A bill signed into law by the Louisiana governor last week removes a pair of public universities from the state’s cannabis cultivation operations and puts them directly in the hands of two private growers, including Little Rock’s Good Day Farm.
The state’s medical marijuana program has required universities to take the lead on cultivating cannabis. The LSU Agricultural Center contracted with Good Day Farm to grow their cannabis, and Southern University Agricultural Center contracted with Ilera Holistic Healthcare. The Good Day Farm operation is by far the larger of the two, according to reports.
Nate Steel, the chief compliance and government relations officer at Good Day Farm, said Good Day isn’t “behind the bill but we’re ok with it.” Steel said Good Day’s contract with LSU doesn’t expire until 2027, so “nothing really changes for us.”
The change “will align Louisiana’s medical marijuana program with the 38 states who don’t feature the unusual university-middleman structure,” he said.
The universities received a portion of the revenues from the cultivation operations – about $1 million a year – with the LSU AgCenter receiving $7,569,028 and the Southern University AgCenter receiving $7 million as of April. The universities used some of the revenue to fund research related to marijuana and hemp, although that is not required by the law.
Marijuana Policy Project, a leading national cannabis advocacy organization, reportedly supported the bill, which also extended the sunset date of the state’s medical marijuana program from 2025 to 2030.
The bill passed the state Senate 32-5 and the House 89-1.
Former state Rep. Joe Marino was critical of the change, according to a report in the Louisiana Illuminator.
Former state Rep. Joe Marino, who played an instrumental role in helping shape much of Louisiana’s medical marijuana policy, criticized the legislation, saying lawmakers are helping a single company dominate the market.
“It’s a monopoly,” Marino said in a phone interview.
Louisiana state Rep. Paula Davis (R-Baton Rouge) is the wife of John Davis, who is the president of Good Day Farm in Louisiana. Rep. Davis recuses from all votes involving medical marijuana, Nola.com said.
Good Day Farm is a multi-state cannabis operator headquartered in Little Rock. Good Day has cultivation and dispensary operations in Arkansas, Louisiana, Missouri and Mississippi.