Product Shortage and High Demand in Massachusetts

The four dispensaries open to date in Massachusetts are having a hard time keeping up with demand, especially because they can’t get enough inventory to satisfy all of the registered patients clamoring for cannabis.

According to The Boston Globe, the quartet of dispensaries are all facing various problems that have caused them to fall short when it comes to delivering product. For one, it’s a supply problem. For another, an unexpected attack of mold prior to harvest forced the dispensary to scrap an entire crop.

A temporary restriction on how much dispensaries can sell to customers at a single time is also not doing their professional reputations any good, either. Thanks to temporary waivers related to cannabis testing, they’re only allowed to sell registered patients 4.23 ounces every two months, instead of the full 10 ounces patients are supposed to be permitted to purchase under the law.

Part of the problem has been an unexpected surge in the number of patients, according to one dispensary owner, who told the Globe that he was serving seven times more than expected when the store opened in September. The current registry stands at 18,476, with roughly 2,600 patients having signed up in December alone.