Queues formed early Thursday morning in front of the first businesses authorized to sell cannabis freely in New Jersey, a new American state to take the plunge at the gates of New York, which is still waiting its turn.
As of 6 a.m., in Bloomfield, less than an hour’s drive from Manhattan, customers were queuing in front of the modern hangar-shaped building of the Rise brand, noted an AFP photographer.
For the occasion, donuts were offered and a reggae sound came out of the speakers in front of the shop, already authorized to sell cannabis on medical prescription, but which can now address all adults over 21 years old.
The thirteen businesses authorized to open Thursday “assured us that they were ready to meet demand without disrupting patient access (on medical prescription), and with minimal impact on the neighborhood, but patience will be crucial”, New Jersey Cannabis Regulatory Commission Director Jeff Brown predicted in a statement.
“Do not drive if you are stoned”, warned Tuesday this same commission. And its director recalls that “our friends in neighboring states must know that it is illegal to transport cannabis from one state to another”.
New Jersey, a state of nearly 9 million people at the gates of New York, had approved by referendum in November 2020 the recreational use of cannabis.
In New York, if its consumption is tolerated under certain conditions, its sale remains for the moment authorized only on medical prescription and the free sale is expected for the coming months.
Eighteen of the 50 American states, as well as the capital Washington, have legalized the use of cannabis for recreational use for adults. And its medical use is legal in most states.
According to a Democratic bill to remove cannabis from the list of dangerous drugs at the federal level, the market for legal cannabis is expected to exceed $40 billion by 2025.
Taxes on the sale of cannabis brought in some $3.7 billion in 2021.
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