At its Sept. 8 meeting, the New Jersey Cannabis Regulatory Commission (CRC) proposed new rules that would allow for an expanded group of ingestible cannabis products – including baked goods, chocolates, butters, jams and drinks – to be sold in the medicinal and recreational markets. Ryan Magee spoke with NJBIZ to discuss the change and how industry businesses should prepare, noting that manufacturers will “need to quickly adapt to” in becoming compliant. “For example, equipment used in manufacturing these products will need to comply with applicable health and safety standards and manufacturers will presumably need to obtain Food Protection Manager Certifications through the New Jersey Department of Health. There are a host of food safety and handling requirements that manufacturers, including their employees, will need to comply with before rolling out a consumer-ready line of edible or drinkable cannabis products in the Garden State.”
The CRC is also preparing to begin accepting applications for wholesale, distribution, and delivery service licenses. Ryan noted that while the application process for the new licenses seems to be “met with slightly less fanfare than cultivators, manufacturers, and retailers,” the additional classes “stand to play an important role in New Jersey’s cannabis supply chain.”
“As more cannabis businesses make their stamp on the market, we will start to see the role of wholesalers and distributors in ensuring a wide selection of cannabis products from different brands are available to consumers around the state. As for delivery licenses, in a world of DoorDash and InstaCart, I’m interested to see how these licenses can lead to opportunities for consumers to order cannabis deliveries via mobile platform,” he observed.