Illinois pot shops sold more than $1.6 billion worth of recreational cannabis in 2023, the latest record year for the state’s budding industry.
That’s a 5% increase from licensed adult-use cannabis sales in 2022, according to figures released Thursday by the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation.
Illinoisans bought more joints, gummies, flower and other weed products overall, too — 42,124,741 of them, to be exact — a 15% jump from the previous year, officials said.
The only number harshing Illinois’s reefer revenue buzz was a 14% decline in sales to out-of-state customers, who spent $418 million. Officials blamed burgeoning weed sales in nearby states that have also legalized recreational cannabis, such as Michigan, Missouri, and Minnesota.
Read more at chicago.suntimes.com