenue that could be
produced from sales in the recreational cannabis market. In
the medical cannabis market, price approximates about $300
per ounce sold. This would produce a revenue range—based
on the above figures of $1,690,248,000-$2,577,072,000,
if all cannabis consumers chose to procure cannabis from
the commercial market and the price remained steady. As
discussed further below, these two assumptions are not a
given.

If those figures are accurate, it could mean significant tax

revenue for the state. Given that recreational cannabis is taxed
at 26.25 percent, the tax revenue range annually from the
excise and sales taxes would be $443,690,100-$676,481,400
annually, again, if all cannabis consumers purchased from the
legal market.

There are a few important caveats to these estimates,

however. The figures assume that the market is fully mature,
and that people are using it in stable numbers. In every market
that has come online, there has been a steady windup before
supply met demand and consumers made the full transition
from the illicit market to the legal market. In addition, those
figures include the demand for cannabis by individuals who
will ultimately grow at home and consume their own cannabis.
In some states, this is a non-trivial part of the cannabis
economy. This figure also excludes the individuals who will not
make the transition from the illicit market to the legal market.
No legal system will fully displace the criminal market, and for
a variety of reasons (familiarity, lack of access, lack of trust in
government, price, etc.) individuals may opt to stay in the illicit
market.

While the above figures with regard of economic revenue

generated may be conservative if ounce equivalents retail
for higher prices than ounces of whole flower and because
those figures exclude the 7 percent Cannabis Cultivation
Privilege Tax on wholesale cannabis, there are also many
forces that would put downward pressure on those revenue—
and ultimately tax—figures. In addition to homegrowers
and individuals opting to remain in the illegal market, as the
industry matures and new cultivators and dispensaries are

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Cannabis in
Illinois

up and running, it will put natural downward pressure on the

price of cannabis. For example, in Colorado, most cannabis
does not retail near the $300/ounce that cannabis retails for
in Illinois. However, in the earlier days of the Colorado system,
prices were that high (or higher).

Another pressure that could affect the revenue generated

from the Illinois adult-use cannabis market involves the impact
from cannabis legalization in Michigan. Michigan legalized
recreational cannabis in Nov. 2018, and if Illinois legalizes, the
two systems will be functioning simultaneously. Michigan has
opted to have some of the lowest recreational cannabis taxes
in the United States. Michigan has a lower sales tax compared
to Illinois (6 percent) and has opted to employ a lower
cannabis excise tax (10 percent). This will mean that cannabis
prices in Michigan will be significantly lower than they will be
in Illinois. While traveling to Michigan for cannabis will not be
convenient or even preferable for residents of Illinois, some
will still use Michigan as a substitute, given its proximity to the
state’s major population center, the number of Illinois residents
with family or friends in Michigan, and the competition that
would be created in neighboring states like Indiana.

Given the lack of a physical border and the sheer size of the
state of Illinois, extending away from Michigan, it will serve as
a limited competitor—nothing like competition that can occur
between Washington and Oregon. However, the taxation
levels in Illinois and the future base prices of cannabis are an
important consideration for state policy makers. Because the
displacement of the criminal market is a goal of this legislative
proposal, the system in Illinois must be responsive not only
to the market forces in nearby states, but also by the criminal
market forces within the state. Taxation, fees, the number of
licensees, and canopy space cannot be so restrictive so as to
drive prices up in ways that dis-incentivize individuals from
transitioning to the legal market. Nor should those policy
choices be so permissive that they drive prices down so low
that it makes it difficult for businesses to remain solvent.

When looking to predict how much tax revenue might be

generate in the early years of legalization in Illinois, Colorado
may be a good guide stick. Like Illinois, Colorado had an
existing medical cannabis market that had privilege in
producing adult-use cannabis in the early months of the
program. Colorado averages slightly more the double the
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Cannabis in
Illinois

usage rates, but has slightly less than half the population,
offsetting those differences fairly effectively. (In fact, Illinois’
usage rates are about 47 percent that of Colorado’s, while
Colorado’s population is more than 43 percent that of Illinois’.)
While Colorado’s initial tax rates were slightly higher than
those in Illinois and the tourist population in Illinois is higher
than that of Colorado’s one can assume that economic activity
around cannabis will be similar in the early days of legalization,
if slightly higher in Illinois. Perhaps offering a 10-15 percent
bump in revenue over Colorado in each year post-legalization
would be an effective guide on which to base tax revenue
projections. Other states, such as Washington, do not compare
as meaningfully in terms of offsetting differences between use
and population size, taxation rates, and homegrows (they are
illegal for recreational purposes in Washington).

Ultimately, recreational cannabis can be a meaningful source

of tax revenue for the state of Illinois. However, the system
should not be viewed as a means of solving the state’s
serious budget woes. Even if the above estimate of $440
million dollars in tax revenue were accurate, it would be the
equivalent of less one percent of the state’s budget.

THE CAPACITY OF THE EXISTING MEDICAL MARKET TO

SERVE AN ADULT-USE MARKET

In an adult-use system, one common way to allow the market

to be operational early on is to allow the existing medical
cannabis system to serve the market initially. The capacity of
the medical system to serve the adult-use market depends
on a variety of public and private choices as well as levels of
demand. This section examines how much of the adult-use
market could be served by the existing medical cannabis
system.

Before jumping into the figures, it is important to begin with

a few critical caveats. First, we will engage with the second
set of demand figures used in the snapshot above to assess
the size of the adult use market. All of the existing caveats
applicable to those figures carry over into this analysis, as well.
Second, those figures are an assessment of mature, adult-use
demand. In the earliest days of the adult-use market, some
portion of Illinois residents, tourists, and visitors to the state
will likely be unaware, unfamiliar with, and/or lack trust in
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Illinois

the system. Prices, which are determined largely by market

forces and regulatory decisions, will influence demand at
all times—and have significant effects in the earliest days
of legalization. And without original survey research on
consumer preferences, it is hard to know what portion of
the market would serve itself via homegrows. Third, some
medical cannabis companies may opt not to enter the adult-
use market or struggle to begin operations at the beginning
of legalization because they will face challenges getting all of
the required approvals like local licensing or environmental
reviews. Throughout this analysis of available cultivation space,
we assume that all medical companies will also produce
for adult-use. Every company that chooses not to enter the
market will influence these estimates. Fourth, choices over
how much of the adult-use market will be served by the
medical market is, in large part, a policy choice that must
be weighed carefully. Balancing between having sufficient
product in the early days of legalization with the ability of
future, non-pre-existing medical cannabis companies to enter
the market will be important, and that decision will come
with significant political implications. Fifth, it is important to
recognize that the medical cannabis market in Illinois is still
growing at a significant pace, year-over-year, and it should
be expected to do so for several years to come. The use of
cultivation space to serve the adult-use market at scale could
come at a cost to companies’ ability to serve the medical
market, if such considerations are not taken into account.
The medical cannabis community is vocal, and in other states
where that lobby believed the adult-use system was negatively
affecting the medical system, political controversies have
developed.

To understand the capacity of the existing medical market to

serve the adult-use market, we begin by examining a mature
cannabis market: Colorado. In 2017, according to the state’s
latest market demand report,14 Colorado produced 751,244
pound-equivalent of cannabis.15 That product was harvested
from a system that averaged 997,805 plants being cultivated
at a given time. Those figures offer us an average plants-
per-pound equivalent figure of 1.33—that is, you need 1.33
approved plants to produce a pound equivalent.

14 Orens, Adam, et al. 2018. “Market Size and Demand for Marijuana in Colorado 2017
Market Update.”Available here: https://www.colorado.gov/pacific/sites/default/
files/MED%20Demand%20and%20Market%20%20Study%20%20082018.pdf
15 Orens et al defines a flower equivalent as “a measure…that concerts non-
18 flower consumprtion or production into weight-based units of flower.” A pound
equivalent would be a one pound unit of that measure.
A Snapshot of
Demand for
Adult-Use
Cannabis in
Illinois

Above, we noted that a fully mature market in Illinois could

be expected to demand between 352,135 and 536,890 lbs.
of cannabis. If we assume those numbers reflect the pound
equivalents that people will consume in the market, we
can continue the analysis as such.16 Using the plants-per-
pound equivalent figure (1.33) we can convert this product
demanded range into a range of plants needed to meet such
demand. Given those figures, the adult-use market would need
cultivators to be approved to have between 468,340 and
714,063 plants at a given time to serve that demand.

The next step in the analysis is to understand the space

needed to grow that many plants. Cultivation operations can
vary from place to place and company to company, but we
have existing data from the Illinois Department of Agriculture
on both the number of plants being grown at a given point
(In December 2018 it was 106,407) and the square feet of
cultivation space being used (259,762 square feet). These
figures offer us the average cultivation space needed per
plant: 2.44 square feet per plant.17

THE SPACE TO SERVE THE

ILLINOIS CANNABIS MARKET

Lower Estimate Upper Estimate

Pounds of Cannabis 352,135 536,890

Plants Per Pound 1.33

Plants Needed 468,340 714,063

Square Feet Per Plant 2.44

Square Feed Needed 1,142,750 1,742,314

16 It is important to note that the actual pound equivalents individuals will consume
will depend significantly on consumer tastes, the types of products available,
and changes in consumer preferences. Without original data on Illinois consumer
preferences, it is impossible to understand those preferences. The figures we use
assume average use in ounces, typically drawn from whole flower cannabis, as we
do not have good estimates of non-flower consumption from consumers in non-
legal states like Illinois.
17 This figure could change as different companies enter the space, the purpose of
this specific analysis is to evaluate the capacity of the existing medical market to
serve the adult-use market, so using the data from existing medical producers to
estimate necessary cultivation space is appropriate.
19
A Snapshot of
Demand for
Adult-Use
Cannabis in
Illinois

Next, we can use the per-plant cultivation space to assess

how much space, across facilities, would be necessary to
accommodate that number of plants. In order to grow
between 468,340 and 714,063 plants, Illinois cultivators would
need between 1,142,750 and 1,742,314 square feet of cultivation
space. Based on data from the Department of Agriculture,
we know there are three types of cultivation space: space
currently used, space currently unused, and additional space
that has been approved or is under construction (heretofore
called “space approved”). Illinois’ medical cannabis cultivators
currently use 259,762 square feet of space—space that cannot
be diverted to use for adult-use cannabis without negatively
impacting the ability of the state to meet medical patients’
needs. 166,632 square feet of space is currently unused. And
the state has 447,295 square feet of space approved that is
still under development.

ILLINOIS MEDICAL CANNABIS

CULTIVATION SPACE*

Type Of Space Area (Sq. ft.)

Currently in Use 259,762

Currently Unused 166.632

Approved / Under Construction 447,295

* As of December 2018.

Based on the range of space needed to serve the medical

market, the unused space could serve 9.6-14.6 percent of the
adult-use market. If medical cannabis firms were able to build
out half of the approved space by Day 1, that space and the
unused space would supply 22.4 to 34.2 percent of the mature
adult-use market. The unused and approved space (once fully
built out an operational) could serve 35.2 to 53.7 percent of
the adult-use market.

20
A Snapshot of
Demand for
Adult-Use
Cannabis in
Illinois

EXISITING CAPACITY TO SUPPLY THE

MATURE ADULT-USE CANNABIS MARKET

Lower Upper
Estimate Estimate

Unused Space 9.6% 14.6%

Unused Space and

22.4% 34.2%
50% of Approved Space

Unused Space and

35.2% 53.7%
100% of Approved Space

* Each cell indicates the percentage of demand

hat can be met by a given type of space, for each estimate

Once again, those figures are based on a fully mature cannabis

market. Based on sales figures from legal states, we know that
cannabis market demand increases over time. Those sales
figures at the outset of legalization are smaller than the mature
market because of consumers’ unfamiliarity with the system,
a limited number of store fronts, diminished supply, higher
prices, etc. Based on Colorado Marijuana Enforcement Division
annual reports, sales of whole flower cannabis increased by
177 percent from 2014-2015, by 64 percent from 2015-2016,
and by 36 percent from 2016-2017. Sales of edibles increased
by 85 percent from 2014-2015, by 37 percent from 2015-2016
and by 28 percent from 2016-2017. Illinois, like other states,
should expect significant market growth over time, as well.

21
A Snapshot of
Demand for
Adult-Use
Cannabis in
Illinois

GROWTH IN SALES IN COLORADO’S

ADULT-USE CANNABIS MARKET,
2014-2017

Flower Edibles

2014-2015 177% 85%

2015-2016 64% 37%

2016-2017 36% 29%

Thus, there remains a set of policy choices around how much

of the mature market figures should be anticipated on the first
day of legalization and how much of the mature market does
the state ultimately want the existing medical firms to capture.
If on Day 1 you want to serve 50 percent of the mature market,
you would need 234,170-357,032 plants, requiring 571,375-
871,158 square feet. If you want to serve two-thirds of the
mature market on Day 1, you would need 311,914-475,566
plants, requiring 761,070-1,160,381 square feet. If you wanted
to serve 75 percent of the mature market on Day 1, you would
need 351,255-535,547 plants, requiring 857,062-1,306,734
square feet. The chart below shows what percentage of each
space estimate can be served by the existing medical market.

22
A Snapshot of
Demand for
Adult-Use
Cannabis in
Illinois

EXISITING CAPACITY TO SUPPLY THE

MATURE ADULT-USE CANNABIS MARKET, BY
PERCENTAGE OF MARKET

Lower Estimate Upper Estimate

33% of Market 161% 106%

50% of Market 107% 70%

67% of Market 81% 53%

75% of Market 72% 47%

100% of Market 54% 35%

* Each cell indicates the percentage of demand that can be met by a given type of space,
for each estimate. (Values over 100% indicate that existing unused and approved space is
more than needed to meet demand

For context, states do not initially, on day one of legalization,

hit the supply and demand levels of a mature, established
market. On day one of a commercial market opening,
consumers’ skepticism about legality, limited information
about how the legal system operates, lack of access to
storefronts in their home communities, and other reasons hold
demand levels below what they would be in a mature market.
At the same time, a limited number of suppliers, limited
product, challenges in licensing and zoning approvals, a
reduced number of storefronts, and other challenges can limit
the availability of product coming to market. Each of these
forces combine to ensure that the early days of a commercial,
adult-use cannabis market will not see the same sales levels as
the mature market.

23
A Snapshot of
Demand for
Adult-Use
Cannabis in
Illinois

As the figure on page 21 shows, adult-use sales for both

edibles and flower grew dramatically in the early years of
legalization, with the rate of growth dropping with each
successive year. The market in Colorado has largely stabilized,
with more lower levels of growth year-over-year. If one
considers the Colorado market in 2018 to be stable and
mature, we can compare what percentage of that mature
market was served in the early years. In 2014 (the first year of
commercialization in Colorado), tax and fee revenue was 25.4
percent of the 2018 levels. In 2015, tax and fee revenue was
about half (48.9 percent) the 2018 level.18 Similarly, commercial
sales also grew dramatically year-over-year in Colorado.
Cannabis sales in 2014 were 44.2 percent of the state’s 2018
sales. Sales in 2015 were 64.4 percent of the state’s 2018
sales.19

One final point on these figures: they use existing square

footage, without accounting for the growth of the medical
cannabis market. In Illinois between December 2016 and
December 2017, the number of approved medical cannabis
patients increased 102 percent and the number of patients
served increased nearly 89 percent. Between December
2017 and December 2018, the number of approved patients
and patients served increased 75 percent and 64 percent,
respectively. One should assume that the medical cannabis
market will need an additional 100,000-200,000 additional
square feet of cultivation space over the next two years, if the
medical program continues to expand significantly (and that
number will increase more sharply if the medical program sees
more explosive growth).

18 Data are based on both medical and adult-use tax collection from 2014-2018,
available here: https://www.colorado.gov/pacific/revenue/colorado-marijuana-tax-
data.
19 Data are based on both medical and adult-use sales from 2014-2018, available
here: https://www.colorado.gov/pacific/revenue/colorado-marijuana-tax-data.

24
 CONCLUSION

As Illinois considers the legalization of adult-use cannabis, it faces a

series of public policy choices regarding the manner in which a legal
system will meet the expectations of the public and the demand of
the consumer base. The presence of a regulated, functional medical
cannabis system is an important first step toward fostering an adult-use
regulatory regime and commercializing an adult-use market that can
serve a consumer base composed of Illinois residents, tourists, business
travelers, and commuters.

This report provides a snapshot of the prospective, mature cannabis

market in Illinois based on demographic and economic forces in the
state, an understanding of existing usage levels, the prevalence of
tourism, and existing market forces in states that have already reformed
their cannabis laws. Legislative and regulatory decisions will impact the
market through prices, product availability, constraints on producers,
and a host of other forces; yet, at the same time, an understanding of
the size of the prospective market in Illinois should also inform policy
makers as they work toward crafting legalization policy.

Ultimately, the medical cannabis market is well-served structurally

and functionally to provide an initial base for an adult-use market. A
regulated system with state-sanctioned cultivation facilities, testing

25
A Snapshot of
Demand for
Adult-Use
Cannabis in
Illinois

laboratories, and dispensaries provides an ideal framework

for growing, processing and dispensing state-legal cannabis.
At the same time, the report highlights that legal cannabis
systems ramp up in both production and demand during
the early years of legalization, prior to the market becoming
mature. This report highlights that process and offers insight
into the varying capacity of the existing medical market to
meet a range of prospective demand levels in the early years
of legalization.

Systems that either dramatically fall short of demand or

that oversupply the market create public policy challenges.
Avoiding both is an important expectation from the public,
from producers, and from public health and public safety
officials. This report offers a range of policy choices to
help assist and inform state officials who are charged with
designing and implementing an effective, legal, adult-use
system.

A subsequent extended draft of this document will provide a

more extensive discussion of specific policy issues that states
face during the implementation of an adult-use cannabis
system. These recommendations will offer state officials
additional sets of policy choices regarding a host of topics
that must be considered when crafting and executing adult-
use cannabis reform.

26
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