Currently New York cannabis farmers are sitting on a mountain of legal cannabis. About 200 farmers grow cannabis in New York with roughly about 300,000 pounds of cannabis just sitting around. This is due to the state failing to approve several dispensaries licenses to sell and carry cannabis. There are currently farmers still sitting on cannabis from even last year’s harvest.
Back in 2021 was when New York legalized the sale of cannabis for recreational use, with also having medical sales legalized back in 2014. There were predictions made that many new legal dispensaries would open monthly beginning in 2023 but so far only one shop has opened with only a handful opening soon.
This leaves a major issue for many farmers who we’re willing to invest in and grow cannabis, seeing as soon here many of their harvests will no longer be good enough to be sold on shelves. Many are now planning on scaling back future harvests, which may pose an interesting flip to the situation if more shops do open during future harvests.
New York state officials are claiming to be taking the situation seriously with support towards opening more legal dispensaries. They also have a $200 million dollar fund in the works to help with business openings, with about $150 million dollars from private investments being a major contributor to the fund. Currently there is no news on if these private funds have been secured and is currently an ongoing process. Due to this lack of approval of shops and assistance, there is a current estimate of around 1,500 shops illegally selling cannabis and related products causing a surge in black market sales.
The Struggle for Business Owners
It’s not just licensing that’s making it a struggle for dispensary owners in New York, but other major factors as well. Not only is a large amount of capital needed to cover basics like rent and other startup costs but simply finding a lease that is approved is tough. Approved leases are now exceedingly over six figures due to their scarcity.
There is an even higher struggle to even get an approved lease or real estate in the first place. Part of the issue is New York state is so slow to roll out storefronts is due to them rejecting locations that are too close to competing state-leased dispensaries. The cause of this is mostly from a private company called The Dormitory Authority of the State of New York (DASNY).
Another major problem is the clear direct ties the governor of New York, Kathy Hochu, has to big corporations that have a foot in the game such as Big Pharma, Big Real Estate, and Big Tobacco. She currently has over sixty-two million dollars in campaign contributions from such organizations. Just when you thought it couldn’t get any worse, she also has a daughter-in-law that is a top lobbyist at a pharmaceutical firm named Biogen that is actively attempting to influence lawmakers on both state and federal levels.
Surely these politicians and corporations have the best intentions for all of us…
Hopefully both farmers and businesses owners in New York can get their businesses fully operating and moving along soon. New Yorkers should stay cautious of their politicians and lawmakers.
