Hundreds of Cannabis Business Licenses Won’t Fix New York’s Problem
ALBANY, NY – The State of New York opened a licensing window on Wednesday , making hundreds of new adult-use licenses available to current and would-be retailers, cultivators, processors, and distributors. But unless the state gets a handle on the percentage of licenses allocated to each category, it faces a massive cultivation glut and a continuing challenge from the illicit retailers currently undermining legal dispensaries. The New York Office of Cannabis Management (OCM) previously approved 333 conditional licenses, 81 percent of which went to cultivators. To date, the OCM has issued 40 conditional licenses for processing and distribution and 23 conditional licenses for adult-use dispensaries to grow, distribute, and sell cannabis. In addition to the shortage of licensed adult-use retailers, an estimated 2,000 illegal dispensaries operate openly across the state, taking an enormous bite out of the legal market and leaving existing licensed cultivators with a massive amount of pr...