CCC’s New “Pennying Out” Regulations: The Real Impact on Small Cannabis Businesses

As a small, independent cultivation company committed to quality and compliance, we need to address the Cannabis Control Commission’s recent bulletin on “pennying out” cannabis products. While we understand the need for regulation in our industry, these new guidelines create significant challenges for small businesses and industry workers who are already operating in a heavily regulated environment.

Understanding the Changes

The CCC’s recent bulletin prohibits the distribution of cannabis products at nominal prices (a penny, nickel, or dollar) – a practice that has been essential for staff education and industry relationship building. This affects several critical areas:

1. Trade Samples: Can no longer be sold at any price point
2. Industry Events: Prohibition of samples at trade shows
3. Staff Education: Limited ability for employees to experience products
4. Quality Control: Increased restrictions on internal testing processes

The Real Impact on Our Industry

Effect on Industry Workers

Let’s be honest – cannabis industry workers, from cultivation staff to budtenders, aren’t making CEO salaries. Many of us chose this industry out of passion and belief in the plant. The ability to sample and truly understand the products we work with has been vital to our professional development and ability to serve our customers effectively.

The restriction on employee access to products they help create and sell seems counterintuitive. How can we expect budtenders to genuinely recommend products they haven’t experienced? This isn’t just about consumption – it’s about product knowledge, understanding effects, and being able to provide informed guidance to consumers.

Small Business Challenges

As a small cultivation business:

• We don’t have massive marketing budgets
• Our staff education programs rely heavily on direct product experience
• Building relationships with retailers depends on their teams understanding our products
• Every additional regulation adds costs that hit small businesses hardest

The Event Industry Dilemma

The cannabis event industry, which has been crucial for small businesses to build brand awareness and relationships, now faces a complete restructuring. These events have been vital for:

• Building connections between cultivators and retailers
• Educating industry workers about new products
• Creating community within the cannabis industry
• Providing affordable marketing opportunities for small businesses

Beyond Compliance: The Bigger Picture

While we at Aruna are committed to following regulations – and will continue to do so – we must acknowledge that these guidelines feel like another barrier for small businesses in an already challenging market. The constant addition of regulations, often without clear benefits to public safety, raises questions about whether these changes truly serve the industry’s best interests or simply create more opportunities for fines and penalties.

Safety vs. Overregulation

We fully support regulations that protect public safety and product quality. However, preventing industry professionals from experiencing products they work with daily seems to miss the mark. This isn’t about circumventing safety – it’s about allowing professionals to do their jobs effectively.

Moving Forward: What We Can Do

As we adapt to these changes, we’re committed to:

1. Maintaining Compliance
   • Updating all SOPs to reflect new guidelines
   • Implementing enhanced tracking systems
   • Ensuring all staff are trained on new procedures
2. Finding Alternative Solutions
   • Developing new educational materials for staff and partners
   • Creating innovative ways to showcase our products within guidelines
   • Building stronger industry relationships through alternative means
3. Advocating for Change
   • Working with industry associations to voice concerns
   • Documenting the impact on small businesses
   • Proposing reasonable alternatives that maintain safety while supporting industry growth

A Call for Balance

As a small business in the Massachusetts cannabis industry, we’re calling for a more balanced approach to regulation. We need guidelines that:

• Protect public safety
• Support small business growth
• Enable proper staff education
• Foster industry relationships
• Allow for meaningful product education

While we adapt to these new regulations, we can’t help but question the underlying motivations. Whether this is groundwork for the state to set up additional tax revenue streams when consumption lounges become legal, or a response to bad actors who’ve been reselling their budtender samples to consumers – once again, those who cut corners have created hurdles for those of us doing things the right way. Regardless of the reason, we encourage open dialogue about these regulations’ impact on small businesses and industry workers. The cannabis industry should be about fostering growth, creating opportunities, and building community – not just adding layers of restriction that punish the compliant operators.

For our partners and fellow industry members: We’re in this together. Let’s continue to support each other while working toward positive change in our industry.