Study Shows CBD is Replacing Traditional Pharmaceuticals

This week, market research firm Brightfield Group and online cannabis community HelloMD released a summary to their joint research effort on CBD, “Understanding Cannabidiol“. The study, based on data collected from over 2400 HelloMD community members based primarily in California, offers some insights that should be of value to those operating in or investing in the CBD market.

According to the study, CBD is being used to replace traditional medicines, with 42% of respondents stopping their use of other medications to treat conditions including anxiety (67%), insomnia (60%), joint pain and inflammation (52%) and depression (43%). Respondents overwhelmingly prefer CBD derived from cannabis to CBD derived from industrial hemp, reinforcing the popular view of an “entourage” effect. Only 9% of respondents indicated using hemp-derived CBD exclusively.

The survey revealed the most popular brands with the respondents, including CW Hemp, Plus CBD Oil, Mary’s Medicinals, TetraLabs, Bluebird Botanicals and HempMeds among the hemp-derived brands and Care by Design, Bloom Farms, Kiva Confections, Cheeba Chews, Bhang and Mary’s Medicinals among the brands extracted from cannabis that contains THC as well. Both of these markets are highly fragmented, with unbranded products popular among the hemp-derived products (28% market share compared to just 6% for CW Hemp).

The study noted a slight bias towards females, who represent 58% of those who use CBD-only products. Over half of respondents report using oil cartridges and vaping, followed by flower, topicals and tinctures, each above 40%. Finally, 61% of respondents are spending more than $50 per month on CBD products.