Mainebiz

W W W. M A I N E B I Z . B I Z 17 F E B R UA R Y 6 , 2 0 1 7 F O C U S G R E AT E R P O R T L A N D dispensaries in Maine. ey're in Bath, Brewer, Gardiner and Portland. e others are Maine Organic erapy, Ellsworth; Canuvo Inc., Biddeford; Sage Alternatives, Eagle Lake; and Remedy Compassion Center, Auburn. e Maine Revenue Service reported the $23.6 million in sales at dispensaries generated $1.29 million in sales tax in 2015, up from $16.2 million and $892,000, respectively, in the previous year. Marijuana, tinctures, topical treat- ments and other preparations and para- phernalia currently are taxed at 5.5%., according to Maine.gov. Sales of food prepared by a retailer, including "medi- bles," are taxed at the 8% prepared food rate and include cookies, butters, oils and bars. e new law would tax recreational marijuana sales at 10%, Rosi says. "I don't think that's enough," Rosi says. "I think recreational should be taxed higher so medical patients stay under the medical marijuana pro- gram." e total amount of cannabis that can be cultivated in Maine is 800,000 square feet. ere currently are about 37,000 patients using medi- cal marijuana in Maine. Some 29 states plus the District of Columbia have medical marijuana laws that cover close to 60% of the U.S. pop- ulation. Colorado has led the charge, bringing in $76 million in cannabis- related taxes compared to $42 million for alcohol taxes in 2014, Rosi told a Jan. 18 meeting of the Kennebec Valley Chamber of Commerce. For each $1 of legally sold cannabis, $3 of economic value enters the American economy, she notes, adding that about 1% of the population in Maine is growing pot. Better monitoring e state monitors the dispensaries, but there is no active oversight now for home growers or caregivers of medical marijuana. And while the new law mandates testing and stricter labeling, packaging and advertising of recreational marijuana, Rosi thinks better rules are needed to assure the quality and purity of the product. WCM has attained ISO 8 clean- room certifi cation for its extraction laboratory, which means its facilities are almost at the cleanliness level of a hospital, Rosi says. e company has an indoor hydroponic garden. e factory is divided into two areas, one where the plants are grown, harvested and cured, and a second area where they are processed and packaged. e second area also has a processing area for cannabis parts that will be turned into edibles. In each of the two areas, workers wear the type of bunny suits and shoe covers used in semicon- ductor factories to keep the area clean from human debris. e growing area uses blue suits and the processing and packaging area uses white suits. Workers going between the two areas have to change so they don't taint the plants or the resulting products. Even with the state monitoring, Rosi says WCM takes extra steps to assure the fi delity of the strains of marijuana, each of which is targeted for specifi c ailments like epilepsy, chronic pain or posttraumatic stress disorder. For example, in a self-policing move in the fall of 2015, she says the company vol- untarily recalled two strains of medical marijuana that it tested and found had higher than accepted levels of microbes. ose microbes in turn could become moldy if customers store the marijuana in containers with too much heat or humidity. She says there are no state or federal standards for those microbes. Recently, the company hired a quality assurance and quality control manager, Dan Niesen, who has a PhD in biomedical and pharmaceutical sci- ences. He says Maine has no man- date to test and regulate marijuana, so WCM is setting up its own lab to look at more of the chemistry. 866.736.2804 mainebls.com EQUIPMENT REAL ESTATE BUSINESS ACQUISITION Maine Loans for Maine Businesses Loans from $50,000 to $20,000,000 Streamlined Process Gets Deals Done Quickly Decisions Made in Maine GROWING FAST, If your company is we are the legal team that will keep up. nhdlaw.com • Portland (207) 774-7000 • Lewiston (207) 777-5200 C O N T I N U E D O N F O L L OW I N G PA G E » In the extraction process, In the extraction process, In the extraction process, In the extraction process, In the extraction process, In the extraction process, In the extraction process, In the extraction process, In the extraction process, In the extraction process, In the extraction process, In the extraction process, In the extraction process, In the extraction process, you get fats and waxes you get fats and waxes you get fats and waxes you get fats and waxes you get fats and waxes you get fats and waxes you get fats and waxes you get fats and waxes you get fats and waxes you get fats and waxes you get fats and waxes you get fats and waxes you get fats and waxes from the plants. We look to use pure compounds and isolates. — Dan Niesen Quality assurance and quality control manager, Wellness Connection of Maine Wellness Connection of Maine Founded: 2009 CEO: Patricia Rosi Business: Medical marijuana growth and dispensary sales (non-tax-exempt, nonprofit) Dispensaries: Bath, Brewer, Gardiner, Portland Revenue (2016): $15 million Employees: 85 Contact: www.mainewellness.org info@mainewellness.org / 553-9058

• Cover