In the last two years, the cannabis industry has raked in over $2 billion in revenues from delta-8 sales, as Forbes reports. Brightfield Group, a cannabis analytics firm, has published a whitepaper on Delta-8 and its “scope of threat” to the legal cannabis industry. The paper also cites Delta 8’s competitive advantages and plausible reasons for its explosive growth.
Delta-8 THC has had a meteoric rise in the last two years, or the period soon after hemp was legalized at the federal level with the 2018 farm bill. The reason is that the delta-8 products that have now flooded the market are hemp-derived, and hence technically legal.
Delta-8, an isomer of the popular delta-9-THC, occurs in very small quantities in natural cannabis. However, it can be manufactured synthetically from a number of cannabinoids such as CBD.
Who is Buying Delta-8?
Unlike CBD, hemp-derived delta -8 can get you intoxicated. Users have described this high using terms such as “mellow,” “cerebral,” “mild,” and “energetic.” Some consumers are just curious while others are looking to explore a different kind of high. For those in red states, delta-8 is the only way to get “legally high on marijuana.”
