The NJ-CRC Board of Commissioners has committed to taking steps to lower cannabis costs for consumers, improve business opportunities for social equity applicants, and ensure that cannabis businesses remain accountable to their commitments. 

From making licensure more efficient to strengthening oversight of testing and enforcement, the Commission is focused on policies that support both businesses and consumers. The Commission also plans to assess industry costs and explore ways to reduce costs for medicinal cannabis patients.

See meeting slides for more. 

The testing guidance approved in the latest meeting will mean, among other things, smaller batch or lot sizes, and basic safety testing protocols for unusable cannabis meant for manufacturing – this includes tests for foreign matter, pesticides, microbes, mycotoxins, and heavy metals.  

Under the new guidelines, the test maximum batch size for usable cannabis has decreased from 100 pounds to 33.07 pounds. The guidance now specifies maximum lot size for testing cannabis concentrates, vaporized formulations, and ingestible, transmucosal (through the mouth), and dermal (on the skin) cannabis-infused products, matching sample sizes more precisely to product type. It also provides new limits for contaminants based on product type to improve testing accuracy.  

The guidance also further standardized lab testing methods and method validation, including requiring culture-based testing for total bacteria and mold counts, PCR testing for pathogens, and a temperature range for sample drying. 

Testing laboratories have until Wednesday, March 19, 2025, to implement sampling changes and until midnight on Friday, May 23, 2025, for initial and stability testing changes.

Read more: https://njcrcgov.info/testingguide  

Since the Jake Honig Compassionate Use Medical Cannabis Act took effect on July 2, 2019, New Jersey's Medicinal Cannabis Program has been helping patients access medical cannabis. Now the NJ-CRC is considering updating the medicinal cannabis rules to enhance patient benefits. the agency will be seeking feedback from patients, caregivers, healthcare providers, and others with interest in the program at three virtual town halls.   

Join us on the following dates to have your voice heard: 

• Wednesday, March 19, 2025, at 6 p.m.  

• Tuesday, March 25, 2025, at Noon 

• Wednesday, March 26, 2025, at 6 p.m. 

Zoom and speaker registration links coming soon.

Under the CREAMM Act, the NJ-CRC is required to meet benchmarks that ensure the diversity of New Jersey's cannabis market is reflective of the state's diversity. We are proud to share updates on our efforts to meet those benchmarks. Between Q3 and Q4 2024, we have seen significant increase in awarded licenses across all categories, including annuals, conversion-to-annuals, and conditionals.  

Key highlights include: 

• Growing Diversity in Ownership 
  • 70% of the 600 awarded annual licenses went to diversely-owned businesses.
  • 17% of awarded licenses were designated as Social Equity Businesses.
  • 20% of all conditional and conversion approvals were granted to majority owners with previous marijuana convictions. 

• Surpassing Inclusion Benchmarks 
  • 48% of all licenses have been awarded to minority-owned businesses—exceeding our benchmark by over 33%. 
  • 44% of all licenses have been awarded to Woman- or Disabled Veteran-Owned businesses—surpassing that benchmark by nearly 30%. 

• Increasing Representation 
  • 19 additional majority Black-owned businesses were approved, increasing Black ownership among awardees by 18%. 
  • 9 additional majority Asian-owned businesses and 6 Hispanic/Latino-owned businesses were awarded licenses. 

• New Businesses Opened 
  • 5 new Black-owned businesses, 2 new Asian-owned businesses, and 2 additional Hispanic/Latino-owned businesses opened their doors. 
  • 5 new manufacturers and 12 new retailers began operations between Q3 and Q4 of 2024. 

The NJ-CRC remains committed to fostering an equitable and inclusive cannabis market, ensuring opportunities for all communities. Stay tuned for more updates. 

Total 2,852 applications submitted 

• 2,191 applications have been approved 

• 95 applications are under review in the Office of Licensing 

• 389 applications are pending resubmission following cure 

• 177 applications under review in the Office of Compliance & Investigations
   

Conditional-to-Annual conversion awarded on 2/18/25 

• 14 conditional-to-annual conversion licenses 
  • 4 cultivators 
  • 2 delivery 
  • 2 manufacturers 
  • 4 retailers 
  • 2 wholesalers

Annual license applications awarded on 2/18/25 

• 10 annual licenses 
  • 4 manufacturers
  • 6 retailers