New Mexico’s Medical Marijuana Industry Triples in One Year

New Mexico’s medical marijuana industry is booming. Licensed patients that purchased marijuana more than tripled from 18,062 in the first quarter of 2015 to just over 55,000 in the same period of 2016.

Medical marijuana sales revenue nearly doubled in that time, from $5.7 million in the first quarter of 2015 to $10 million in the first quarter of 2016, reports the Albuquerque Journal.

Growers expect the rapid increase in demand to continue because there is a growing acceptance of marijuana in New Mexico and throughout the U.S.

Medical marijuana dispensaries and cultivation facilities are also becoming major employers in New Mexico. $3 million in salaries and other compensation was paid in just the first quarter of 2016.

“We’re all trying to get our production facilities up and running,” said president of Organtica, one of the 12 New Mexico dispensaries licensed last year.