BURLINGTON, Vt. (WCAX) - Burlington’s first cannabis dispensary is set to shut its doors, signaling a significant shift in Vermont’s medical marijuana landscape.
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The closure follows the bankruptcy filing of its parent company, Ceres Collaborative, which also operates medical dispensaries in Brattleboro and South Burlington—both of which are also closing.
Medical marijuana has been legal in Vermont for two decades, and despite the expansion of the retail cannabis market, state regulators emphasize the importance of maintaining access for medical patients.
“The medical patients are really the most vulnerable cannabis consumers,” said James Pepper, chair of Vermont’s Cannabis Control Board (CCB).
Ceres Collaborative, once a cornerstone of Vermont’s medical cannabis industry, served approximately 70% of the state’s registered medical marijuana patients. However, the company’s operations came to a halt after its parent company, Canada-based Slang Worldwide, declared bankruptcy.
Originally launched as Champlain Valley Dispensary in 2015, Ceres was Vermont’s first medical cannabis operation. When it was acquired by Slang Worldwide in 2021, many within the state’s cannabis community expressed concerns, arguing that local producers should have priority in the growing market.
Those concerns have been validated as Slang’s financial troubles now leave Vermont patients with fewer options. Brattleboro’s dispensary has already closed, and the locations in Chittenden County will soon follow. According to Slang Worldwide, their second-quarter sales in Vermont fell by $1.27 million compared to 2023.
“As far as I can tell, it was profitable. It’s just that it’s not profitable enough for a company with nationwide assets,” Pepper explained. He highlighted the advantages of medical cannabis, including tax-free purchases, enhanced privacy, and customized formulations that often surpass retail products in potency.
Philip Lamy, a sociology and anthropology professor at Vermont State University and coordinator of the school’s cannabis studies certificate program, remarked on the evolving cannabis market. “It’s the recognition that cannabis is a medicine that really brought us to this point, opening all these doors,” Lamy said.
However, he expressed concerns about the future of medical cannabis, citing widespread access to recreational cannabis as a potential barrier to sustaining the medical market.
He hopes dispensaries will eventually provide professional medical advice for patients new to cannabis use. “Someone who has never used it before might need some medical guidance. Adult-use recreational dispensaries should consider becoming places where that advice can be offered.”
To address the diminishing medical dispensary options, Vermont lawmakers approved regulations allowing adult-use cannabis stores to serve medical patients under certain conditions.
This could create new revenue streams for retail stores while expanding options for patients. With the closures of the Brattleboro, Burlington, and South Burlington dispensaries, only two medical dispensaries remain operational in Brandon and Montpelier, though a third location in Winooski recently received approval.
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