NJ Cannabis and the Adult Use Market: How did we get here?

Cannabis has been used for medicinal, spiritual, and recreational purposes for thousands of years. Its use as a recreational drug can be traced back to ancient civilizations like the Scythians, who would burn cannabis seeds and inhale the smoke for its psychoactive effects. The use of cannabis for recreational purposes has continued throughout history, with notable examples including the hippie counterculture of the 1960s and 70s and the emergence of rap and hip hop music in the 1980s and 90s.

In the United States, recreational use of cannabis was largely criminalized in the early 20th century with the passage of the Marihuana Tax Act of 1937. This law effectively outlawed the possession and sale of cannabis and made it difficult for medical professionals to prescribe the drug. This criminalization of cannabis continued for decades, with harsh penalties for possession and distribution in many states.

However, attitudes toward cannabis began to shift in the 1990s with the emergence of the medical marijuana movement. The first state to legalize medical marijuana was California in 1996, followed by many other states in subsequent years. This change in policy paved the way for a broader conversation about the legalization of recreational cannabis.

In 2012, Colorado and Washington became the first states to legalize recreational cannabis for adults over the age of 21. Since then, a growing number of states have followed suit, with New Jersey being one of them. Now that the markets been open and more stores are coming, it’s only a matter of time before we’ll find out if the garden state can live up to its name.