Governor of Kentucky announced the state’s first licensed medical marijuana dispensary they will open next weekend. And he predicts the business will “run out” of supplies by the end of the day.

At a press conference Thursday, Gov. Andy Beshear (D) called it “great news” that The Post Dispensary in Beaver Dam will officially begin accepting registered medical cannabis patients starting Saturday. supplied by the state’s first licensed cannabis growerFarmtucky.

“This news makes Saturday the first day that safe, regulated medical cannabis is available to patients, and makes The Post the first fully approved and licensed medical dispensary in the state,” Beshear said. “Our priority is to ensure that Kentuckians with cancer, PTSD, MS and other serious medical conditions can now have access to safe medical cannabis.”

“It will be a limited supply that we expect to sell out on Saturday,” he said. “But this certainly shows what’s to come, and it’s a big mark that we’ve achieved in this program.”

It will be the Post Dispensary open on Saturday from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.-or while supplies last. There will also be a ribbon cutting ceremony at 9 am

The governor, who has long championed cannabis reform, He anticipated a market launch earlier this monthwhile claiming that medical marijuana will help thousands of patients find an alternative to opioids for pain management.

Beshear provided more specific details on the program’s progress, noting that more than 23,000 patients have received e-certificates for access to cannabis, including nearly 1,800 to treat cancer symptoms, and 15,000 with chronic pain, “who would otherwise be taking opioids, which is one of the reasons we’ve pushed this program so hard.”

In terms of licensing marijuana businesses, the state has so far approved 16 cultivations, 48 ​​dispensaries and six security compliance facilities. Officials have also certified 506 doctors to prescribe medicinal cannabis.

The governors at the end of October it passed the milestone of registering 15,000 patientsbut that has grown significantly in recent weeks.

In July, Beshear sent a letter to President Donald TrumpCalling for the exclusion of provisions of the congressional spending bill Prevent the Justice Department from rescheduling marijuana.

In his letter to the president, he noted that a pending proposal to move cannabis from Schedule I to Schedule III under the Controlled Substances Act (CSA) is “something you supported during your presidential campaign.”

“That process should be allowed to play out. Americans deserve leadership that won’t move the goalposts in the middle of the game,” Beshear said, noting that he was among the tens of thousands who filed public comments in favor of reform when he began the Biden administration, “showing broad public interest in reprogramming.”

“I joined that effort because it’s about helping people. The rescheduling would give suffering patients the relief they need,” the governor said. “It would ensure that communities are safer because legal medical products reduce the illegal market. It would provide new and meaningful research on health benefits.”

Beshear also cited a letter to the DEA he signed last year asking for rescheduling because “the jury is no longer out on marijuana. It has medical benefits.”

Back at the state level, the governor recently said he recognizes that “it’s taken longer than we’d like” to get the industry under control since he signed into law the legalization of medical marijuana in 2023.

In recognition of this delayed implementation, recently signed an executive order this year to waive renewal fees for patients who get the cards so that they are not charged again before the stores open. And another order he signed to provide protections for qualified patients who obtain medical marijuana outside of Kentucky “will remain in place.”

Beshear announced in May that the state had launched a new online directory that allows people to see where medicinal cannabis will open next to them

He noted that the state is working to provide access to patients “as soon as possible,” which includes speeding up the licensing process. Governor also in January ceremoniously issued the first medical marijuana cards in the commonwealth.

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Meanwhile, the governors sent a letter to Kentucky’s congressional delegation in Januaryurging them to “take decisive action to protect the constitutional rights of our law-abiding medical cannabis patients” by repealing the federal ban on possession of firearms by marijuana users.

Bipartisan Kentucky senators introduced similar legislation asked the federal representatives of the state to take corrective measuresBeshear said he agrees but would I would like to see even more significant changes at the federal level.

The federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) warned Kentucky residents late last year that if they choose to participate in the state’s medical marijuana program, they will be prohibited from buying or possessing firearms under federal law.

As for implementing the state’s medical cannabis law, Beshear said during his State of the Commonwealth address in January Cannabis will be available to patients sometime “this year.” Later he also shared tips for patients to find a doctor and sign up to participate in the cannabis program.

Health professionals have been able to Patients began to evaluate the recommendations from the beginning of last December.

While there are currently no operational dispensaries for patients, Beshear also confirmed that an executive order he signed in 2023 will be in place in the interim, protecting patients. Those with medical cannabis purchased from licensed out-of-state retailers.

In last November’s election, Kentucky also saw more than 100 cities and counties pass local ordinances to allow medical cannabis businesses in their jurisdictions. The governor said the election results show that “the jury is no longer out” on the issue this is clearly supported by voters across party and geographic lines.

A Jersey cannabis grower exporting tonnes of medicinal products every year has praised the island’s unique regulatory framework and redevelopment of disused greenhouses for allowing it to expand into UK and European markets.

Northern Leaf began operating in 2019 after Jersey introduced a commercial licensing regime that allows producers on the island to supply medical cannabis to overseas pharmaceutical supply chains.

© Northern leaf

Revival of abandoned greenhouses
This regulatory framework was introduced following the collapse of the island’s tomato export industry, which left many large greenhouse sites unused.

Northern Leaf operates out of one of these former horticultural structures, which has been rebuilt for the cultivation of cannabis in a controlled environment in the mid-west of the island.
The company said the combination of the regulatory framework and the availability of unused greenhouses supports its ability to scale.

He added that Jersey’s location, just a 30-minute ferry ride to France, provides a direct route for products to be shipped by road to mainland Europe.

© Northern leaf

Northern Leaf expects to export around six tonnes of cannabis this year and nine tonnes next year. He added that everything grown in the last five months has already been sold and future crops are also pre-sold in the UK and European markets.

Growing up on an island
Head of Production and Facilities Andrew Dunlop described the facility as “the benchmark for modern cultivation facilities”.

The greenhouse uses CO₂ injection, automated irrigation, environmental and gas control systems and air purification designed to reduce the risk of pathogens. The growing area is divided into compartments of 20 x 80 meters, so that different genetics and crop phases can run simultaneously.

Northern Leaf is grown on coir rather than rockwool, a substrate often seen in large installations. Mr Dunlop said: “It’s higher yielding, medium forgiving in terms of excess water or nutrients, and coir has a lower environmental impact.”

© Northern leaf

Drying takes place in purpose-built dryers that control the rate of moisture loss to maintain consistency while preventing the loss of terpenes, the molecules primarily responsible for the flavor and aroma of cannabis.

The company holds an EU-GMP bulk licence, which allows it to produce and supply Bulk Pharmaceutical API to distributors and packers in the UK and Europe before the products reach medical cannabis patients.

Northern Leaf has been under a new management team for the past 14 months, which has focused on stabilizing production, strengthening operational controls and expanding technical capability.

The business is also expanding through cannabis genetics and tissue culture in collaboration with international collaborators. It plans to increase supply to the UK cannabis market by 2026. According to estimates, the current demand in the UK is between 20 and 25 tonnes.

For more information:
Northern leaf
+44 1534 660420
(email protected)
northern-leaf.com