Ohioans can start buying recreational marijuana in some dispensaries this week
Ohioans will be able to legally purchase recreational marijuana starting this week.
The state’s first recreational marijuana sales will take place Tuesday at some dispensaries across the state, sources confirmed to the Ohio Capital Journal.
“We are stepping into a new future for Ohio where citizens will have access to safe products and communities will feel the benefits of this growing industry through tax revenue and job opportunities,” Ohio Cannabis Coalition Spokesperson Tom Haren said in an email.
The Division of Cannabis Control plans on issuing the first set of dispensary non-medical licenses on Tuesday, James Crawford, spokesperson for the Division of Cannabis Control, said in an email. No certificates of operations have been issued to dispensaries as of Friday, which would allow them to start selling recreational marijuana.
“We will provide a formal announcement on Monday,” he said.
(Editor’s note: See the announcement at: https://highlandcountypress.com/news/division-cannabis-control-issue-fi….)
These dispensaries confirmed to the Capital Journal that they will open for recreational sales on Tuesday —
• Trulieve dispensaries in Beavercreek, Columbus and Westerville.
• The Ohio Cannabis Company’s three dispensaries in Piqua, Harpster and Canton.
• Sunnyside’s Cincinnati and Wintersville dispensaries.
• The Cannabist Company’s five Ohio locations in Dayton, Logan, Marietta, Monroe and Warren.
• Verilife dispensaries in Cincinnati, Hillsboro and Wapakoneta.
“It is very exciting to be a part of history-changing events,” Michele Minehart, one of OCC’s owners and general manager for the Harpster location, said in an email. “Ohioans have waited for this day – our stores have been fielding phone calls and emails for months – and we’re thrilled to be able to open our doors to adults who want safe and easy access to cannabis.”
The Ohio Cannabis Company expects sales will triple. Sunnyside expects their other Ohio dispensary locations in Chillicothe, Marion and Newark will be able to sell recreational marijuana soon.
“We can’t wait to open our Sunnyside doors across Ohio to show consumers what regulated cannabis looks like — I think they will be surprised at the product selection and welcoming experience,” Sunnyside spokesperson Jason Erkes said in an email.
Ohioans voted to legalize weed in November, but there has been nowhere to legally buy it. Lawmakers tried to tweak the law, but ultimately the legislation ended up stalling in the opposite chamber.
Division of Cannabis Control
The Division of Cannabis Control has received 230 applications to switch medical marijuana licensees to dual-use cannabis licenses and 155 facilities (including 134 dispensaries) have qualified for a provisional license — a placeholder while the provisional licensee works to meet the requirements to get a certificate of operation.
Six testing labs, 29 cultivators and 39 processors have received a certificate of operation from the division as of Friday, according to the division.
“Given the fact that cultivators, processors and testing labs are less complicated than dispensaries – and to ensure an efficient supply chain – cultivators, processes and labs receive some priority over dispensaries when it comes to issuance of Certificates of Operation to help ensure that, once Certificates of Operation are issued to dispensaries, there is non-medical product available for adult consumers to purchase,” Crawford said in an email.
Dispensaries can’t sell non-medical marijuana unless the cultivator, processor and lab that have handled the marijuana have their non-medical certificate of operation, Crawford said.
License applications must be approved or denied by Sept. 7.
Megan Henry is a reporter for the Ohio Capital Journal and has spent the past five years reporting in Ohio on various topics including education, healthcare, business and crime. She previously worked at The Columbus Dispatch, part of the USA Today Network. Follow OCJ Reporter Megan Henry on Twitter.
Ohio Capital Journal is part of States Newsroom, the nation’s largest state-focused nonprofit news organization.
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