Colorado’s blazing year of pot: Almost 2.4 million ounces sold

Colorado consumers purchased nearly 2.4 million ounces of marijuana during the state’s first year of recreational pot, though medical pot sales still dominated, according to the first-ever official figures on the volume of sales, released Friday.

Outlets in Colorado sold nearly 150,000 pounds of marijuana last year, including 109,578 pounds of medical marijuana and 38,660 pounds of retail, the Department of Revenue’s Marijuana Enforcement Division said in its first annual report. 

Voters in Colorado and Washington state were the first to allow recreational use of pot in 2012, followed by Oregon, Alaska and the District of Columbia. In Colorado, those aged 21 and older can possess up to an ounce and give to others to consume privately, as well as grow up to six plants, half being mature.

{mosads}As of December, there were 833 retail licenses and 1,416 medical licenses in Colorado, though only 67 of the state’s 321 jurisdictions allow recreational and medical pot sales. Last year, sales hit $700 million in the state, including $313 million from recreational pot.

Consumers bought 2 million units of marijuana-infused edibles for medical purposes in 2014, as well as 2.85 million units for recreational purposes, according to the 40-page document.

Key in the push for retail marijuana was tracking the plant at every level of production, from when cannabis is harvested, transported to licensed outlets and sold, known as “seed to sale” tracking. Since its implementation in late 2013, more than 37 million cases of marijuana have been tracked.

The state’s Marijuana Enforcement Division carried out nearly 2,900 due diligence investigations and pursued 367 complaints through staff at field offices around the state. The office had another 1,200 open investigations at the end of December.

The first-of-their-kind statistics give insight into the scope of regulation and possible potential marijuana sales in other areas. On Thursday, D.C. began to allow recreational use of pot, which voters approved last November. Congress initially threatened to effectively block the implementation of the measure, though has not announced its next moves.

Officials have said they do not plan to allow the sale of pot in the District.