9,000 cannabis cultivation licenses later, how did Oklahoma become a cannabis legend in America?

Since Oklahoma’s medical marijuana law was passed three years ago, the state has become one of the most welcoming environments for marijuana entrepreneurs. Compared to Oregon, Colorado, and Washington, the state now has more retail cannabis stores. It already has more than 9,000 licensed cannabis farms, surpassing California in October, despite having just a tenth the population of California.

The growth is astonishing, even considering that recreational marijuana is illegal in the state. However, Oklahoma has by far the most health cards of any type, with about 10% of its nearly four million residents owning one due to relatively lenient eligibility requirements.

Weed entrepreneurs have flocked to Oklahoma from across the country due to the low barriers to entry and a hands-off policy by state officials. It costs just $2,500 to launch, compared to $100,000 and up in Arkansas. And Oklahoma, a state known for its tough stance on crime, has no limit on the number of cannabis farms, dispensaries, or even the amount each farm can grow.

Older farmers and ranchers vs. new producers

Because of this uncontrolled growth, this new generation of breeders is competing with established ranchers and farmers. Recently, organizations representing farmers, ranchers, sheriffs and feather dusters have joined forces to demand a ban on issuing new permits. They cited several causes: rising land prices, illegal farming and pressure on rural water and electricity supplies. New indoor farms in some areas use hundreds of thousands of gallons of water every day.

But Adria Berry, head of the Oklahoma Medical Marijuana Authority, which regulated the market and reported revenue of over $138 million from retail, local and state taxes on cannabis sales this year through November, said a ban is in place not to be expected.

Though she was an early critic of medical marijuana, Ms. Berry claims the sector is here to stay and that the state’s marijuana statute effectively prevents her agency from reducing the number of new licenses it issues. That means a steady increase in the number of marijuana businesses in Oklahoma.

When he found out earlier this year that Oklahoma was growing marijuana, Mr. Pederson, a Seattle immigrant who had served in the Army, started looking for a new job. Although new to the business, he moved to Keota to run the modest five-person farm, which he said supplied state pharmacies.

Cannabis Industry Growth in Oklahoma

The evidence of the rapid growth is evident. Today, municipalities have far more pharmacies than grocery stores. And there are now more cannabis companies than cotton and wheat farms. A state that remains among the poorest in the nation has created thousands of jobs through industry. Additionally, advocates for the sector claim that recent prison reforms and a less stringent response to possession of marijuana and other drugs have eased the strain on the state prison system.

Cannabiz Media’s chief data officer, Ed Keating, analyzed seed capital in Oklahoma and Connecticut, a state with comparable populations. Cannabiz Media follows changes in the cannabis sector. Cultivation licenses often cost around $50 million, while purchasing a dispensary can cost upwards of $10 million.

According to Mr. Keating, giant multistate marijuana companies have primarily chosen to avoid Oklahoma’s boom and invest in states with more expensive and limited market access. According to him, these mom and pop pharmacies provide services like the neighborhood liquor store or car wash.

However, critics claim that Oklahoma farmers produce significantly more marijuana than can legally be sold in the state, instead supplying the state’s black markets, as opposed to local businesses where most buyers are locals.

According to Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics spokesman Mark Woodward, growers can produce cannabis for as little as $100 a pound and produce it in California or New York for $3,500 to $4,000 a pound due to lower labor, land and licensing costs to sell.

solution to such violations

As a result of these violations, police have conducted multiple raids this year and have closed about 80 farms since April in an attempt to reduce Oklahoma’s underground marijuana yield. In June, officials in Haskell County, a remote area of ​​the state, seized 10,000 cannabis plants, 100 pounds of refined cannabis, vast amounts of guns and large sums of cash in an operation that moved from Colorado to Oklahoma.

There is growing support for a stricter crackdown. Republican Senator James Inhofe asked the federal government for $4 million this year to directly assist the Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics in fighting illegal farming. Additionally, legislation introduced by the legislature would allow local governments in counties and cities to set their license caps.

The legislature recently authorized a full-time enforcement team, and the state Drug Enforcement Agency has employed nearly 20 agents. The Oklahoma Medical Marijuana Authority may hire more than 70 new employees for compliance and enforcement-related positions.

A slump in the price of cannabis

Growers have complained that the ever-expanding supply has caused cannabis prices to fall by nearly half in the previous six months, from $1,600 to as low as $800 per pound for some cannabis strains, as inflows pick up.

Falling prices have cut her earnings by about a third this year, according to Tara Tischauer, co-owner of Red Dirt Sunrown of Guthrie, Oklahoma City. Still, her organization, a family business that also runs a hemp farm and greenhouses for garden plants, employs 25 people and produces 125 pounds of marijuana a week.

Conclusion

She claimed that she believes the state’s cannabis sector is still in its infancy, despite a crowded market. Activists have begun putting a referendum on legalizing recreational marijuana use to the vote next year. As a result, the state’s farmers may be better able to meet demand from neighboring Texas, whose lawmakers have opposed full legalization of cannabis, Ms. Tischhauser said. However, according to critics of Oklahoma’s marijuana policy, that would be a step in the wrong direction.

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