October 1st for recreational cannabis in Vermont?

Ben James of Bravo Botanicals and Encore Extracts assesses the fate of his crop at his farm in Southern Vermont

Not really.

For license-holders, they don’t have to wait until the first of the month, according to officials at the Cannabis Control Board (CCB). Sadly, only a few dispensaries have been issued their licenses so it’s a bit of a false promise for the majority of retail enterprises.

The other sad truth is that cultivation licenses were issued so late, the harvest was delayed, which also delays curing and drying and testing and packaging. There will be scant product to put on the shelves, even if all the dispensaries were able to open their doors on the first.

It’s going to be a long, rolling “grand opening” for fully legal weed in Vermont. Businesses crave predictability in the market more than anything, and this market will be anything but stable for the first year. Agility and adaptability are going to be the key traits of any successful operation.

And to be clear, October 1st will be a hyped event, occurring primarily in the media, most likely lacking anything worth celebrating. Set your expectations now. Maybe we’ll all be pleasantly surprised.