One year after the retail sale of recreational cannabis became legal in California, cannabis businesses are hopeful about the industry's future but challenges remain.
"The main issue we're facing, it's an issue in San Diego County, but it's a bigger issue statewide, it's the lack of opportunity for retail outlets to open," Jessica McElfresh, president of the Association of Cannabis Professionals in San Diego, said. "70 to 72 percent of jurisdictions in California do not allow cannabis businesses of any type, as a result, there's a large number of people who do not have access, and there's a large number of people who would like to open in those areas."
McElfresh also said cannabis retailers are also having a hard time keeping their shelves stocked.
"As we have been moving into a regulated (supply) chain, we have more consumer protections, more testing. We've hit a bottleneck at times with the lack of licensed testing labs in the state of California," she said.
In 2016, voters approved Proposition 64, which legalized the sale of recreational cannabis in the state Jan. 1, 2017.
McElfresh, who is also a local cannabis attorney, talks about the state of San Diego's cannabis industry Wednesday on Midday Edition.
