Oregon will be ready to officially launch its recreational marijuana industry in January 2017. The Oregon Liquor Control Commission approved its first recreational marijuana licenses Friday, approving eight cannabis cultivators. The agency was given official oversight of Oregon’s recreational cannabis industry.
“These licensees reflect the pioneering spirit Oregon is known for,” said Rob Patridge, OLCC Chair in a release Friday. “They come from a variety of backgrounds and experiences and possess the entrepreneurial spirit of this industry.”
Eight licenses were given to cultivators in: Lane, Tillamook, Washington, Clackamas, Jackson and Josephine counties and include a variety of large to medium scale indoor and outdoor growers, the agency said. The licensed cultivators begin operating under the OLCC’s authority as soon as they remit their annual licensing fee.
The agency is planning to meet every week through early June to approve additional licenses.
Earlier this year OLCC spokesperson Mark Pettinger told OPB that it was the agency’s goal to approve growers first in order to establish a supply chain before approving dispensaries. He said the agency expects to begin issuing licenses to dispensaries in October.
As of Friday, the agency has received more than 900 recreational marijuana license applications. It says it expects to issue more than 850 by the end of this year when it assumes full control of the regulation of Oregon’s recreational marijuana industry.
For now, dispensaries licensed under the Oregon Heath Authority’s medical marijuana program can conduct recreational sales to persons 21 and older. That provision expires at the end of the year.
We have menus for all the dispensaries currently up and running in Oregon. More than 300 of them are participating in the early recreational marijuana sales.
(Oregon Issues First Recreational Cannabis Grow Licenses – Weed Finder™ News)