Trends in the Concentrate Market

Cannabis concentrates are likely the best bang for your buck, and trends in the concentrate market indicate this. Concentrates rank fifth in the most extensive product category. Although not nearly as popular as cannabis flower, among young consumers, concentrates are three times more prevalent than among older adults. As well, males tend to buy concentrates more than females.

Concentrate market share in Canada has increased from 2.9% to 3.8% of total cannabis sales. Since June 2021, the opposite has occurred in the United States. Over the same period, concentrate market share decreased from 9.5% to 8.3%.

Hash is the most popular concentrate in Canada, capturing 30% of the market, compared to 2% in the US. Live Resin is more predominant in the US, with 34% of concentrate sales, compared to 22% in Canada.

In Canada, the price of concentrates has dropped significantly, from an average of $48.88 in January 2020 to $25.97 in May 2022. That’s a decrease of 49%. Compared to the US, the price decreased 18%, from $21.86 in August 2020 to $17.85 in May 2022.

Overall Market Share

Concentrate market share has increased in Canada (up from 2.9%) and the US (down from 9.5%).

Canadians have made concentrates a top-selling category behind vape pens and edibles. In the US and Canada, concentrates are the fifth highest-selling product behind flower, pre-rolls, vape pens and edibles.

The concentrate market typically hovers around 10% of total cannabis sales in the US. However, its peak was in late 2020. Since then, concentrate market share in the US has dropped, stabilizing at around eight and nine percent.

In Canada, the concentrate market has risen steadily since the government legalized additional cannabis products in 2019. Concentrate market share has plateaued at around 4% of sales, but it’s still too early to discern long-term trends. Whether the slight decline in the concentrate market for both countries is a result of short-term trends or longer-term structural problems remains to be seen.

Given this data, it’s clear the US concentrate market share is higher than it is for Canadian markets. The US states where concentrates enjoy a significant market share are also the states that legalized cannabis early. They are Oregon, Colorado, and Washington.

Alberta has the highest market share in Canada, with 4.5%, with Ontario at the low end, 3.6%.

Demographics of the Concentrate Market

Concentrates are more popular among younger consumers than older ones. The Generation Z age group purchase concentrates triple the rate of consumers in the Baby Boomer generation.

Males also contribute more to the concentrate market share than females.

Pricing in the Concentrate Market

There was a lot of volatility in the concentrate market during Canada’s first year of legal concentrate sales. The average price started at $50 before dropping to below $30. And then, it climbed back up to the $40 range by the end of summer 2020. Since then, the price of concentrates in Canada has been steadily dropping to its current average price of $25.97. Between January 2020 and May 2022, a price decrease of 49%.

In the US, concentrate prices have remained relatively stable. However, even here, concentrate prices have been declining since the summer of 2020. The average price in August 2020 was $21.86, compared to May 2022’s $17.85, a decrease of 18%.

Concentrate Package Sizes

The 1-gram package size is the most popular in both US and Canadian markets. In the US, 1-gram concentrates account for 95% of all concentrate sales. In Canada, one-third of concentrate sales come from two-gram package products. However, these two-gram products are almost entirely hash.

Hash is not nearly as popular in the US.

Consumer Preferences in Concentrate Market

As mentioned, hash is far more prevalent among Canadians than Americans. In Canada, hash dominates concentrate sales. Hash only contributes 2% of all concentrate sales compared to the US.

Shatter is also popular among Canadians, taking 25% of all concentrate sales. In the US, shatter only accounts for 7% of concentrated sales. In the US, live resin and rosin are far more popular than in Canada.

Whether these trends hold remains to be seen. The concentrate market in Canada is still relatively new, and federal regulations keep THC content artificially low. However, one cannot calculate how this impacts consumer decisions to purchase or forego concentrates.