HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (WHNT) — Delays in the rollout of medical cannabis in Alabama continue amid court battles and political fights.
One of the companies stuck in a wait-and-see mode is owned by Alabama A&M engineering school graduate Antoine Mordican Sr. Mordican is the CEO and owner of Native Black Cultivation which has operations in Bessemer.
Medical cannabis was legalized in Alabama in 2021, but nearly four years later, patients still cannot get access. The regulatory board overseeing the rollout, the Alabama Medical Cannabis Commission, has been plagued by early missteps, three rounds of license issuances, and multiple lawsuits stemming from those problems. Mordican tells News 19 he began working as an engineer after college, but saw the opportunity to build a hemp business and later a cannabis business in Alabama.
His company was awarded a cultivator license during the Alabama Medical Cannabis Commission’s third round of licenses in October 2023, under an emergency rule provision. That provision is now the subject of a Montgomery County Circuit Court ruling that may furtherdelay the medical cannabis rollout.
The circuit court ruling creates further uncertainty for companies like Mordican’s that received license awards under the emergency rule. The AMCC has filed an appeal asking a state appeals court to overturn the circuit court’s order.
Mordican told News 19 he is still optimistic about providing medical cannabis for patients in Alabama, but the path has included a number of challenges.
“Once we are awarded our license, we have 60 days to get everything in our parameters in place, to be able to cultivate medical cannabis here in Alabama,” Mordican said. “Sixty days? That is extremely tough. However, I’m a unique individual, I already had the infrastructure, already had the land from the things I was doing on the hemp side and I was able to retrofit everything to be able to achieve that 60 days.”
His company began growing cannabis for medical use
“I had my first harvest of medical cannabis June 1st of last year, 2024,” Mordican said. “And I was hoping at least by then the commission would have everything figured out, all the licenses would be issued. I was very optimistic we would have a fully open industry here in Alabama. However, that’s not our case.”
Nearly a year after that first harvest Alabama market still doesn’t exist, as court fights over commission missteps and license awards continue. Mordican had to store that first harvest, for hoped-for future use. But the uncertainty is not easy.
“I’m still cultivating medical cannabis,’” he said. “I’m fulfilling my duties and responsibilities as a cultivator and I’m hoping to get it to the people of Alabama very soon.”
But the costs are mounting.
“Unfortunately, no one has been able to generate any money,” Mordican said. “Out of $80,000 in licensing fees, hundreds of thousands of dollars in infrastructure equipment, hundreds of thousands of dollars in equipment, things like that. As of right now, it’s an absolute loss. But we’re very optimistic about the future, we have products that’s ready to go to serve the people of Alabama.”
Mordican said he blames the delays on the few companies who sued over licensing, not the Alabama Medical Cannabis Commission or the Alabama Legislature.
The post Alabama medical cannabis cultivator continues to farm amid rising costs, future uncertainty appeared first on WHNT.
