Acreage, Harvest win medical cannabis dispensary licenses in North Dakota

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A couple of large, multistate players won North Dakota’s first medical marijuana dispensary licenses, snagging permits for the state’s two biggest cities as the industry edges closer to launching operations by late this year or early 2019.

A state review panel awarded dispensary licenses in:

  • Fargo: The permit went to Acreage North Dakota, which is owned by New York-based Acreage Holdings. The company has operations in 14 states.
  • Bismarck: HOFB or Harvest of Bismarck, which is owned by Arizona-based Harvest Inc.. The company has MMJ licenses in seven states.

In all, 11 applications were submitted for Fargo and eight for Bismarck. Applicants had to pay a $5,000 nonrefundable fee.

North Dakota reportedly will have eight dispensaries statewide by next year.

The North Dakota Department of Health is accepting applications through Oct. 10 for dispensaries in Grand Forks and Williston and expects to select companies by late November. Applications will open in January for the four remaining regions — Devils Lake, Dickinson, Jamestown and Minot.

North Dakota previously awarded cultivation licenses to Pure Dakota for Bismarck and Grassroots Cannabis for Fargo. Pure Dakota has started growing marijuana, according to state officials.

The department expects to open applications for patients and doctors in late October, with a goal of getting registration cards to those who qualify by the end of the year.

North Dakota voters approved medical marijuana in November 2016, and state law allows its use for 17 conditions as well as terminal illnesses.

– Associated Press and Marijuana Business Daily