May 14, 2024
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Streator business receives marijuana craft grow license

State awarded 48 licenses from round that began December 2021

By Derek Barichello
John and Joe Farms at 1105 W. Main St. in Streator was awarded a craft grow marijuana license from the Illinois Department of Agriculture. No sales will take place at this location.

John and Joe Farms at 1105 W. Main St. in Streator was awarded a craft grow marijuana license from the Illinois Department of Agriculture. No sales will take place at this location. (Derek Barichello - dbarichello@shawmedia.com)

The Illinois Department of Agriculture awarded 48 craft grow licenses for marijuana, including one to John and Joe Farms of Streator.

John and Joe Farms, at 1105 W. Main St., the site of John and Joe Florist, plans to operate a craft growing facility for medical marijuana, according to proposals approved by the city’s planning commission and City Council. This is not a dispensary.

Marijuana plant The Illinois Department of Agriculture awarded 48 craft grow licenses for marijuana, including one to John and Joe Farms of Streator. (Photo provided)

A craft grower is a smaller operation that cannot sell marijuana out of its own business. It can only sell to other growers and cultivation centers, which can then distribute to dispensaries. A craft grower may cultivate, dry, cure and package marijuana and perform other necessary activities to make it available for sale at a dispensing organization or use at a processor. No sales of marijuana will take place at the proposed facility.

The state awarded the license from the round that began December 2021.

As of June 1, the Department of Agriculture has awarded 341 adult use cannabis licenses for craft growers, infusers and transporters under the Cannabis Regulation and Tax Act. This would be the first in Streator.

Any new facility is required to be highly secure with double doors and a vehicle entrance to allow transport to take place out of the public eye. The state also has several other requirements for security and accountability.

“Illinois’ cannabis industry started out with businesses with owners who all looked the same, but with each new set of licenses, we come closer and closer to realizing our vision for a truly diverse industry,” Gov. JB Pritzker said in a news release. “I’m especially pleased that 100% of these craft grow licensees come from a social equity background, and I look forward to many more businesses opening their doors and creating even more good jobs.”