POUGHKEEPSIE – More than 3,000 people were at the MJN Convention Center in Poughkeepsie on Saturday for the first cannabis festival of its kind, after legislation legalized marijuana in New York. The festival had several sponsors, including the Cannabis Workforce Initiative (CWI) which is a collaboration between the New York State School of Industrial and Labor Relations at Cornell University, and the Workforce Development Institute.
According to the CWI, their mission “is to promote and support social equity in the adult-use cannabis market by providing quality workforce development and legal education.” Their website also says “Our work, supported in part by a state budget appropriation, prioritizes diversity, equity, and quality jobs in the emerging cannabis industry through skills training, entrepreneurism services, workforce supports, legal education for employees and employers, and the development of high-road career pathways.”
The immersive cannabis festival featured the movers and shakers that will be bringing the first recreational cannabis to the Hudson Valley.
“We had countless people tell us that this was their first time visiting Poughkeepsie,” said MJN Convention Center President Zeidan Nesheiwat. “We are committed to helping bring visitors to Poughkeepsie and this is just one more great event at the MJN that showcased our intention.”
While New York State does not currently allow for cannabis to be sold at the event, a dedicated area was established allowing attendees to “light up”. Persons 21 and over are allowed to possess over three ounces of flower or 24 grams of concentrate for personal use and were permitted to share with other attendees without compensation.
Over 50 exhibitors featuring a wide variety of cannabis brands, licensed growers, manufacturers, and retailers were on hand, along with games, contests, free giveaways, and live entertainment.
Cannastock launched the first Excelsior Cup, a cannabis competition to honor the best cannabis products in New York State on Saturday. Information regarding how to enter, the judging panelists, and the array of categories spanning flowers, concentrates, pre-rolls, cartridges, and edibles that will be part of the initial competition was unveiled.
The CWI also distributed a list of occupations associated with the emerging cannabis market. The list can be found here.
