ST PAUL, Minn — Nine months after Minnesota legalized recreational marijuana, there are still a lot of questions about how to best sell it. The group that has a big hand in that future that met for the first time on Friday.
The Cannabis Advisory Council is made up 51 people, all of whom are experts in varying fields. They're tasked with several priorities ahead of next year, when the state expects the market on legal pot to open, including:
- Reviewing national cannabis policy
- Examining the effectiveness of state cannabis policy
- Reviewing developments in the cannabis industry and hemp consumer industry
- Reviewing developments in the study of cannabis flower and other items
- Taking public testimony
- Making recommendations to the Office of Cannabis Management
"I thought my background, 20 years in food and beverage ingredients, would be valuable to the state as we go through rule-making," said Kyle Marinkovich, the CEO of Northern Diversified Solutions.
His Burnsville business is having a big impact on the cannabis market that exploded last summer when Minnesota became the 23rd state to legalize recreational marijuana.
"We're just one of a small handful of companies that do this sort of thing, that process hemp," said Marinkovich. The scientists he employs turn locally grown hemp into liquid CBD that companies then buy to infuse into different foods and beverages.
It's years of experience he says makes him qualified to sit on the Cannabis Advisory Council, one of the several members Governor Walz appointed.
In Friday's meeting, the group focused on hiring more staff, streamlining the medicinal and recreational supply and strengthening the social equity process. That's a head start of sorts for certain applicants selected through a vetted lottery that can get a fair shot at accessing capital and a temporary license as early as this summer.
The law also sets statewide caps on the numbers of licenses, in hopes of avoiding the free-for-all scenario that has unfolded in other states that legalized the drug.
"We build it and somebody else comes in and snatches up licenses, I think everybody wants to avoid that," said Marinkovich. "We have really solid companies here that are capable and able to stand up a thriving industry."
The legislature is considering tweaks to the law. Marinkovich calls the process difficult and is ready to put in the work to get regulation right in the growing industry.
"We can do it responsibly and we think it does more good than harm," said Marinkovich.
The council also includes experts in toxicology, manufacturing, social justice and legal services and is required to meet quarterly.
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