When it comes to Cannabis, the industry as a whole is expected to be one the biggest, outperformers of our lifetime. It is the end of marijuana prohibition after-all.

Some stats: 13% of U.S. adults admit to currently smoking pot on a regular basis, while 43% say they have at least tried it, according to a Gallup poll from 2016.

I would put money on these stat figures being largely incorrect, people tend to not like admitting certain things to strangers on the phone. You could probably safely double those numbers, which sounds more realistic to me.

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However, the same poll was conducted in 2013, and only 3 years later the above stats have doubled. Does this mean there are more people smoking the green weed? No, it simply means that in the mainstream it is becoming more and more “acceptable” to admit you do!

We know tens of millions of people in the U.S. — and hundreds of millions more around the globe — smoke or otherwise ingest marijuana in some form.

Now they can do so more openly, leading to drastically higher sales of more diverse products, which will lead to myriad investment opportunities.

And that’s just on the recreational front. And also just in the U.S.

It speaks nothing of the vast medical and health market, for which cannabis flower and oil and seed and stem derivatives are being used to make everything from pills to potions… to treat everything from Alzheimer’s to zits.

The legal cannabis market in the U.S. alone is expected to expand by eight times its current size in the next decade — growing from $6 billion to $50 billion, according to Cowen & Co.

In Canada — where guidance is expected on nationwide recreational legalization next month — the market is worth $22.6 billion annually, according to Deloitte.

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And while some questions admittedly remain about legality at the federal level and the banking issues associated with that, it’s not hard to see the states that have already legalized are clearly benefiting from their newfound tax windfalls.

If there is one thing government likes above all else it is tax revenue. This simple truth assures pot’s eventual nationwide legality.

What’s more, questions like this are only natural in a market that is entirely ground floor. It’s brand new. Frameworks and committees and all that other bureaucratic stuff still need to be formed.

But that’s what makes it so exciting.

There is incredible demand to be met both as it relates to cannabis for consumers and cannabis equities for investors.

The early leaders in the cannabis industry have already spouted off for incredible gains.

Organigram Holdings (TSX-V: OGI), for example, which grows organic cannabis for the medical sector, surged from $0.62 to a high of $3.99 last year — a 543% gain.

Investors in Supreme Pharmaceuticals (TSX-V: SL), another medical grower, saw their stock rise from $0.30 to $2.05 in 2016 — a 583% gain.

Many profits in the cannabis space are yet to come.

MYM Nutraceuticals, Inc (CSE: MYM) is yet another example of a stock that recently had a run, going from 0.05 to 0.28 in time flat, and they are just getting started. In fact, they are a good company to keep an eye on moving forward.

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The opportunities in tiny stocks with explosive potential are popping up everywhere and the point of this article is to shed some light on the fact Marijuana is here to stay, and this is just the beginning. Any talk of a bubble or thoughts that you’re too late to invest in this sector are nonsense considering it’s not even fully legal yet. Institutions aren’t buying the stocks yet. There are no pot ETFs…. But all of this will happen!

And as time goes on, the industry will continue to grow and flourish. Imagine what will happen once big pharmaceutical and tobacco companies make acquisition after acquisition to solidify their foothold in the space.

The time to invest in marijuana stocks is now. You won’t likely see another opportunity like this again in your lifetime, so take it seriously if you’re a serious investor.