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Small cannabis producers urge allowance for on‑site direct sales and stronger medical oversight
Summary
Zachary Lazay, owner of a tier‑1 licensed cannabis farm in Orange, told the House agriculture committee that small cannabis producers need legal paths for on‑site or producer‑to‑consumer sales to survive under current retail restrictions.
Zachary Lazay, owner and operator of a tier‑1 licensed cannabis farm in Orange, told the House Committee on Agriculture, Food Resiliency, & Forestry that small producers face ‘‘serious headwinds’’ under the current regulatory scheme because producers must sell primarily through approved retailers rather than directly to consumers.
Lazay said direct on‑site sales or a farmer's‑market style model, with appropriate age‑verification and tax collection, would help small producers build brand loyalty and reach customers. “I ask you to please support. Consider supporting some form of direct cannabis sales from producers to consumers,” Lazay said.
Ben Wilcox, a tier‑1 outdoor licensed cultivator in Sutton, said direct sales would let small producers capture more of the retail value and help new entrants establish brands before retailers pick them up. He described current effective wholesale prices that leave cultivators short of full retail value and said rigorous inventory tracking and ID checks would be necessary for on‑site sales.
Amy Lentz, representing the Green Mountain Patients Alliance and the Vermont Cannabis Equity Coalition, emphasized medical patient concerns and urged the committee to review the Cannabis Control Board’s (CCB) medical report. She asked the legislature to restore a symptom‑relief oversight committee, require enhanced medical education for all adult‑use budtenders, rescind the ban on medical professionals working in the adult‑use market, and consider financial support for patients (for example, free cards or phones) to improve access.
Committee members noted that government operations has primary jurisdiction over cannabis policy and suggested witnesses also contact that committee. Members also discussed existing state inventory tracking that records transfers and sales, and several said that any producer‑to‑consumer model would require strict tracking and training.
The committee did not enact policy changes during the hearing; members said they would coordinate with the Cannabis Control Board and the government operations committee on regulatory options.
