The CBD market has grown immensely over the past five years. Moving from a substance that very few everyday people had ever heard of to one that is sold in almost every convenience store, gas station, and grocery store has been a stark transformation. In 2022 you’d be hard pressed to find someone who had never at least heard of CBD before, even if they are not 100% positive what it is or what it does.

CBD sales hit $4.6 billion and $5.3 billion in 2021. By some estimations, the market is expected to reach $15 billion in 2024 and $20 billion by 2025. These are massive increases that firmly establish CBD as a mainstream, widely popular product.

What Is Driving this Growth?

The expansion of the CBD market can be attributed to several different causes. Here are a few of them in our opinion:

• CBD is increasingly being seen as very effective by those who use it regularly. This effectiveness means that people are telling their friends and family, who then try it and, in turn, recommend it to people in their own networks.
• Research is backing up the anecdotal evidence. There is a growing number of studies and research material that supports many of the claims that CBD users have long made about how well it works. This supporting evidence has led CBD to be looked at by pharmaceutical companies to potentially include it in different medications. Just take a look through our blog at Urban Roots to see the wealth of studies that are being undertaken for CBD.
• CBD products have made strong inroads into a variety of different industries. From skin care and beauty products to hair care, athletics, health and wellness, and the mainstream medical industry, CBD products are becoming increasingly common.
• Professional organizations, like the NFL and PGA, now allow their members to use CBD products and are even looking into conducting their own research on the substance. This type of acceptance exposes new people to CBD information and encourages them to give it a try for their own health and wellness issues.

Where Is CBD Headed?

We believe that the CBD market will continue its momentous climb and keep becoming more and more common. As of today, CBD companies offer a wide range of different products. That variety is likely to increase as more and more uses of CBD are discovered and new processes are created to incorporate into different existing products.

You can also expect to see companies offering products that hyper concentrate specific cannabinoids found in the hemp plant. You might have CBD products that incorporate these other cannabinoids in different mixtures and concentrations depending on what type of product it is and what problem it is attempting to solve.

According to some experts, we may start to see CBD products in many big box retail stores. This Forbes article suggests that once companies can start effectively marketing CBD as a dietary supplement, then it will become increasingly common in mainstream brick-and-mortar retail outlets.

The article goes on to say that the wider distribution provided by big box retail stores will help expand and solidify CBD supply chains, further strengthening the industry and encouraging growth. This expansion might lead to an easing of government restrictions and greater official recognition of CBD’s wide field of applicability and effectiveness.

In general, we think the future of CBD is very bright and that it’s mainstream acceptance will allow more and more people to use it to effectively treat and improve many health issues.

CBD Demographics in 2022

In 2019 and 2020, the majority of CBD products have been between the ages of 25 and 35 years old. However, that is starting to change as older individuals realize the huge benefits that CBD may provide them with. Today, 31% of CBD users are between the ages of 35 and 49, while 22% are between the ages of 50 and 64. That means that over half of all CBD users are older than 35.

We expect this trend to increase even more going forward. The Baby Boomers and Gen Xers are looking at CBD as an alternative to opioids and other types of intense pain killers and medications. For example, CBD is widely known for its anti-inflammatory properties—potentially helping conditions like arthritis while not presenting any serious or negative side effects.

There is massive potential for any adult age group using CBD products, but because they generally have a larger number of physical and mental ailments, it is extremely encouraging to see older people “discover” CBD for themselves. It can make serious improvements in their lives.

Choose Reputable CBD Companies

As the CBD market continues to grow in 2022, and more and more people give it a try for the first time, it’s more important than ever to choose reputable companies that offer high quality products. As the selection of products and stores they are offered in both expand, it’s up to the consumer to know what to look for to weed out the not-so-great options.

How can you do that? Through your own research!

Before you decide on a company, look them up online. Read customer reviews, make sure their website looks professional and trustworthy, and don’t purchase from any company that does not conduct rigorous third party quality testing. CBD companies should test their products multiple times and be very transparent about their results. If you are checking out a company’s website, and you can find a page that talks about testing and how often they are conducted, then we recommend trying a different brand.

For example, at Urban Roots Hemp Co., our products are tested three times: the initial test by the extraction supplier, raw CBD isolate tested by us, and a final test on individual products. We explain our testing methodology and post the most up to date results on this page.

Buy Local If You Can!

We recommend you avoid getting caught up in “hype products” you see being advertised by celebrities, as they are not necessarily the most high quality or sustainably sourced options. Plus, if you’re like us, then you love to support small and local businesses!

As CBD becomes more available in big box stores, you also have to make sure you’re receiving an effective dose for the price. At Urban Roots, we see effective dosing to be one of the most important aspects of CBD. If you’re seeing products on a shelf that are only 300mg (or 10mg per day), we don’t believe these to be effective for most people and recommend looking into more reputable small businesses, where you’re more likely to receive an effective dose for the right price.

 At Urban Roots Hemp Co., we offer a variety of tincture, capsule, topical, edible, and pet CBD products, so you can find the one that best fits your health and wellness needs and goals. And remember, we are always available to answer your questions!