Founder Arnau Valdovinos posted the following to Linked In on 6 Nov 2024
Cannamonitor’s analysis of 300,000+ privately prescribed items from 2022 to 2023 offers unparalleled insights into the UK emerging market and its competitive landscape:
Curaleaf Laboratories leads the Market: Adven has emerged as the dominant player across the flower, oil, and capsule categories.
Challenger Brands: GROW® Pharma , Lyphe, Aurora Europe GmbH, and Cantourage UK make strides in the flower market, while Althea UK, Cellen, and VIOLA Brands are competitive in extracts.
New Entrants and Exits: Emerging brands with still limited sales in 2023 include MAMEDICA®, Therismos Limited, and Little Green Pharma. Some, like Columbia Care, have exited the market.
In addition to profiling the top players, the report features in-depth analyses of over 25 active brands, providing insights into market share, segmentation, top products, sourcing and supply chain dynamics, and more.
This report was a monumental effort, with 14,000 raw prescription records meticulously reviewed and enriched with third-party data.
The result is a 150+ page resource packed with hundreds of charts, and actionable insights—an invaluable tool for anyone in or entering the UK medical cannabis market. Here’s what you can expect:
Detailed segmentation of the Flower market by THC levels
️ In-depth analysis of Oil prescriptions by cannabinoid concentration
Insights on cartridges and disposable Vapes
Assessment of Capsules, pastilles and softgel prescriptions
I hope these findings will facilitate market development by empowering data-driven strategies in the industry.
Here’s a summary
Table of Contents
Steady Growth in the UK Medical Cannabis Market
The UK medical cannabis market has seen exceptional growth, with prescribed items more than doubling annually. From just 278 items in 2019, prescriptions reached 43,933 in 2021 and emerged to over 120,000 in 2022. Current data for 2023 suggests this number may exceed 250,000 items , driven by a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 708% between 2019 and 2022. With patient demand still accelerating, the market is poised for another doubling in 2024. This expansion is underpinned by heightened awareness of medical cannabis benefits, particularly for chronic pain, anxiety, and epilepsy.
This rapid growth is fueled by increasing awareness of medical cannabis benefits, particularly for chronic pain, anxiety, and epilepsy, and growing acceptance of cannabis-based medicines within the medical community. Regulatory progress, although gradual, has also contributed to the market’s expansion, as access to these treatments becomes easier for patients. Other factors impacting market growth include:
- Private Clinics : The burgeoning private clinic sector has streamlined patient access, lowering barriers and expanding treatment options.
- Improved Affordability : Competitive pricing and a wider range of suppliers have made medical cannabis more accessible to patients.
- Diverse Product Offerings : An expanding array of products—including flowers, oils, vapes, and capsules—caters to varied patient needs.
The Changing Landscape of Medical Cannabis Product Types
The UK market has seen a decisive shift toward flower-based products, with oils losing ground. Flower accounted for 79% of all prescriptions in 2022, a trend that underscores patient preference for inhalable and fast-acting formats.
As the market grows, so too does the variety of cannabis products available to patients. While traditional cannabis oils continue to hold a place in the market, they have lost ground in recent years. Oils represented 20% of all prescriptions in 2022, but their market share has declined as patients shift their focus toward flower-based products.
New formats like vape cartridges and edibles are beginning to enter the market, although their prescription presence remains minimal. THC flower dominates among product types, particularly THC-heavy strains preferred by patients managing conditions such as pain and insomnia.
Flower: The Most Dominant Cannabis Product in the UK
Flower has cemented itself as the most popular cannabis product in the UK, especially THC-dominant strains. Of the 79% of prescriptions for flower, a staggering 93% are for THC-dominant varieties. Despite the availability of over 110 different strains, the UK flower market is highly concentrated: the top 10 varieties account for 60% of all flower prescriptions, and 20 varieties dominate 80% of the market.
Patients appear to favor indica-leaning hybrids, with popular strains like GG#4 and Girl Scout Cookies consistently topping the list of preferred varieties. These strains are known for their calming effects and therapeutic benefits, particularly for managing pain, insomnia, and anxiety.
The European-Driven Supply Chain
The UK market is notably different from many other international medical cannabis markets, which are often dominated by Canadian producers. In the UK, 75% of prescribed products come from European suppliers, primarily in Portugal, Spain, and Macedonia . These countries have become key production hubs, leveraging favorable growing conditions and regulatory frameworks to supply the UK with high-quality cannabis products.
However, Canadian producers are beginning to make inroads into the UK market. Between 2022 and 2023, prescriptions for Canadian products doubled , driven by the increasing demand for higher-THC flower. Canadian suppliers now account for the majority of the high-THC flower category, offering products with potency levels that appeal to patients seeking stronger therapeutic effects.
