Pennsylvania State Health Department officials on Tuesday selected 12 business owners to grow and process medical marijuana, a landmark in the development of the state’s MMJ program.
The agency granted MMJ cultivator licenses to firms scattered across the state, according to PennLive.com:
- Prime Wellness of Pennsylvania (Berks County)
- Franklin Labs (Berks)
- Pennsylvania Medical Solutions (Lackawanna)
- Standard Farms (Luzerne)
- Ilera Healthcare (Fulton)
- AES Compassionate Care (Franklin)
- Terrapin Investment Fund 1 (Clinton)
- GTI Pennsylvania (Montour)
- AGRiMED Industries of PA (Greene)
- PurePenn (Allegheny)
- Holistic Farms (Lawrence)
- Cresco Yeltrah (Jefferson)
Pennsylvania’s largest city, Philadelphia, did not receive a cultivator permit, but more licenses are likely to be granted down the road, The Philadelphia Inquirer reported.
Licensed growers will have six months to meet standards that show they are operational, after which they can begin growing.
According to PennLive.com, the health department received 457 MMJ applications – 177 for grower/processor licenses and 280 for dispensary permits.
The health department plans to announce the first round of 27 dispensary licenses by June 30.
The state’s medical marijuana law was enacted in May 2016, and MMJ sales are expected to begin sometime in 2018. Dispensaries are permitted to sell medical marijuana in the form of pills, oils, vapor, ointments or liquids, but smokable cannabis is prohibited.
– Associated Press
