Global Courant
After more than a year of recreational marijuana sales, New Mexico is rolling out its first campaign to educate people about responsible use.
The first wave of billboards is now going up statewide while TV, radio, print and digital ads will run throughout the month of June. The media purchase is worth $400,000.
The state’s Cannabis Control Division confirmed on Wednesday that it began work on the campaign last year, but the contract for the work was only recently finalized. An Albuquerque marketing company won the contract after a competitive bidding process.
The “Yes & Know” campaign is built around the phrase “Yes – cannabis is legal. Know – the rules.”
“We recognize the need for education in this new cannabis industry. This campaign opens the conversation for responsible storage and safe consumption of cannabis,” said Linda Trujillo, chief of the state’s Department of Regulations and Licensing, which oversees the cannabis division.
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New Mexico is one of more than 20 states nationwide that have legalized adult-use marijuana. The sale began in April 2022, after lawmakers passed legislation championed by Democratic Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham. The state already had a medical marijuana program.
In its first year of recreational sales, New Mexico issued approximately 2,000 cannabis licenses, including licenses to more than 630 retailers and more than 500 manufacturers.
New Mexico has launched an educational campaign on recreational marijuana use.
Sales for the first year exceeded $300 million, with monthly sales reaching their highest levels in March, April and May, according to data from the Cannabis Control Division.
The new campaign suggests users start with low doses and go slow, saying cannabis works differently on everyone. It also tells people to keep cannabis away from children and pets, not to keep it in cookie jars, not to take it across state lines, or to drive badly.
The state department of transportation held a summit earlier this year to raise awareness of the risks of cannabis-intoxicated driving and to look at evidence-based approaches to prevent drunk driving.
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While police in New Mexico’s largest city have not noticed a significant increase in cannabis-related accidents or other crimes, Albuquerque police spokesman Gilbert Gallegos said the department is working to train more officers to conduct such investigations.
