Report: 30 Massachusetts marijuana business permits relinquished in past year

A whopping 30 cannabis business permits have been surrendered back to Massachusetts authorities in the past 12 months, including four retail licenses and another 26 for manufacturing and cultivation, the Boston Business Journal reported this week.

That’s a stark increase from the five years preceding September 2023, the Journal reported, in which time just 16 such permits were relinquished.

That’s not to say that 30 companies have gone under, given that many businesses hold multiple license types and are vertically integrated, but it does appear to be a sign that operators are tightening their belts as wholesale cannabis prices drop and competition from neighboring states increases.

One company, CommCan, told the Journal that it surrendered two permits for manufacturing and cultivation in order to save money by producing goods with its existing medical marijuana license, which company leaders estimated would save about $30,000 a year in permit fees.

“We learned after spending a million for five years that you can do it all under the medical license. Do you think that the (Cannabis Control Commission) told us that? No,” owner Ellen Rosenfeld told the Journal.

Rosenfeld said the relinquished licenses have more to do with the cost of doing business in Massachusetts, which she described as “chasing each other to the bottom” in an oversaturated market.

Six other Massachusetts cannabis businesses, Rosenfeld said, still owe her money for unpaid bills, which she said is emblematic of how many marijuana companies are struggling. She said she expects more licenses to be surrendered as more companies close up shop in coming months.

A commission spokesperson, by contrast, attributed the spike in license returns to industry maturation and noted that the state has more than 700 approved cannabis permits as of this month.