Chicago might limit the word “dispensary” for use only by state-licensed adult-use marijuana stores.
Under a proposal by city Alderman Brian Hopkins, CBD shops in Chicago would be prohibited from advertising themselves as “dispensaries.”
According to the Chicago Tribune, the proposal also would prohibit CBD retailers “from advertising with the image of a cannabis leaf or bud – as licensed dispensaries are forbidden to do – or a green cross.”
Hopkins told the Tribune that those stores are “trying to masquerade as legitimate (marijuana) dispensaries” and that using the description amounts to “false and deceptive marketing.”
Some hemp operators told the newspaper the proposal is harassment.
Charles Wu, owner of a hemp CBD grower and retailer in a Chicago suburb, said he doesn’t use the word “dispensary” but that the proposal smacks of protectionism.
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“It’s basically large companies trying to maintain their monopolies.”
Illinois currently has only 110 adult-use marijuana dispensaries.
But last week, the state issued an additional 185 recreational marijuana retail licenses.
