For the first time ever, Virginia officials know how much patients are spending on medical cannabis and what’s selling.
The Virginia Cannabis Control Authority launched its new Seed-to-Sale program in July 2025. The program tracks cannabis products through the growth cycle to the time of sale. Officials say it breathes new transparency into the state’s medical cannabis landscape and gives the authority more control over what’s being sold to patients.
Jamie Patten, the authority’s acting head, said some of the data has been surprising, especially the amount of total sales.
Statewide, medical cannabis sales averaged close to $15 million sales a month since July, she said. In the Tidewater region, those monthly sales averaged around $3.6 million.
“We knew the program was big, but that's definitely bigger than we anticipated,” she said.
In Virginia, it’s legal for adults to possess up to one ounce of marijuana, but it’s not legal to sell or buy for recreational use. People can receive it as a gift or grow it themselves. The only way to legally buy marijuana in Virginia is at one of the state’s 23 medical cannabis dispensaries. The first one opened in 2020.
Officials say tracking will improve health impacts
The ability to trace products enhances safety for patients who rely on cannabis for chronic pain or anxiety, Patten said.
If a contamination issue or recall arises, the state can use the program to trace the problem back to a specific growth or batch, ensuring patients are notified promptly and potentially harmful products are pulled from circulation.
The system also helps regulators prevent unlicensed or illicit products — which may contain unsafe levels of pesticides, heavy metals or untested THC concentrations — from entering the medical market.
This wasn’t necessarily an issue in Virginia, said JM Pedini. Pedini, who uses they/them pronouns, is the development director at the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Law and runs Virginia’s state chapter of the organization.
They noted that the state has “a multitude of provisions in place” to prevent illicit products from making it onto shelves.
But the new system allows the authority to track this type of information for the first time. Patten said that improved visibility helps the authority make sure illicit products stay out of the medical market.
“We know that every product that's being sold originated in a Virginia facility that was licensed as a medical cultivator,” she said.
The system tracks products and transaction types — if they were made in-person at the dispensary or by delivery. This type of information can help the authority understand patient needs and preferences, Patten said.
The system can also help regulators determine if patients’ monthly purchase limits are appropriate, said Winter Seward-Dixon, owner of the Hampton Roads Wellness Center, which offers medical cannabis consultation and provides certifications - effectively a prescription for cannabis.
She said the program allows regulators to monitor whether the current monthly limit – four ounces per 30 days – meets patients’ needs or should be adjusted.
“Either they're going to say ‘that's not enough because people are going through this really fast,’ or they're going to say ‘this is too much, we need to cut it back,’” Seward-Dixon said.
She also warned that while cannabis can offer medical benefits, smoking still poses risks to lung health. She recommended safer alternatives such as edibles or topical products.
But cannabis products often associated with smoking are the most popular, the program's data revealed.
Across the state, Virginians prefer flowers or buds the most. In the Tidewater region, buds made up nearly half of all sales. Concentrates, like those used in vapes, are the second most popular, followed by infused edibles.
Medical market shows retail's potential
The medical cannabis industry is a multi-million dollar industry in the state, but its growth is limited. The state is divided into five regions — called health service areas — and each can have up to six dispensaries for a total of 30 across Virginia.
The state currently has 23 licensed dispensaries, according to the authority’s website. Pedini said even the maximum of 30 wouldn’t be sufficient.
“This is not enough for a state that has over eight and a half million people,” they said. “And one of the most unfortunate consequences of this limited marketplace is the high cost of doing business in this state, and ultimately that gets passed on to consumers. If there were more dispensaries, prices would come down in the state of Virginia.”
A 2023 study commissioned by the authority showed Virginians pay more for medical cannabis than patients in other states. The study found the average price for a gram of flower in Virginia was around $14, compared to $10 in Pennsylvania, $9 in Arkansas and $10 in Florida.
The cost of medical cannabis is determined by processors and dispensaries, Patten said.
The state’s cannabis industry could expand if state lawmakers approved a market for recreational cannabis, which would make it legal for dispensaries to sell marijuana for recreational use.
Pedini said medical cannabis isn’t taxed in Virginia, but marijuana for adult recreational use would be. Last year, the state estimated tax revenue from legalized marijuana could bring in $300 million over six years.
The General Assembly approved a marketplace for recreational marijuana two years in a row, but it was vetoed by Gov. Glenn Youngkin both times.
A new bill will be proposed next year, Pedini said. Virginia legislators heard from advocates, lobbyists and entrepreneurs earlier this month on how the state should move forward opening a retail cannabis market. A joint commission of legislators will meet again Dec. 2 to review the bill.
But whether it passes will depend on who’s elected as the next governor.
Republican candidate and current lieutenant governor, Winsome Earle-Sears, has said she supports a medical cannabis program, but remains opposed to opening a market for recreational use. Democratic candidate Abigail Spanberger has said she supports a legal, regulated retail market for recreational cannabis.
Opening a recreational marijuana market could cause issues for the state’s medical cannabis. Other states saw medical cannabis programs shrink after legalizing recreational cannabis, but Virginia is putting up safeguards to minimize those effects, Pedini said.
“One of the most important considerations for a state as it is expanding from medical to adult-use regulation is how to maintain the health and accessibility of the medical cannabis program,” Pedini said.
