- Details
- By Tribal Business News Staff
- Food | Agriculture
The Oneida Indian Nation has launched its marijuana retail and growing operation in close proximity to its casino in Verona, New York.
The cannabis business — called The Verona Collective — is a seed-to-sale operation located near the tribe’s Turning Stone Resort Casino with a 25,000-square foot growing area and 14,000 plants. The business held a “soft open” for their retail location on Jan. 3. Retail offerings will stem from roughly 100 strains of cannabis being grown at their farm facility, according to Vice President for Retail Ryan Riggs, speaking to local news station WWTI-Watertown in a report later published to the Collective’s Facebook page.
“We’re working to create the best flower product, and ultimately the best possible processed products to sell to our consumers,” Riggs said.
Early reactions to the Collective’s products seem to be positive, according to a smattering of Google reviews and comments left on the business’ social media pages.
The new dispensary joins similar tribal operations operated by the Shinnecock, Seneca, and Saint Regis Mohawk nations in other parts of New York. A report on Syracuse.com notes that, while the Oneida Nation has agreed through an arrangement with New York State to leverage taxes on its products to avoid gaining an unfair competitive advantage over private recreational operators, the Verona Collective’s size and growth practices place it closer to medical dispensaries.
The Verona Collective’s indoor grow operations are unique among recreational dispensaries in the state. Other private operations have, so far, been limited to outdoor fields.
So far, the Verona Collective has 50 employees across its business, with plans to open a second dispensary in March. The tribe is hosting cannabis career information sessions on Thursday, Dec. 14 and Saturday, Dec. 16 at the Turning Stone Casino.
