Colorado puts annual marijuana demand at 130 tonnes

By Daniel Wallis DENVER (Reuters) – Total marijuana demand in Colorado, where the nation’s first recreational pot shops opened in January, is estimated at 130 tonnes this year, a study for the state’s revenue authority said on Wednesday. A day after Washington became only the second state to allow recreational sales of the drug to adults, the report said the projected demand in Colorado was much higher than anticipated. “The primary difference is caused by much heavier dosage amounts consumed by the state’s ‘heavy user’ population – those who consume marijuana on a daily basis,” said the report, prepared for the Colorado Department of Revenue. It said tax figures showed that the retail supply of marijuana was growing in the state, while supply via medical marijuana dispensaries had remained relatively constant.