CBD Oil Distributors in California
I am sure that you must’ve heard that common perception about the California state as one of the most cannabis friendly states. This reputation of California as a ‘marijuana favoring state’ is what intrigues the cannabis lovers to get into this promising business.
Let me tell you that this perception is not completely wrong, especially considering the fact that California was the first state to legalize the medical marijuana. However, what you must know before starting a CBD business in California is that the laws regarding CBD business here are not very straight forward.
You obviously do not want to get into any trouble on the legal front. So, for all the California cannabis distributors ‘in making , if you are passionate to become a CBD seller, here is a complete guide on how to become a CBD oil distributor in California and how to become a certified seller, or hemp grower.
What You need to Know on the Legal Front
When it come to the law regarding the CBD products, California has a mixed, or in fact a ‘confusing’ approach.
Although, it legalized the medical and recreational marijuana before any other state, when it comes to hemp derived CBD, there is a partial legality in place.
To clear the fog a bit for you, I am enlisting here all the information you must know about before starting your journey as a CBD oil distributor.
- You can sell cannabis products in the dispensaries, stores, CBD only stores and everywhere else as long as it has a THC content less than 0.3%.
- However, what you must know about CBD is that it cannot be sold as a food. You will see CBD at spas in the form of massage creams. You’d even see it in the form of beauty products and even as shampoos and soaps throughout California. But if you see a CBD coffee or shake in a restaurant’s menu, those guys are calling for trouble sooner or later. The governing authorities have rendered CBD oil legal in California, but that cannot be mixed with foods and be sold at eateries.
- Even at the dispensaries in California, CBD can be sold only if a set of requirements are met. For example the dispensaries must be located at a distance of at least 600 feet from a school or other kids’ centers. Moreover, they must be selling under a license, and must not sell anything which contains above 0.3% of THC.
Do You Need a License to Sell CBD in California?
Yes, everyone wishing to become a CBD oil distributor does need to get a license for selling CBD in California. However, you’d be relieved to know that when it comes to giving permits for selling CBD, California has proved to be one of the most generous states. There were previously three governing bodies in California for granting licenses in various genres of the cannabis business;
- Bureau of Cannabis Control
- CDFA Cal Cannabis Cultivation Licensing
- CDPH Manufactured Cannabis Safety Branch.
These three authorities collectively issued more than 10,000 permits since the hemp became legal in California.
However, getting a license from any of these authorities for any of the cannabis related business requires you to fulfill an additional step. You cannot get a license from them until you have taken permission from your local jurisdiction to run any sort of cannabis business. If the local law authorities don’t allow you, the above authorities cannot grant you a license.
A very important development regarding the certifying authorities is that they have now been merged into a single body. That is the Department of Cannabis Control. However, at the moment, all the previous data of all three aforementioned authorities is available. This will soon be regulated by the Department of Cannabis Control and all types of licenses will solely be distributed by this single authority after the transition period is over.
Types of Licenses and the License Fees
Depending upon the type of cannabis business you are interested in, California state is granting as many as 7 different types of licenses;
- Cultivation License
- Manufacturing License
- Distribution License
- Testing Laboratory License
- Retail License
- Microbusiness License
- Cannabis Event License
For each of these licenses, you are required to submit two types of fees. One is the application fee at the time of submitting the application.
The other one is the registration fee which is submitted once your application has been approved.
For each one of the above mentioned license types, the minutest fee details are provided here.
Moreover, the licenses are valid for one year. After that, you will have to pay the registration fee once again if you decide to renew your license.
