Licensing and regulatory compliance

What cannabis businesses need to know:

Every aspect of a state legal cannabis business is heavily regulated from who can own them to where they can be located to how products have to be packaged. Below are a few examples.

• There are strict packaging and labeling standards for medicinal cannabis and medicinal products.
• Medicinal cannabis and medicinal cannabis products must be tested for the presence of molds, toxins, pesticides, heavy metals, residual and THC potency. Products that do not meet health and safety standards or exceed caps on THC limits cannot be sold.
• Medicinal cannabis and medicinal cannabis products have to be tracked from seed to sale.
• Medicinal cannabis facilities must meet certain security requirements.
• To qualify for a license, owners and those with control over a prospective cannabis business must meet certain qualifying conditions.
• There will be limitations on the amount of medicinal cannabis and medicinal cannabis products a licensee can sell.
• There are restrictions on adverting the sale of medicinal cannabis and medicinal cannabis products.

Failure to comply can result in expensive fines or, worse, denial or suspension of a license to operate. These regulations are specific to cannabis and require an understanding of the industry. It is important for businesses looking to enter Kentucky’s medicinal cannabis market to engage legal counsel with experience advising cannabis businesses.