Cannabis retail purchases in a low-risk market: Purchase size and sex of buyers

Aim To analyse the composition of cannabis retail purchases in a representative sample of purchases made in Christiania, Copenhagen in 2004.Material Transactions (n=1,123) were registered along four variables; type (loose resin or joints), quantum (n=957, grams or number of joints), sex (n=559, female or male) and payment (n=707, notes or coins).Results We found that more than half of all transactions were for joints only. The median transaction quantum was small, at two joints or three grams of resin, valued at DKK 100. Of the resin transactions, 88% were three grams or below. Women made 11% of the purchases. There was no statistically significant difference in the preferences for quantum or type between males and females.Conclusions Buyers prefer joints over loose resin despite the higher price, which is interesting. The small median transactions size is consistent with findings in the international literature. Illicit drug buyers appear to prefer small acquisitions across drugs and social context. The share of purchases made by women is 11%, which is similar to the estimated proportion of women among daily cannabis users. This finding suggests an interesting question for future research. At what point in a cannabis-using career do users purchase their drugs? These findings contribute to the existing research by documenting the proportion of female buyers, and preferences for type and quantum in a sample that is representative of a market and is not based on self-reported purchases.