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Medical marijuana laws hit alcohol sales
Alcohol sales have fallen by 15% in US states where medical marijuana has been legalised, according to research from the University of Connecticut and Georgia State University.
States with legalised medical marijuana saw a 15% decrease in alcohol sales
Researchers from the two universities analysed the alcohol sales in states where medical marijuana has been legalised, comparing it to those in which the drug is still outlawed.
The results found that on average, states with legalised medical marijuana saw a 15% decrease in alcohol sales following the drugs legalisation.
Of this decrease in sales, the researchers found that beer saw an average decrease of 13.8%, while wine sales dropped by 16.2%.
These sales decreases are not short-lived either, the American universities found that the “significant reduction in drink sales have been observed up to 24 months after the alterations to the law.”
In order to carry out this research, the two universities used the Nielsen Retail Scanner database, which collects data at the point of sale from stores across America, to analyse the alcohol sales in states with legal marijuana as well as those where the drug remains illegal.
The researchers said they used this system as it allowed them to collect a large amount of data without relying on alcohol consumption surveys, in which respondents could lower their alcohol consumption estimations.
In the paper published by the two universities, they said that their findings reinforced the economic opinion that alcohol and marijuana are seen as substitutes for one another.
The researchers noted that previously, studies from the disciplines of psychology and criminology suggested the two substances can be complimentary of one another.
Through analysing drink sales in states with legalised medical marijuana, these results could underestimate the impact fully-legalised marijuana would have on drink sales, as in these states only a small number of people are able to buy the drug.
As marijuana laws are relaxed across the world, many manufacturers have begun producing cannabis based drinks to sell in markets where the drug is now legal.
This research follows news from Constellation Brands that it is set to develop its own range of cannabis-based beverages after acquiring a stake in cannabis producer Canopy Growth Corporation.