Illinois Extends Craft Grower Deadline

The Illinois Department of Agriculture has extended the deadline for some craft cannabis growers. According to the Illinois Cannabiz Attorneys, the Department of Agriculture stated that it allows craft growers to be granted an operational extension for good reason. This was due to a variety of factors including ongoing Covid-19 effects and supply chain issues. The maximum amount of cannabis that a license holder may grow is determined by the square footage. A craft grower might have up to 5,000 square foot of canopy space for marijuana plants during the flowering stage. This space does not include walkways or aisles between the plants. Based on market need, capacity and compliance history, this amount could be increased in increments up to 3,000 square feet over time. The Department will allow 14,000 square feet of space for plants in the flowering stage. J.B. Pritzker in the previous year. “As the first state to legalize adult-use cannabis through the legislative procedure, Illinois exemplifies all that is good about democracy: a bipartisan commitment to improve the lives of all of its citizens,” Pritzker stated at the time. “Legalizing adult use cannabis brings about a significant and long-overdue change in our state. It’s the right thing.” This legislation will erase the cannabis-related records for nonviolent offenders by combining automatic expungement with gubernatorial Pardon and individual court action. I am proud of the state’s approach to cannabis legalization and regulatory framework. The state has not looked back since, thanks to the hard work of so many people across the state. Pritzker stated that the state has not looked back since then. Pritzker stated in January that his data from 2022 proves that we are on the right track to making that idea a reality. “We not only broke our previous sales record by over 12% with a total amount of more than $1.5billion, but we also saw the opening of the first of our social justice adult use cannabis dispensaries – paving the way to an even stronger 2023.”