Studies Find Pandemic Shifted Reasons for Cannabis Use & Methods of Purchase

Two recently published, separate industry surveys suggest that the coronavirus pandemic has impacted both how people get their cannabis and the reasons for their use.

A Veriheal survey found 55% of patients who applied for medical cannabis cards over the past year said their main reason for using cannabis was “to feel happy,” while a Ganja Goddess poll found 90.1% of respondents used delivery services as the primary way they purchased cannabis during the pandemic.

Ganja Goddess found 78.1% used cannabis to help manage health, including mental health, conditions throughout the pandemic. The next top three reasons being sleep (72.6%), anxiety (66.8%), and pain (54.1%). The cannabis firm found 54.8% of respondents increased cannabis consumption since the pandemic’s onset, with 80.6% indicating daily use.

In the Veriheal study – conducted in partnership with graduate researchers from the London School of Economics, University of Southern California, University of Maryland, and the Cultivating Research Education and Advocacy (CREA) Group – researchers found that 39% of Baby Boomers primarily used cannabis for happiness, along with 45% of Gen Xers, 28% of Millennials, and 29% of Gen Z.

Maha Haq, CEO of CREA and graduate student at University of Maryland’s School of Pharmacy, said the study results nullified the researchers’ hypothesis.

“When we began investigating the relationship between medical cannabis use and COVID-19, our original hypothesis was that cannabis demand would increase with COVID-19 cases as people sought out physiological relief and ways to manage stress. … Instead, we found that people are seeking psychological relief in response to exogenous shocks including COVID-19 and beyond. Periods of social unrest, such as the Black Lives Matter protests and 2020 elections, can be seen as spikes in medical cannabis interest within our datasets.” – Haq in a press release

Meanwhile, the Ganja Goddess survey found that 60% of consumers would prefer to have their cannabis delivered post-pandemic. Prior to the pandemic, just 20.7% of cannabis consumers said delivery was their preferred means of purchase.

Ganja Goddess CEO Zachary Pitts noted that “since the start of the pandemic, Americans are spending more time than ever at home, leading to an overwhelming national demand for delivery services.”

“The initial spike in cannabis delivery sales was noteworthy, but its continued prevalence more than one year later speaks volumes,” he said in a statement. “A rise in cannabis consumption and greater emphasis on managing health further highlight the impact of these challenging times.”