It might be the single strongest reason to believe we’ll soon be able to get a Mississippi Marijuana Card: Marijuana investors are pouring millions into the state on the assumption that their products and services will soon be legal here.
We told you about some of the ways medical marijuana will be good for Mississippi’s economy, such as the additional tax revenue a cannabis market generates and the role medical marijuana could play in ending the state’s brain drain problem.
What we didn’t discuss in that article is how medical marijuana is already boosting the state’s economy. Investors are already betting on Mississippi, spending millions to lay the groundwork for their respective marijuana businesses, and giving some indication of the money that’s to come once our medical marijuana market is up and running.
Canton the Most Recent Town to See Marijuana Investments
The most recent recipient of marijuana money is Canton, where this past July Madison County lawyer Jared Kobs and his partners paid more than $300,000 for a 22-acre plot of county land.
According to Joey Deason, the director of the Madison County Economic Development Authority, the property had been sitting unused for “years and years,” and he was glad to have a business being established there.
Kobs told the Madison County Journal that the investment was a “calculated risk.” He and his partners are confident that medical marijuana is an inevitability in Mississippi, and they want to have as much of their business in place as possible now so that they’ll be ready for it when it gets here.
Company Plans to Invest Much More in Medical Marijuana in Mississippi
Kobs’ company plans to operate a cultivation facility on the Canton property. They also own a property in Gluckstadt that will house a dispensary.
Kobs said that their ultimate plan for the Canton facility includes a $7 million investment that will create 30 jobs. However, until the market is established and medical marijuana is officially legal here, the partners will be holding off on most of their planned spending.
“We are willing to wait,” Kobs said. “We have a lot of money and time invested in this operation.”
Canton Already Has a Planned Cultivation Facility
Kobs’ facility isn’t the first cultivation plant planned for Canton. A company called Southern Sky Brands told the Clarion Ledger in June that they’ve been moving ahead with plans for a more than $20 million facility that will employ around 100 people.
For now, though, the company’s plans are at a standstill, as they watch for developments in the ongoing discussions between the House and Senate as to what our state’s medical marijuana program should look like.
“I think all the horses need to be pulling the cart the same way. That's from the Senate, that's from the House, that's from everybody," Justin Mahfouz, founder of Southern Sky Brands, told the Clarion Ledger. "At the end of the day, everybody will benefit from the right program.”
Canton Not Only Mississippi Town Getting Attention from Marijuana Investors
Canton isn’t the only town where medical marijuana is already showing economic dividends. All over the state, there are signs that businesses expect Mississippi to officially welcome cannabis soon, and those businesses have money they’re just waiting to invest.
Ken Newburger, executive director of the Mississippi Medical Marijuana Association, told the Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal that his group already has a “couple hundred” associate members, people hoping to get in at the very bottom of the market being built here. Newburger said that Mississippians have seen the economic benefits of marijuana in other states, and “they want to be a part of that.”
And it isn’t just the growing and selling of marijuana that’s attracting attention from entrepreneurs. Sheryl Jefferson, a Lawrence County nurse, co-founded the Cannabis Nurse Institute, which plans to teach medical personnel in Mississippi about working with cannabis and patients.
“If you’re going to have patients on (cannabis), you need to be knowledgeable about the process,” Jefferson told the Daily Journal.
Smaller Investors Fear Being Locked Out of State’s Medical Marijuana Market
Some fear that Mississippi’s medical marijuana program will end up freezing out small business owners. One such would-be investor, Deaundrea Delaney, owns Hemp World, a chain of four CBD stores in and around Jackson. She worries, however, that she won’t be able to afford a foothold in the new marijuana market.
“You’ve got all these people hopping up saying, ‘I’m gonna grow, I’m gonna sell,’ and I don’t want them to price out small business,” Delaney told the Clarion Ledger.
But whether or not it ends up being equitable, it is certain that Mississippi’s medical marijuana program is going to attract business.
“We’re ready to roll,” Delaney said of her and other marijuana investors. “Just waiting on the legislature.”
Sam Humphrey, a hemp farmer from Jackson, told the Daily Journal that getting into marijuana production would make good business sense for him, given the similarity in hemp and marijuana production infrastructure, but that he fears all of the unknowns surrounding Mississippi’s unformed market.
“I’d like to be a part of the industry, but there’s no certainty of us having an industry at all,” said Humphrey. “It’s all speculation at this point.”
Yes, but the speculators are betting heavy on Mississippi and medical marijuana, and if they win, we all win.
You Can Bet That Medical Marijuana Can Offer You Relief
The smart money says medical marijuana is on its way to Mississippi, and you can start getting ready for it now.
Reserve an evaluation with one of our doctors today, and we’ll make an appointment for you just as soon as Mississippi’s medical marijuana market is up and running.
You’ll meet with your doctor virtually using your smartphone or computer for a telemedicine appointment. You’ll discuss your condition and options from the safety of your own home, deciding together if medical marijuana might be right for you. And you’ll even save $25 off the cost of your evaluation!
Doctors Who Care. Relief You Can Trust.
Helping everyone achieve wellness safely and conveniently through increased access to medical marijuana. Our focus on education, inclusion, and acceptance will reduce stigma for our patients by providing equal access to timely information and compassionate care.
If you have any questions, call us at (833) 781-6635, or simply book a medical marijuana evaluation to start getting relief you can trust today!
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