USA: Curaleaf regains license to sell recreational cannabis in New Jersey

Curaleaf, one of the leading names in the US cannabis industry, may continue to sell recreational cannabis at all of its New Jersey dispensaries after the state's Cannabis Regulatory Commission (CRC) revoked the decision taken last Thursday. The initial decision severely restricted the company's ability to sell cannabis for recreational purposes, but a new vote, taken during an emergency CRC meeting this Monday, reversed the decision. However, some conditions will have to be respected.

The commission voted in favor of renewing the five annual licenses for Curaleaf with certain conditions attached, such as providing evidence of good faith dealings with union employees and producing records relating to plans to change operations. The company must also provide information about hiring employees and vendors who meet certain criteria.

Curaleaf CEO Matt Darin welcomed the decision, declaring that the company is in good standing with the CRC and has met all necessary requirements for license renewal. He also praised the hundreds of team members who showed up to demonstrate against the initial decision.

Curaleaf's confrontation with workers trying to unionize was a key issue that led to last week's decision, with some commissioners indicating displeasure at the company's lack of transparency with the state. Commissioner Krista Nash pointed out that New Jersey's cannabis regulatory law sets out labor provisions for cannabis companies to follow, including negotiating a contract within 200 days once workers vote to unionize.

The initial rejection of Curaleaf's licenses last week was met with surprise by cannabis advocates and company insiders, but Monday's revocation followed meetings between Curaleaf executives and commission members. Without annual licenses commission approval, recreational cannabis sales would have stopped at two of Curaleaf's three dispensaries as of Friday, April 21.