Ohio issues 10 dual licenses for pending launch of adult-use marijuana sales

Ohio regulators have issued the first 10 dual licenses to marijuana cultivators and processors in the lead-up to adult-use sales in the potential billion-dollar Midwest market.

According to Cleveland.com, the companies licensed to supply both medical cannabis patients and adult-use consumers include:

• AT-CPC of Ohio, owned by Klutch Cannabis, a processor and large-scale cultivator in Akron.
• Farkas Farms, a smaller-scale cultivator in Grafton.
• FN Group Holdings, better known as Wellspring Fields, a processor in Ravenna.
• GTI Ohio, an affiliate of Chicago-based multistate operator Green Thumb Industries, which operates a processing and large-scale cultivation center in Clark County.
• One Orijin, a processor in Columbus.
• Pure Ohio Wellness, a processor and large-scale cultivator in Springfield.
• Riviera Creek Holdings II, a processor in Youngstown.

Ohio launch different than other markets

MJBizDaily reported in June that the Ohio rollout would not follow the template of other states, where retailers typically are first in line for approvals.

Meanwhile, more than 100 existing medical marijuana dispensaries in the process of receiving dual licenses are still restricted from serving adult-use consumers until they receive so-called “certificates of operation” from the Ohio Department of Commerce’s Division of Cannabis Control.

The delays are an unwelcomed reality for local operators who hoped to cash in the perennial boost of the Fourth of July weekend, one of the busiest purchasing days of the year for the industry, and July 10, an emerging holiday for dab enthusiasts and a booming sales day for concentrates.

Opening celebrations restricted

In another Ohio anomaly, regulators issued several restrictions for retailers that could dampen the celebratory vibe that traditionally marks the first day of recreational sales – and a new era of marijuana policy.

The outdoor restrictions, according to The Columbus Dispatch, include:

• No music outside the store.
• No food trucks/other food offerings for sale or for free.
• No celebratory decor or unapproved signage.
• No ribbon cuttings outside the store.

Though expectations were hyped by politicos that recreational marijuana sales in Ohio would begin sometime in June, regulators have taken a different stance over the past month.

Under Ohio law approved through a November voter referendum, converted marijuana business licenses must be issued by Sept. 7.