Hunterdon County Cannabis – Is It Legal & Where To Buy 2025

Is Cannabis Cultivation Legal in Hunterdon County?

Yes. Licensed cannabis businesses may operate in Hunterdon County per New Jersey’s Jake Honig Compassionate Use Medical Cannabis Act and Cannabis Regulatory, Enforcement Assistance, and Marketplace Modernization (CREAMM) Act. Alternative Treatment Centers (ATCs) may be licensed as cultivators, manufacturers, dispensaries, or clinical registrants of medical marijuana. Meanwhile, cannabis businesses involved in the operation of recreational cannabis are licensed as follows:

• Class 1 - Cultivator
• Class 2 - Manufacturer
• Class 3 - Wholesaler
• Class 4 - Distributor
• Class 5 - Retailer
• Class 6 - Delivery
• Testing Laboratories

As of August 2023, the state’s Cannabis Regulatory Commission (CRC) has not licensed any cannabis business in the county to cultivate medical and recreational cannabis. To be awarded a cultivator license, applicants must have an operating plan discussing their capabilities and knowledge of state-authorized cultivation of medical cannabis, good agricultural practices, quality control, quality assurance, recall plans, packaging, labeling, inventory control, tracking systems, water management, odor mitigation, pest control, disease management, waste disposal, and applicable laws and regulations. As stated in the NJ Administrative Code 17:30, cannabis may be grown indoors or outdoors in an enclosed, locked area at the physical address indicated on the business license.

The personal cultivation of medical and recreational cannabis by Hunterdon County residents remains illegal as of August 2023.

Is Cannabis Manufacturing Legal in Hunterdon County?

Yes, Hunterdon County may allow cannabis manufacturing following state laws and regulations. However, the county does not have an ATC licensed as a manufacturer and a Class 2 licensee as of August 2023. Manufacturing is only permitted for these cannabis businesses.

All manufacturing operations may only be conducted in an enclosed, locked facility. Manufacturing areas must be well-lit, well-ventilated, and equipped with appropriate heating and air conditioning systems. Cannabis product specifications must be established to ensure the uniqueness, potency, quality, and purity of a cannabis product and that it has been produced, packaged, labeled, and stored under conditions that prevent contamination by impurities or foreign substances.

Is Cannabis Retail Legal in Hunterdon County?

Yes, it is legal. Hunterdon County has cannabis businesses licensed to dispense medical and recreational cannabis in Flemington, Lambertville, and Raritan.

Residents aged 21 or older may purchase recreational cannabis as dried flowers, concentrated oils, resins, vapes, tinctures, topicals, lozenges, syringes, soft chews, and non-perishable edibles. The purchase limit is set to an equivalent amount of 28.35 grams or 1 ounce of cannabis:

• 28.35 grams of dried flower
• 4 grams of concentrates or resins
• 4 grams of vapes
• 1 gram of multiple ingestible cannabis-infused products
• 14.17 grams of dried flower plus 2 grams of concentrate
• Five packages of gummies plus 14.17 grams of dried flower

Registered qualifying patients under New Jersey’s Medicinal Cannabis Program (NJMCP) may receive cannabis orders for up to 84 grams of medical marijuana every 30 days. Terminally ill patients are exempted from this maximum limit. Medical cannabis is available as dried flowers, concentrated oils, lozenges, pills, tablets, capsules, syrups, tinctures, topicals, transdermal, and sublingual. Food-based edibles are unavailable as of August 2023.

Is Cannabis Delivery Legal in Hunterdon County?

As of August 2023, Hunterdon County does not have a licensed cannabis business that offers delivery of medical and recreational cannabis. Licensed ATCs may apply for a Certificate of Waiver for Medicinal Marijuana to be granted the authority to deliver medical cannabis to the house of a registered qualifying patient or primary caregiver. The CRC will accept applications for a Class 6 license on September 27, 2023. Successful applicants will be permitted to deliver recreational cannabis to Hunterdon County adult residents based on purchase orders.

How to Get Medical Marijuana Card in Hunterdon County

The Medicinal Cannabis Program of New Jersey helps ensure safe access to medical cannabis. A medical marijuana card provides patients with benefits, including greater purchase limits and cheaper products since medical cannabis is exempted from sales tax.

Hunterdon County residents must be diagnosed by a New Jersey healthcare practitioner registered with the NJMCP to have one of these qualifying medical conditions:

• Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
• Anxiety
• Cancer
• Chronic pain
• Crohn’s disease
• Dysmenorrhea
• Epilepsy
• Glaucoma
• HIV/AIDS
• Inflammatory bowel disease
• Intractable skeletal muscular spasticity
• Migraine
• Multiple sclerosis
• Muscular dystrophy
• Opioid use disorder
• Post-traumatic stress disorder
• Seizure
• Terminal illness with a less than 12 months life expectancy
• Tourette Syndrome

Applicants will be given a reference ID number and a registry ID number through the Authorizing Provider Statement by their healthcare practitioner. These are needed to complete the patient’s application online, with a recent full-face photograph and proof of New Jersey residency. The CRC provides a step-by-step guide for application.

Inquiries may be coursed through:

Medicinal Cannabis Program

Patient Services Unit

Phone: (609) 292-0424

Fax: (609) 292-9432

*Email: Medcannabis@crc.nj.gov *

How Has Cannabis Legalization Impacted the Economy of Hunterdon County?

Following New Jersey’s tax regulations, Hunterdon County imposes a Sales and Use Tax rate of 6.625% on recreational cannabis. Medical cannabis has remained tax-free since July 2020.

Reports by the CRC show that in July 2023, New Jersey recorded 102,908 patients, 5,342 caregivers, and 1,526 doctors under its Medicinal Cannabis Program. Meanwhile, cannabis sales from January to March 2023 amounted to $474,407,516 for recreational cannabis and $204,731,182 for medical cannabis.

The Effects of Cannabis Legalization on Crime Rates in Hunterdon County

Medical cannabis in New Jersey became legal when the New Jersey Compassionate Use Medical Marijuana Act (CUMMA) was passed in 2010. About nine years later, this was amended when the state executed the Jake Honig Compassionate Use Medical Cannabis Act. In 2020, the use of recreational cannabis was legalized.

Since 2010, New Jersey has seen a decrease in its crime rates related to cannabis. Arrests for marijuana possession offenses significantly declined from 37,153 in 2010 to 731 in 2021. Additionally, marijuana sales offenses reduced from 6,948 arrests in 2010 to 555 arrests in 2021.