ROCHESTER, N.Y. — New York state has handed out the first round of licenses, allowing the legal cultivation of marijuana. Fifty-two names are on the list, including a Rochester-area woman who is eager to be a part of a new marijuana movement.
If you’re looking for something to ease pain or anxiety, or just to relax, Glenna Colaprete might have what you need. Colaprete owns two CBD stores near Rochester. She started using cannabis-based products for nerve damage and pain seven years ago.
“I found this amazing hemp oil that really helped,” she said. “The CBD hemp extract tasted like dirt though, and I was like, ‘oh, I can do something with this.’”
The former engineer and product developer turned it into her own line of products. She began growing hemp a few years ago and is now one of the first in New York state to receive a state license to cultivate cannabis.
“I think this will become a more normalized industry,” she said. “Where just like they did with CBD, it kind of normalized and embrace it, and I'm finding that there's a lot of uses for it beyond just the euphoric joy of it, if you will.”
The licenses give hemp farmers a leg up to begin growing marijuana for adult-use sale. It also means Colaprete will be at the forefront of New York’s legal growing operation, since the state legalization of adult-use marijuana.
Colaprete had help getting to this point.
“For me, it really became a personal mission to be able to reduce that stigma, as well as providing important legal services,” said Rachel Partington, an attorney and user of cannabis for medical reasons — to treat an autoimmune illness.
To obtain a cultivation license, there are a lot of legal requirements. Growers and cultivators must have a plan of compliance for their operations. They must also plan for security. It is all part of a new frontier in New York. One that’s expected to bring in a lot of tax money — naturally.
“There are so many things to learn from this plant,” said Colaprete. “I think this is a great opportunity. This is only the beginning.”