This was supposed to be the big year for marijuana legalization. But in many state capitols across the country, efforts have stalled or collapsed as Democrats clash over everything from race and criminal justice to how to divvy up a gold mine of pot-tax revenue.
Legalization of recreational marijuana seemed all but inevitable in at least a half-dozen states when the year began — including New York, New Jersey and Illinois, which all have Democratic legislatures.
The 11th state to legalize recreational weed will be...
So, which state looks to have an inside track on becoming the 11th to legalize adult-use marijuana? Had you asked a few months ago, it looked to be a neck-and-neck battle between New Jersey and New York. Unfortunately, efforts to legalize marijuana in both states fell apart, and neither looks to be in a position to pass legislation anytime soon. Instead, the Land of Lincoln appears to be in the pole position to become the 11th recreationally legalized state.
Terra Tech Corporation (TRTC) runs multiple subsidiaries, including Blüm, a retail dispensary for medical cannabis products. The company has locations in Nevada and New Jersey, with a bulk of properties in California.
Harvest Health and Recreation, a vertically integrated cannabis company, announced Tuesday it will acquire CannaPharmacy which owns or operates (through management companies) cannabis licenses in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, and Maryland and holds a minority interest in a pending licensee in Colombia.
For New Jersey the acquisition includes one of six operational – and 12 awarded by the state – fully vertical licenses, permitting cultivation, retail sales and manufacturing.
Choom™ (CSE:CHOO) (CHOOF) ("Choom"), an emerging adult and medical use cannabis company that has secured one of the largest national retail networks in Canada, is pleased to announce it is entering the United States, starting with the state of New Jersey. Choom through its wholly owned US subsidiary, Choom Holdings USA Inc., has signed a letter of intent (“LOI”) to purchase an equity interest in a New Jersey based (the “NJ Company”) medical retail dispensary applicant in New Jersey’s upcoming Request of Applications (“RFA”) that also inten
Acreage Holdings has licenses in 17 states, of which 12 are operational, while the company has licenses to process in 12 states, seven of which are now in operation. The company has licenses to operate 68 retail dispensaries in 12 states, of which 21 are currently operational in 10 states. The Botanist is its retail concept designed to appeal to both adult use and medicinal consumers.
In just two decades, the cannabis industry has evolved from an untracked black-market business to a legitimate industry – generating $10.4 billion in revenues in 2018. The industry’s growth is poised only to continue, with expectations that it will eclipse $25 billion by 2025.
Thirty-three states and the District of Columbia have legalized cannabis in some form, whether for recreational or medical use, and many others elected pro-cannabis governors in last year’s midterm elections, meaning that another big leap forward may happen as soon as this year.
In a day and age when many farmers have folded their operations after selling their land to developers, others have pivoted to a form of cannabis as the new cash crop to grow their business.
Kenneth VandeVrede is a third generation farmer. His grandfather started raising mums and tomatoes in New Jersey 50 years ago and now, he’s trying to stay ahead of the curve by diversifying his crop.
New Jersey saw immense progress in 2018, though no certain milestones have been reached just yet. The year began with staunchly anti-cannabis Governor Chris Christie succeeded by a pro-cannabis governor, Phil Murphy. Murphy swore to legalize adult use within the first 100 days of his term. This did not occur.
State government officials in Massachusetts, New Jersey, and New York are working on a plan that would keep the price of recreational marijuana in the three states as close as possible to avoid having customers crossing state borders in search of better deals.
New York State Governor Andrew Cuomo told the New York Post that he wants to make sure that New York's recreational marijuana framework is consistent with New Jersey and Massachusetts.