In a historic moment for the cannabis legalization movement, Mississippi’s first medical marijuana sale took place earlier today in Brookhaven.
“Today is a very exciting day,” said Melvin C. Robinson III, executive director of the Mississippi Cannabis Trade Association, who was on hand outside the cannabis company’s dispensary to celebrate the first sale Wednesday afternoon. “History is made in Brookhaven.”
Debbie McDermott, a local woman suffering from terminal illness, made the first purchase. “I think it will go [offer] So much help for so many people,” McDermott said. “I’m glad there’s an alternative to drugs that are good, but not as good as opiates.”
The first of 162 licensed factories
Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves signed the state’s medical marijuana legalization law into law on February 2, 2022. Since then, the state has licensed 162 dispensaries, most of which are expected to open next year.
In these early days, the product selection is expected to be relatively limited as farmers and producers are still working. The cannabis company’s menu so far features an apple fritter flower for $60 an eighth.
Dispensaries opened in Oxford and St. Martin’s.
Oxford Eagle reporter Jake Davies was on hand for another first day sale, this one at Hybrid Relief Cannabis in Oxford. According to the dealer’s listing on Leafly, OG Kush was selling for $11.42 a gram.
Local news station WXXV reported that another dispensary, Bee Buds, in the city of St. Martin, is expected to serve its first patients on Wednesday.
“Our biggest thing is that we love helping people, and the reason I got into this is because I know that this helps a lot of patients and they don’t have side effects. A lot of them do it with drugs and stuff, so we’re really excited about it,” Bee Buds CEO Barbara Wilson told WXXV.
To date, the Mississippi State Department of Health has registered approximately 1,700 patients for the legal purchase and use of medical cannabis.
