(ST. JOSEPH, Mo.) The medical marijuana industry is trying to blaze a trail through St. Joseph as product sales hit an all time high in Missouri.
Missouri legalized medical cannabis in 2018. The state began selling the product in October 2020. In the last ten months from October to July, medical marijuana sales grew from roughly $350,000 to $91.36 million which is an increase of 26,000%.
July saw its single highest month of sales at $21.03 million, the first time sales have topped $20 million.
The numbers show the budding business is growing fast and so is St. Joseph.
“We had a big line waiting for us on the very first day we opened, which was super awesome. I think it was a Wednesday, so in the middle of the week to have such a large audience just waiting for us to be here was a really special thing,” said Jericho Heese, Director of Marketing for Fresh Karma Dispensaries.
St. Joseph is going green.
This year, the city saw two medical marijuana joints pop up: Vertical Enterprise and Fresh Karma.
Fresh Karma was the first dispensary to open in town and Vertical Enterprise was the first and only cultivation and manufacturing grow facility in St. Joseph. Vertical also opened a dispensary this summer on the Belt Highway.
“The stigma around marijuana is going away. We have all types of people come into this store. All kinds of ages, coming from all kinds of backgrounds and doing all different kinds of jobs,” said Chris McHugh, CEO and President of Vertical Enterprise.
The two businesses join a list of 29 cultivation facilities, 141 dispensaries, and 38 manufacturers approved by the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services to date.
As the industry continues to grow with about 135,000 patients licensed by the state so far, local experts said cannabis will be easier to get and soon.
“St. Joseph can look forward to a recreational, legal framework. I think that’s coming next year, probably. I think Missourians are going to vote on that and I think they’re going to overwhelmingly pass it. It’s just the beginning and I think St. Joseph has a really nice foundation. We can grow from here,” said McHugh.
As of August 20th, there are 379 licensed medical marijuana facilities in Missouri.
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