“Many of today’s cannabis consumers are ‘middle American’ adults, employed, own a home, vote regularly, pay their taxes and are involved in their communities.”
Bob Sillick of the Iowa Capital Dispatch
Many years ago, marijuana users were considered a group of party animals: unemployed and young. The sector exists today in various forms. However, most cannabis consumers of today are adults in the “middle class” who have jobs, are homeowners, regularly vote, pay taxes, and are active in their community.
According to the Consumer Research Around Cannabis/The Media Audit, this is the profile of cannabis users in Des Moines and across the nation.
Media Audit has served 80+ local market in Canada and U.S. for 20 years. The company began gathering data in 2016 about attitudes towards cannabis and its use.
Although adult cannabis use is not legal in Iowa, a survey conducted in Des Moines found that 16.2 per cent of the adults 18 and older who responded to the questionnaire said they purchased or used cannabis within the last 30 days, which is the equivalent statistically of 140,000 adults.
The smallest percentage in the following table, monthly usage in Des Moines, is still substantial—and suggests a pent-up market. Unleashing the recreational cannabis market in Des Moines and all of Iowa would likely generate jobs and significant taxes for the state—money now escaping across the borders.
The aggregated data of Des Moines, 42 other cities and a survey conducted in each market showed 24,1 percent of 18+ year olds had purchased or used cannabis within the past 30 days. Local factors influence these percentages.
Jonathan Caulkins is a H. Guyford Stever H. Guyford Stever Profesor of Operations Research, Public Policy and Carnegie Mellon University’s Heinz College. He has been researching cannabis legalization since 15 years. Caulkins is the author of many books on the subject and also a member the Commission on the North American Opioid Crisis.
Caulkins’ research refines the findings of Consumer Research Around Cannabis’ Des Moines study.
From 1992 to 2023 (the most recent year we released data), the trend was towards an immense increase in the numbers of people using cannabis every day or almost daily. The sales of recreational cannabis are dominated by them. Caulkins says, “They dominate the market.”
In states like Iowa that haven’t legalized adult recreational cannabis, Caulkins expects when they do, the middle of the market will be blue-collar high-school graduates, adults 25–40 who are employed but not affluent.
As more states have legalized recreational marijuana, he has seen an increase in the number of women.
The gender disparity in cannabis use has shrunk as the drug has become legal. The gender gap was much larger when cannabis was illegal or risky, but it is now decreasing. He said that as legalization increases, the use of marijuana by men will increase. The use of marijuana by women will also rise.
The 43-markets survey also shows that cannabis users in Des Moines have similar income and gender distributions. Millennials, at 42.3% and Gen Xers, at 35.5% account for 34 of all adult cannabis consumers who purchased or used cannabis in Des Moines during the previous month. This percentage is slightly more than that of the 43-markets survey, which was 41.5 and 28.2 respectively. This is slightly higher than the 29.6 per cent of cannabis customers in Des Moines who have household incomes between $35,001 and $75,000.
Consumer Research Around Cannabis also provides a more detailed profile of cannabis users. In the “household profiles” section, the three largest cannabis users or purchasers in the last year are shown.
- No children in the home, but still wealthy: $75,000.
- White-collar workers with a family income of $100,000 or more
- The Affluent Baby Boomers with household incomes of $100,000 and above
The comparison of cannabis users and purchasers in Des Moines to the 43-market study by employment and occupation shows some differences. These data show that many Des Moines residents are employed and actively contributing to their local economy.
Voting is an important measure of civic duty. Millennials (22%) and Gen Xers (54.4%) voted for local, national and state elections compared to the 33 percent of respondents in the 43 market aggregate survey.
This data could have implications for future legislation to legalize the sale of adult recreational marijuana in Iowa. While the Iowa Legislature’s majority Republicans have rebuffed Democrats’ proposals to legalize recreational marijuana, advocates suggest time may be on their side if an increasing body of citizens support legalization with their votes.
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Iowa Capital Dispatch published this article first.
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