ROCHESTER, Minn. (KTTC) – Recreational cannabis retail is right around the corner for Minnesota. Olmsted County Commissioners unanimously passed an ordinance for the future sale of recreational marijuana on Tuesday. Meanwhile, the state lottery for recreational businesses will take place on June 5.
14 businesses will soon be able to set up shop in Olmsted County after two county lotteries. Olmsted County Assistant Director of Public Health Sagar Chowdhury said local action needed to take place.
“It’s required for local jurisdictions to kind of execute this based off of state statute,” Chowdhury said.
Chowdhury stated owners will need to win both the state lottery and the local government’s lottery to sell recreational cannabis.
“So, once they receive a license at the state level, they have to obtain a registration at the local level to officially sell retail products,” Chowdhury said.
Owner of ‘Canna Serve Ya’ Peter Jada said the process to earn a recreational business license is nearly complete, but says the process for selling the plant has been a long time coming since its legalization in 2023. He said if he wins both lotteries, the business could be profitable.
“Minnesota wasn’t ready to have people start right off the bat,” Jada said. “They wanted to say, OK, let’s get it legalized, have people [selling] legal cannabis things, so you can’t get in trouble for it right away. Then we’ll kind of build the framework around that.”
Currently, cannabinoid products have a 10% tax and could more than double after the legislative session.
Willow Keep Farm and Hemp Maze Owner Ted Galaty said the recreational marijuana route won’t be profitable because of future tax rates.
“So now you’d be at 15% on top of your sales tax, and [legislators] also want to put a 3% municipality on there,” Galaty said. “So now you’d be at 18% on top of your sales tax. So, you’re looking at an effective tax rate of 25%.”
Another reason Galaty did not apply for a recreational license was because of what he called the “Medical Marijuana Mafia.” He said two medical marijuana companies have consolidated Minnesota’s cannabis market.
“You have ‘Varial Health,’ and you have ‘Green Thumb Industries,’ and those players, they’re dirty players,” Galaty said. “They have really high-paying lobbyists that will pad the pockets of our legislators, both the Republicans and the Democrats, and all they’re in it for is themselves.”
Olmsted County will begin taking applications for a local lottery in late June and another in late July. Owners can begin the sale at their own pace after winning both lotteries.
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Recreational cannabis retail is right around the corner for Minnesota. Olmsted County Commissioners unanimously passed a new ordinance for the future sale of recreational marijuana on Tuesday. Meanwhile, the state lottery for recreational businesses will take place on June 5. Read More
