Retail Availability of Intoxicating Cannabis and Mushroom Products Across Eleven U.S. Cities: Sales Persist Despite Prohibitions.

Retail sales of intoxicating cannabis products (DICPs) like delta-8 THC and hallucinogenic mushrooms are widespread in US smoke shops, including in states where they are explicitly illegal. In a survey of 1,023 smoke shops across eleven states, 51.4% of those that answered reported selling DICPs, with availability ranging from 2.0% in New York City to 93.8% in Jacksonville, FL. Among shops that answered about mushrooms, 59.7% sold them, and over half of those sold Amanita mushrooms. One-third of retailers could not identify the type of mushroom they sold. The authors argue for greater retail surveillance, education, and enforcement.

Study at a glance

Abstract

Retail sales of intoxicants, including derived intoxicating cannabis products (DICPs) such as delta-8 tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and hallucinogenic mushrooms, have rapidly increased throughout the US, despite their sale being federally illegal. This study assessed DICP and hallucinogenic mushroom availability in US smoke shops with differing DICP and psilocybin laws. In May-October 2025, using Google's Incognito mode, we searched "smoke shop in [city, state]" across eleven cities in states (California, Colorado, Florida, Maryland, New York, Nevada, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Texas, Virginia, Washington) with differing legal contexts for THC and mushrooms (7 explicitly prohibited DICP sales, 2 decriminalized psilocybin, Amanita was not explicitly illegal in any). We called each store (n=1,023) to assess product availability. Bivariate tests assessed differences by state laws. 73.0% (n=747/1,023) answered the phone and responded about DICP availability: 51.4% (n=384/747) reported selling DICPs (39.6% DICPs illegal vs. 80% not explicitly illegal, p<.05; range: 2.0% in New York City to 93.8% in Jacksonville, FL). Overall, 70.2% (n=718/1,023) answered questions about mushroom availability: 59.7% (n=414/718) sold mushrooms (56.6% decriminalized psilocybin vs. 57.9% illegal psilocybin, p=.786; range: 0% in New York City to 84.0% in Las Vegas, NV). Among those selling mushrooms, 54.1% specified they sold Amanita mushrooms, 28.5% did not know mushroom type, and 17.4% said 'something else'. DICPs were sold widely, including in states where they were expressly illegal (~40%). One-third of retailers were unable to identify mushroom type sold. Collectively, findings suggest the need for greater retail surveillance, education, and enforcement.