Kaya Mind consultancy study also shows 672,000 medicinal cannabis patients and $ 6.1 billion spending on repression
Brazil has at least 2.8 million adults who make regular use of recreational marijuana. The estimate is included in the Growshops, Headshops and 2024 Brands ”, consulting firm, specializing in Cannabis market data. Here is (PDF – 43 MB).
The projection was made from data crosses of (Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics),, and surveys of consultancy conducted in recent years. According to the study, the numbers are still conservative, as stigma and prohibitionism make it difficult for sincere responses to opinion research.
In addition to marijuana consumers, the yearbook estimates that 18 million adult Brazilians They regularly use some tobacco derivatives, including shredded tobacco, used to wrap cigarettes by hand, a product popularized in the so -called headshops, stores specializing in smokers.
Repression
The document also draws attention to public costs related to prohibitionism. According to Kaya, R $ 6.1 billion They were spent in 2023 only with the maintenance of prisoners convicted of drug trafficking, one of the main reasons for incarceration in the country.
Of the total of 850,377 people arrested in Brazil, 26% serve a sentence for trafficking, and 51% of cases involving marijuana are for less than 100g. The data are from (National Secretariat of Criminal Policies).
MEDICINE
As published by the consultancy, Brazil already has more than 672 thousand patients who use cannabis medicinal products.
The significant number reflects the advancement of the therapeutic use of the plant in the country, especially after the regulation of Anvisa that allows the importation and registration of sugarcane products such as CBD. Nevertheless, access still faces barriers such as the high cost of treatments and the lack of prescription by public medicals.
Kaya estimates that the country may have up to 6.9 million potential patients that could be attended by cannabis therapies if access was expanded. The plant has been used to treat diseases such as refractory epilepsy, autism, chronic pain, anxiety and parkinson.
Recent advances
Even with the regulation of medicinal use, the domestic cultivation of cannabis for therapeutic purposes still depends on judicial authorization. Patients and families wishing to plant marijuana to produce their own extracts need to file actions in court.
In June 2024, the Federal Supreme Court that the cultivation of up to 6 cannabis female plants for personal use does not constitute a crime, which can facilitate access to treatment, although there is still legal insecurity on the subject.
The most common way to circumvent the situation is through preventive habeas corpus, which seeks to ensure the right to cultivation without the risk of arrest or seizure. So far, thousands of Brazilians have already achieved judicial authorization to plant cannabis for therapeutic purposes, supported by medical reports and lack of broad access to industrialized medicines.
Nevertheless, the decision has strengthened the Cannabis cultivation and consumption products industry, such as fertilizers, greenhouses, and smoke accessories, now legally sold in gowshops and headshops. In Brazil, the sale of these accessories is allowed, provided that there is no apology for the use of the plant.
Despite advances, marijuana remains illegal for recreational use and its commercialization is not yet regulated. It is expected that the debate on the subject gains strength in the coming years, both in the National Congress and in civil society.
