The start of Maine’s long-awaited recreational marijuana market was officially postponed on Friday because of the coronavirus pandemic.
A new timeline won’t be announced until public health experts deem it appropriate to do so, state regulators said.
The postponement was expected.
The Maine Office of Marijuana Policy characterized the move as postponing the “spring debut” of recreational cannabis sales. The agency indicated in March that the launch could be delayed beyond June.
“Just one month ago, as we announced the issuance of Maine’s first conditional licenses for adult-use marijuana establishments, few would have envisioned the effects … (COVID-19) would have on the daily lives of Mainers,” OMP Director Erik Gundersen wrote in the most recent letter to industry officials.
“However, it now appears as though a spring launch of Maine’s adult-use industry is simply unrealistic.”