The communal experience of cannabis, something that has always been closely linked to joints and vapes, has now been put on an indefinite pause. Edibles to the rescue!

Predictions about marijuana use during the pandemic abounded. Once businesses and buildings started to close, different states declared that cannabis is an essential business. People rightly assumed that times of stress are great times to get high, whether consumers were seasoned cannabis users or not.

Opinions varied when discussing inhaled cannabis and its impact on the pandemic. While some people claimed that joints would be discarded due to the lung irritations they could produce, others said that vapes would be making a comeback, even if they struggled throughout 2019 with a mysterious lung illness.

“As restrictions are lifted, we expect a pent-up demand for cannabis products that can be conveniently used in conjunction with outdoor activities,” Tom Brooksher, CEO of Clear Cannabis, told Forbes.

Edibles are a whole different situation. In a recent interview with the New York Times, Cali Manzello of medical marijuana dispensary Apothecarium, said that she noticed a change in orders the minute the pandemic hit. “One of the first orders that printed out from the pickup machine said 25 packages of this gummy on it. And we all kind of giggled. We were like, ‘Ooh boy, here it goes. It’s starting.’ It did not stop. People were ordering, you know, up to the legal limit, which can be up to 80 edibles in some cases.”

The consumption of edibles has been growing over the past several years, with people choosing them for their discretion and the fact that they don’t harm your lungs.

This increase in edible use sparked by the pandemic could have a hundred different explanations. People could be trying to look out for their health or could be living in cramped situations where they don’t feel like bothering roommates or family members with their smoke. There’s also the fact that the communal experience of cannabis, something that has always been closely linked to joints and vapes, has now been put on an indefinite pause.

“Passing around a tin of gummies is going to be much more acceptable than passing around a joint or a vape pen,” says Lauren Gockley, director of Coda Signature infused edibles.

At the start of the pandemic, people were panic buying marijuana, stocking up on flower, vapes and edibles for the expected month or two of lockdown. Now that we know that the virus is here to stay, and that we’ll be spending much more time at home, it seems like people are shifting their perspectives and embracing cannabis in new ways.