It looks like legal cannabis might be catching on in Michigan. The state, which has both legal adult use and medical marijuana, experienced a mini-boom in cannabis sales during the recent 420 holiday.

How big a boom? The state reported that Michigan marijuana sales reached 2.3 tons in just one day on April 20, shattering the records from previous years. In a midwestern state that only started recreational marijuana sales in December 2019, the record-breaking holiday cannabis-buying boom offers another sign that marijuana is going mainstream.

The gargantuan 420 day sales came just a few months after Michigan reported breaking the record for monthly sales in December 2021 with $`135 million in recreational marijuana sales and $33 million in medical marijuana sales.

Michigan Marijuana Sales Increased in 2022

Andrew Brisbo, director of Michigan’s Cannabis Regulatory Agency, reported on Twitter that Michigan residents bought 2.3 tons of marijuana flower, an increase of 242 percent from purchases in 2021 (which were 444 percent higher than in 2020).

Brisbo said consumers spent $15.5 million, compared to $10.6 million spent in 2021 and $3.6 million spent in 2020. He also broke down the amount of flower sold by weight on 420 day over the past three years.

• 2022: 4619 pounds
• 2021: 1912 pounds
• 2020: 430 pounds

For those who want a way to visualize just how much tonnage of cannabis Michiganders bought on 420, here’s a list of a few other things that weigh about two tons.

• The smallest adult male hippopotamus
• A John Deere subcompact tractor
• Two mature bison
• A white rhino
• A Dodge Charger
• A Jeep Cherokee
• The lightest Ford F-150
• 40 bags of cement

Two tons (or 4,000 pounds) is still only about two-thirds the weight of the tongue of a Blue whale (3 tons). Still, that’s an impressive amount of weed to buy in one day. Clearly, Michigan marijuana sales continue to boom.

Michigan Benefiting From Marijuana Sales Surge

The boom in Michigan marijuana sales benefits the state, as well. Total Michigan marijuana sales reached $1.3 billion in 2021 for adult-use cannabis and $481 million for medical cannabis. That has resulted in $131 million going to the state through a cannabis excise tax. Money from that tax supports infrastructure projects and public education, among other public initiatives.

Marijuana sales also generated $115 million for the state’s general fund, which supports the cost of state operations. The state also has distributed $42 million in marijuana tax revenue to communities across the state.

“It’s creeping up, and that’s good for the municipalities that opted in for the adult-use recreational on the retail side,” Joe Jangda of Nature’s ReLeaf told ABC 13 in Grand Rapids. “Some of these municipalities are getting $1 million or more back.”