Five years after it legalized recreational marijuana, Oregon has a new problem and it’s not the munchies.
Stateline reports a large surplus of recreational weed in Oregon storehouses and processing plants has led to concerns that licensed growers may turn to the black market or look across state lines to sell their harvest.
Oregon is among 11 states that have legalized recreational marijuana over the last seven years.
Its surplus dilemma begs the question: could price supports for growers be far behind?
Pennsylvania, which is among 33 states that have legalized medical marijuana, is weighing the pros and cons of recreational marijuana. Lt. Gov. John Fetterman, a longtime advocate of recreational marijuana, completed a highly publicized statewide listening tour, visiting every county in Pennsylvania this spring to gauge public sentiment on the issue.
Back in Oregon, Stateline quoted a report from the state agency that regulates legal marijuana in which it estimated that growers had produced enough surplus to satisfy recreational users there for more than six years.
Meanwhile, word is getting around about the surplus.
Michael Getlin, a licensed grower in Oregon City told Stateline he gets regular cold calls from out of state residents offering two to three times the Oregon market price.
Those selling to such buyers could risk their growers’ license as well as scrutiny from federal authorities who take a dim view of interstate commerce involving the weed that is still classified as a class one controlled substance.
