If you didn’t remember to celebrate it, you weren’t alone — but many in the industry are catching on to this relatively new addition to the trio of shopping days that kick off the holiday season. First there was Black Friday. Then there was Cyber Monday when online shopping entered the spotlight. Small Business Saturday has lately made it a trio. And now —  with eyes on the large amounts of cannabis typically purchased the day before Thanksgiving, it’s become a full‑fledged quartet with Green Wednesday.

What’s been typical for Green Wednesday sales? About 40% higher than other Wednesdays in November — with good reason. A study by multistate operator Ayr Wellness found that 23% of Americans say that family visits for the holidays are stressful, and around 15% of Americans will use cannabis to deal with holiday-related stress.

The numbers look even stronger when only cannabis users are surveyed. Consumer research company CBD Oracle found that of U.S. adults who’ve consumed cannabis at least once before, 68.7 percent of respondents expect to use more over the holiday period to help manage stress. Specifically, 47.8 percent expected to have way more, and 20.9 percent a little more, with 20.4 per cent about the same amount.

The figures are in, and they show that this year’s Green Wednesday was a big win for the industry — the biggest one yet, with increased sales across the U.S. thanks to more states allowing recreational purchases plus an increasing de-stigmatization for cannabis products. In comparison, Black Friday appears to have not shown the growth of previous years, As the Ayr Wellness study wryly notes, cannabis is “a useful resource for managing family dynamics during the holidays.”

The study also noted that 37% of cannabis consumers planned to serve THC-infused products with their Thanksgiving meal — most likely to help deal with the “family gossip” table topic that they ranked more stressful than politics, money and religion. These consumers were focused on using concentrates and products such as cannabutters in meal preparation, with edibles such as gummies and chocolates gracing their holiday tables; flowers and vapes not so much.

In addition, about 30% of consumers also planned to pair cannabis with alcohol, so there’s still lots of life remaining in those traditional champagne flutes and eggnog cups.

Image Credit: Happy Valley