“Drugs destroy lives; period,” raged Ciara O’Reilly who, like countless others, was blissfully unaware that the … Currant is an Onion-style satirical news site. The state’s legit marijuana business has in fact got off to a safe and successful start as outlined to Hot Press yesterday by Timothy McDowell, the owner of Denver’s marQaha medicinal marijuana company, which will start selling recreational weed – otherwise known as “rec” – as soon as the paperwork comes through.

“We’ve three dozen dispensaries up and running in Colorado, which have been taking in about $1 million a day,” says the former culinary school graduate. “$200,000 of that goes straight to the public school system in tax up to an annual cap of $40 million. The demand’s been so great that a lot of shops have sold out. We won’t know for sure how big the market is until the novelty factor wears off in a few weeks, but obviously it’s substantial.”

Under the terms of Colorado’s voter-approved Amendment 64, locals aged 21 or older can buy up to an ounce of marijuana at a time from licensed outlets on the proviso that it’s not smoked in public, hence no Amsterdam-style coffee shops. People from outside the state – including foreign nationals – can purchase a quarter at a time.

“It’s Tuesday afternoon and one of the shops I just drove by has 200 people queued up outside it,” Timothy resumes. “There’s no typical customer – they’re all ages and all backgrounds. 70 to 80% of the city of Denver voted 'yes' for this. It depends on what strain you’re buying, but the average price is about $55 for three grams, which is around double the medical market. I’ve heard of people paying $200 an ounce and $500 an ounce, which is outrageous. The first really big harvest for rec is due in a few months, so prices will likely level out then.

“There are around 20 states now with medical marijuana who are all watching us to see whether or not they’ll take the next step. It’s crucial that we don’t provide the prohibition brigade with any ammunition. It’s up to us as an industry – and good, bad, ugly, we all know each other – to ensure there are no sales to under-21s; you don’t have people congregating outside shops smoking and there aren’t pounds of marijuana going across the state line to, say, Kansas. If those things happen the media – and politicians – are going to jump all over it.”

Law enforcement’s reaction to Amendment 64; the possibility of marijuana becoming a Presidential election-winner and the Federal Government’s continued opposition to legal weed – McDowell and his fellow licensed suppliers are still prohibited from having bank accounts - will all be delved into in an upcoming issue of Hot Press.

Image: One of the marQaha flowering rooms. Pic: Ryley Leech