Cannabis Testing Market is driven by government initiatives, growing awareness about drug testing, growing legalization of cannabis use in many regions.
Cannabis testing defines various drug test methods for the usage of cannabis in medical prescription, sports medicine, and law. The rapidly increasing applications of cannabis (marijuana) in mainstream medicine such as pain management is poised to increase demand for cannabis testing measures.
The Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) has categorized cannabis under the Schedule 1 classification as “a dangerous narcotic”. However, the great number of research articles on various portals such as PubMed suggest the rapidly growing manufacture and application of cannabis in various medical conditions.
This in turn is leading to increased cannabis research programs and demand for laboratory services. Moreover, owing to the prohibition on the use of cannabis in large parts of the world and rising incidence of driving under influence, the necessity of suitable cannabis testing is escalating.
Hence, demand for cannabis testing is likely to increase at a high rate during the forecast period from 2017 to 2025.
The growing legalization of cannabis use in many regions is the primary driver of the global cannabis testing market. For instance, 25 states in the U.S.
have at present legalized the usage of cannabis for medical purposes and numerous other states are likely to follow suit in the near future. In addition, rapidly rising number of dedicated laboratories for cannabis testing, developing consciousness for the accessibility of these tests via workshops and seminars, and high number of drug abuse related accidents are factors driving demand for cannabis testing.
However, low research and development (R&D) investments due to social concerns, high infrastructure cost, stringent regulatory framework, and lack of trained resources are the major restraints of the cannabis testing market.
Based on test type, cannabis testing can be classified into terpene profiling, potency testing, pesticide screening, residual solvent screening, microbial analysis, genetic testing, and heavy metal testing. Lack of investments in the development of proper drug testing research laboratory has been hamper the growth of the market for a long time.
However, recent changes are painting a different picture and helping develop these markets. In terms of end-user, the cannabis testing market can be segmented into laboratories, research institutes, drug manufacturers, and cultivators.Federal departments are also one of the end-users of the cannabis testing market. Moreover, growing recreational and personal use of cannabis is expected to boost the market during the forecast period.
Geographically, the cannabis testing market can be segmented into North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Middle East & Africa, and Latin America. North America is anticipated to dominate the market due to growing legalization of cannabis for medical use and enactment of stringent laws by the government in the region.
Developing nations in Asia Pacific are expected to witness the fastest growth during the forecast period. Growing awareness about drug testing coupled with government initiatives, and reduction in cost are the major drivers of the market in these region.
Violation of privacy rights in some countries is likely to act as a major restraint of the market.
Key players in the market include Agilent Technologies, Inc., Shimadzu Corporation, Waters Corporation, PerkinElmer, Inc., AB SCIEX LLC, Millipore Sigma, Restek Corporation, LabLynx, Inc. (U.S.), Steep Hill Labs, Inc., PharmLabs, LLC, SC Laboratories, Inc., Digipath Labs, Inc., CannaSafe Analytics, and Accelerated Technology Laboratories, Inc.
credit:420intel.com