We’re gearing up for NY Cannabis Insider’s half-day conference in Syracuse on Friday, and hope to see a lot of our readers from CNY and across the state.
But here’s a look at what we covered last week:
On Monday, reporter Tom Wanamaker wrote a story that asks whether NY’s medical marijuana operators will supply the state’s first adult-use dispensaries. The Office of Cannabis Management has awarded more than 200 conditional adult-use cultivation licenses to businesses that were previously part of NY’s hemp research program.
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But stakeholders have raised concerns over whether these farmers will grow enough weed to supply consumer demand, and if the quality will match customer expectations. When Tom asked the OCM whether medical growers would supply adult-use dispensaries, the agency responded that it will “consider all options on the table.”
However, some advocates fear such a scenario may lead to the medical suppliers’ eventual domination of the New York market, as has happened in other states, at the expense of the little guys – for whom MRTA explicitly carved out a space.
I talked to a couple people about the recently posted public comments and OCM responses regarding the agency’s proposed regulations for medical marijuana home growing. While stakeholders in New York’s marijuana business community have been paying close attention to the licensing for conditional growers, processors and retailers in recent months, medical home grow regulations are important to the state’s patients and caregivers, as the rules dictate how much weed they can grow, where they can grow it, and many other boundaries.
These stakeholders were slightly encouraged by the fact that OCM appears to have adjusted their proposed regulations based on the feedback they received. However, they had some issues with the plant maximums OCM laid out, and its lack of solutions for some housing-related problems associated with medical home grow.
I wrote another story last week about sampling firms. A sampling firm is a third-party cannabis testing lab. Workers from sampling firms will collect samples of products from cultivators and processors and deliver them to a testing lab, which will then measure things like potency and contaminants.
The inclusion of sampling firms in NY’s regulatory structure is a forward-looking way to fight issues seen in other legal states like potency inflation and lab shopping. However, one issue that may emerge is a lack of specific requirements for sample collection methods, or training for technicians.
Last week, we added to our running features: People to Know in NY Cannabis series, and Show us your CAURDs. We ran a People to Know profile on Scheril Murray Powell, an attorney and COO for the NY-based nonprofit JUSTÜS Foundation; and a Show us your CAURDs on Jarred Spindel, the owner of D LUX Agency who hopes to open a concept destination retail and delivery dispensary in or around NYC.
On Friday, we posted attorney Jeffrey Hoffman’s latest Ask Me Anything segment. On his weekly LinkedIn Q&A, Hoffman answered questions about elections, medical patient priority and what’s going well.
Lastly, we ran multiple pieces about NY Cannabis Insider’s half-day conference in Syracuse coming up on Friday. The upcoming NY Cannabis Insider Live industry half-day conference, presented by New York Medical Cannabis Industry Association, will be held from 1 to 6 p.m. at The Rail Line. Attendees have access to panel conversations and speakers, complimentary professional headshots, and ample networking time to connect with other cannabis industry professionals. Space is limited and tickets are expected to sell out.
That’s all for now, enjoy the weekend, and I hope to see you in Syracuse!
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