Cannabis Growers Showcase seeks to sell excess cannabis

ALBANY, N.Y. (WTEN) -- Getting legal cannabis could get easier in New York. The Office of Cannabis Management approved a measure known as the The Cannabis Growers Showcase which could make it easier for stakeholders to sell excess product.

"Hopefully they get these rules and regulations out fairly quickly and you know it’s summer time … you don’t wanna buy weed in the middle of the winter," said Jeremy Jimenez, CEO of Honest Farm Co. Jimenez has an excess 1000 pounds of cannabis. Our Capitol Correspondent, Amal Tlaige was told that among all growers, there’s 250,000 pounds of flour waiting to be sold, an oversupply from the 2022 growing season. Cultivators prepared the product thinking more dispensaries would have opened shop by now. 

The Cannabis Growers Showcase seeks to fix that issue, it will allow three growers to partner with one retailer to sell their products at certain festivals and events; this includes farmers and processors. But John Kagia, Director of Policy at OCM said including a processor is optional and the showcases can happen at a variety of places. "These can be at the farms of our growers, or at the manufacturing facilities of our processors, or even at our retail locations," he said.

The showcase can be held at events approved by OCM, such as locations that have not opted out of cannabis sales. It cannot be held at an events where the majority of those attending are under the age of 21 or receive federal funding. "We are going to be evaluating the proposals and submissions as they come in," said Kagia.

Assemblywoman Donna Lupardo and Chair of the Agriculture Committee said this is long overdue. "We have been truly desperate over what Senator Hinchey and I have described as an agricultural emergency, even in the meeting they described our farmers as the anchors of the cannabis supply chain, so it’s long overdue, welcome news," said Lupardo. The applications open up Thursday.