Metrc announced a new contract with the Commonwealth of Kentucky to support the regulation of its medical cannabis market.
In March of this year, Governor Andy Beshear signed Senate Bill 47, legalizing medical cannabis in the commonwealth effective January 1, 2025. Tasked with developing and implementing regulations for the Kentucky Medical Cannabis Program, the Cabinet for Health and Family Services aims to ensure Kentuckians suffering from serious medical conditions have safe, affordable access to medical cannabis, achieved via a commitment to evidence-based practices, transparency, outreach and education.
Metrc’s track-and-trace platform will provide transparency to ensure regulatory compliance, help combat the illicit market, and safeguard the health and well-being of Kentucky’s patients. This is accomplished by facilitating the data collection and regulatory insight for the state’s medical cannabis market. The Metrc system enables licensed operators to track all activities impacting the status of a plant or the creation of cannabis-based products, including origin, testing results, handling, and chain-of-custody information, through the company’s unique RFID tag model and software-as-a-service (SaaS) system – this information is then easily accessible to state regulators. Seamless data tracking in Metrc also helps operators optimize inventory control, accurately report sales data, and improve cultivation management.
“As Kentucky works to establish its medical cannabis market, we are thrilled to have the opportunity to launch the state’s first-ever track-and-trace program,” said Michael Johnson, CEO at Metrc. “Our team at Metrc looks forward to working alongside the Cabinet for Health and Family Services to build a regulatory framework that will create a marketplace with the strongest foundation, where patients are guaranteed safe consumption and licensees are provided an environment to thrive.”
Metrc holds exclusive government contracts in every region of the U.S., and has a particularly strong presence in the South, where it holds contracts with Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi, West Virginia, and now Kentucky. While these areas have diverse regulatory frameworks, each jurisdiction shares the common goal of ensuring safe legal cannabis markets. Metrc continues to be the favored partner of regulators and businesses in serving their unique needs and goals.