GREEN ECONOMY: The state says more than 3,000 people work in the Arkansas marijuana industry.
The state medical marijuana industry directly employs more than 3,000 people, according to data and estimates from the Alcoholic Beverage Control Division.
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The ABC has issued 3,229 Registry Identification Cards, commonly known as RIC cards, that allow employees and owners access to the state’s dispensaries, cultivation facilities and processing facilities. The figures include some duplication, but ABC spokesman Scott Hardin estimated duplicate cards account for less than 5% of the total.
Duplication would occur, for instance, if an owner has a stake in more than one cannabis business or if a security guard worked at more than one facility, Hardin said. Despite that wrinkle, Hardin said the figures, which were compiled in mid-January, represent a “good snapshot” of the industry’s direct employment.
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Good Day Farm Cultivation in Pine Bluff has the most active cards of any cannabis business in the state with 366. BOLD Team of Cotton Plant has the next-highest number at 211.
Suite 443, the Hot Springs dispensary that has been the state’s top-seller in recent months, is the top dispensary with 176 active cards. The Source dispensary in Rogers is next with