Cannabis Flower Remains King: Most Popular Cannabis Product in 2021

As the saying goes, the more things change the more they stay the same. A report that has just been released by New Frontier Data has revealed that cannabis flower remains king.

The cannabis market has evolved significantly in the last couple of years as more states have moved to legalize for either medical or recreational use. This has led to the introduction of diverse cannabis products into the market to meet the different tastes and preferences of consumers. The repertoire includes tinctures, capsules, soft gels, gummies, vapes, topicals, edibles, and beverages. From the report, it is clear that most consumers favor smoking cannabis flower as compared to other consumption methods.

Traditionally, cannabis has been consumed in the form of dried flower which was placed on a hot stone and the smoke inhaled. Cannabis flower was also rubbed topically on wounds. While legalization has led to the diversification of products, flower remains the preferred choice for most consumers.

Here are the most significant findings from the report:

% of Consumers That Use Each Product Type

• Cannabis Flower 83%
• Cannabis Edibles 56%
• Cannabis Vapes 33%
• Cannabis Concentrates 22%
• Cannabis Topicals 19%
• Cannabis Tinctures, Capsules, Sublingual 19%
• Cannabis Beverages 14%

% Sales for Each Product Type in 2021

• Flower 44%
• Vape 27%
• Edibles 11%
• Extract 10%
• Preroll 5.4%
• Tincture 1.3%
• Topical 0.6%

Even with such a dynamic product range, consumers prefer smoking cannabis joints to other products. If you add cannabis prerolls, flower accounted for 50% of total cannabis sales in 2021.

From the report, it emerged that men are more likely to use cannabis flower than women. Younger consumers are also more likely to use flower compared to the older age group. At the same time, recreational users are more likely to use cannabis flower than medical users.

Flower is also widely consumed in the illicit market where the product options are not as diverse. Flower is also considered a safer option in the illicit market because it can be difficult to ascertain the safety standards used in the preparation of other products.

What do Consumers Look for in a Cannabis Product?

The report also shed light on a few things that consumers look for when purchasing a cannabis product. Here is a breakdown of the same:

• 51% – the expected effect
• 22%- THC potency
• 17%- Strain name
• 5%- Minor cannabinoids and terpene profile
• 6%- none of the above

The most popular cannabis strains on California in 2021 include:

• Wedding Cake
• Ice Cream Cake
• GMO
• Blue Dream
• Super Silver Haze
• Kush Mints
• Cereal Milk
• Jack Herer
• Super Glue
• Fatso

From the report it is evident that consumers are “complimenting” and not substituting cannabis flower. Even though flower remains king, the group of consumers who use flower exclusively has been shrinking with time. As the market continues to evolve and diversify, consumers are likely to keep experimenting with different product types.