Michigan’s medical marijuana regulators really should do their job in a timely manner and stop attempting to eviscerate the industry any further.
As you’ll recall, recently 210 medical marijuana businesses were shut down by the Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, which gave all manner of excuses for shuttering the dispensaries.
Detroit was the hardest hit with roughly 150 businesses closed, which left less than 70 open in Michigan’s largest city.
The massacre left only 215 businesses around the state with approval to continue operating temporarily. They are now awaiting approval for their permanent state licenses, which is expected by June 15, when the new MMJ framework is scheduled to be in place.
It is also when medical marijuana is meant to become a bona fide industry in Michigan.
The process is moving slowly and many are worried that the market will not be prepared by the mid-June.
But still, people are trying to be optimistic and are getting prepared. To that end, dispensary owners are looking to train hundreds of workers to be part of their sales teams and consultants for Michigan’s 277,000 registered MMJ patients.
Budtender classes are being given in classroom settings and online. Experts from out of state are coming to Michigan to help.
Farrah Vorhauer of Colorado and Rosie Yagielo from Florida traveled to Michigan in February to teach two, four-hour classes to more than 50 Michiganders who are hoping to get jobs in MMJ sales, reported the Detroit Free Press.
Potential budtenders learned about the plant, strains, and how the three main families of cannabis treat different symptoms. They are also learning about the benefits of cannabanoids (CBD) for treating chronic pain and other illnesses.
If all goes as planned and the bureaucracy doesn’t gum up the works, Michigan’s MMJ sales could bring more $700 million once the market is fully developed. Of course that number will rise significantly if/when recreational weed is approved by voters this fall.
