Robert Celt
New Member
Green Aloha, Ltd., one of the consortiums applying for Kauai's first medical marijuana dispensary license, has struck an agreement with United Food and Commercial Workers Union Local 480.
Across the U.S., UFCW represents more than 1.3 million members – some of whom are part of its Cannabis Workers Rising program, working in the developing recreational and medical marijuana industries on the Mainland.
"This is a new industry here for Hawaii but its not a brand new industry nationally, and it's something that the UFCW Cannabis Workers Rising union has been working on since 2008," said Casey Rothstein, operations manager at Green Aloha. "They had a lot of experience and already established training programs in safety protocol and procedure. We thought through a partnership with the union we'd be able to take advantage of their industry experience and background, and it would allow us to hit the ground running should we be privileged and honored to be awarded a license."
In Hawaii, UFCW Local 480 represents thousands of retail and grocery workers across the state.
"Our relationship is five to six months in the making," said Pat Loo, president and CEO of UFCW Local 480. "Their focus is medicine for the patients, and we also know they plan to have the highest regulations and employees with the highest training to ensure the people of Hawaii are secure and safe with this medicine."
Justin Britt, head of the Green Aloha consortium, doubles as co-owner and co-founder of real estate brokerage Hawaii Life. The Green Aloha consortium also includes business leaders, healthcare providers, and agricultural specialists. Among the group is Alan Baldwin King, production adviser at Green Aloha and a former Alexander & Baldwin executive who spent 15 years at the company and helped transition 4,500 acres on Kauai from sugar cane to coffee production.
"Whoever is awarded this license is given a great responsibility to produce the best medicine," Britt told PBN. "We feel it is a smart business decision to partner with UFCW because were providing ourselves with the expertise to set ourselves apart from other applicants and hit the ground running."
Licenses will be awarded by April 15, and dispensaries may open July 15.
Britt expects to employ 40 to 60 people at two dispensary locations on Kauai. The Green Aloha consortium spent $200,000 putting its application together.
"We're on the smallest island, with a little less than 2,000 patients on island," he said. "We expect Oahu to get upwards of 30,000 patients over the next year, if the growth rate continues. It could be hundreds to thousands of jobs for the state. Some people might see joining a union as being expensive, but everything that they bring to the table, including the reduced health care costs, the training they provide and the protocols they put in place, it's a bargain to be working with UFCW."
News Moderator: Robert Celt 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: Kauai Medical Marijuana Dispensary Applicant Partners With UFCW Union
Author: Lorin Eleni Gill
Contact: Pacific Business News
Photo Credit: Dave Chan
Website: Pacific Business News
Across the U.S., UFCW represents more than 1.3 million members – some of whom are part of its Cannabis Workers Rising program, working in the developing recreational and medical marijuana industries on the Mainland.
"This is a new industry here for Hawaii but its not a brand new industry nationally, and it's something that the UFCW Cannabis Workers Rising union has been working on since 2008," said Casey Rothstein, operations manager at Green Aloha. "They had a lot of experience and already established training programs in safety protocol and procedure. We thought through a partnership with the union we'd be able to take advantage of their industry experience and background, and it would allow us to hit the ground running should we be privileged and honored to be awarded a license."
In Hawaii, UFCW Local 480 represents thousands of retail and grocery workers across the state.
"Our relationship is five to six months in the making," said Pat Loo, president and CEO of UFCW Local 480. "Their focus is medicine for the patients, and we also know they plan to have the highest regulations and employees with the highest training to ensure the people of Hawaii are secure and safe with this medicine."
Justin Britt, head of the Green Aloha consortium, doubles as co-owner and co-founder of real estate brokerage Hawaii Life. The Green Aloha consortium also includes business leaders, healthcare providers, and agricultural specialists. Among the group is Alan Baldwin King, production adviser at Green Aloha and a former Alexander & Baldwin executive who spent 15 years at the company and helped transition 4,500 acres on Kauai from sugar cane to coffee production.
"Whoever is awarded this license is given a great responsibility to produce the best medicine," Britt told PBN. "We feel it is a smart business decision to partner with UFCW because were providing ourselves with the expertise to set ourselves apart from other applicants and hit the ground running."
Licenses will be awarded by April 15, and dispensaries may open July 15.
Britt expects to employ 40 to 60 people at two dispensary locations on Kauai. The Green Aloha consortium spent $200,000 putting its application together.
"We're on the smallest island, with a little less than 2,000 patients on island," he said. "We expect Oahu to get upwards of 30,000 patients over the next year, if the growth rate continues. It could be hundreds to thousands of jobs for the state. Some people might see joining a union as being expensive, but everything that they bring to the table, including the reduced health care costs, the training they provide and the protocols they put in place, it's a bargain to be working with UFCW."
News Moderator: Robert Celt 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: Kauai Medical Marijuana Dispensary Applicant Partners With UFCW Union
Author: Lorin Eleni Gill
Contact: Pacific Business News
Photo Credit: Dave Chan
Website: Pacific Business News
