UPDATED August 4, 2024 – By all measures, the first-ever cannabis consumption space at the CA State Fair was a huge success, and augurs well for seeing more of such events and spaces in California.
AdWeek magazine reported that more than 100,000 people visited the cannabis exhibit, which this year included the opportunity to purchase and enjoy products from California’s cannabis farmers.
Overall attendance at the 17-day California State Fair was up 10% this year over 2023, even though the Fair suffered through 11 days of triple-digit temperatures. An article from Sacramento Bee noted, “Officials noted that a nod from late-night show host Jimmy Kimmel to the fair’s new cannabis lounge went viral on social media, drawing both national and international attention.”
“The crowd included military veterans, former police officers, lapsed users and canna-curious folks, which could bring a new wave of consumers into the legal market,” reported AdWeek. Tiana Woodruff (pictured), founder of Queen Mary, a Black female-owned brand based in Los Angeles, told The Bee she was “bowled over” by the reactions of the attendees, which she said represented a wide range of demographics, including many baby boomers and senior citizens. “We could’ve had a bunch of lookie-loos, but we had real customers, and tons of people said it was the only reason they came to the fair,” she said. Suppliers reported the need to re-stock continually to keep up with demand for cannabis products at the Fair.
“This year’s California State Fair has truly been historic,” Tom Martinez, CEO of California State Fair and Cal Expo, said in a press release. “We are thrilled to have achieved such remarkable numbers especially in with food and beverage sales, surpassing recent records and setting new benchmarks for future fairs.”
“The success at the State Fair demonstrates very well that California is ready for cannabis lounges, especially ones that can serve food and drink, and that cannabis event spaces can operate safely and profitably,” said Cal NORML’s Deputy Director Ellen Komp.
Cal NORML has been advocating for more cities and counties to allow cannabis consumption lounges, and is sponsoring a bill in the legislature this year, AB 1775 (Haney), that would allow such spaces to serve food and drink.
TELL GOV. NEWSOM TO SIGN AB 1775, THE CANNABIS CAFE BILL.
July 15, 2024 – Cal NORML director Dale Gieringer was the first person to make a cannabis purchase at the California State Fair, on Friday, July 12. Two days later, Cal NORML’s Deputy Director Ellen Komp was among the first to experience the cannabis consumption lounge at the Fair.
Outside the CBD-only cannabis exhibit hall at the Fair is a “cannabis oasis,” where cannabis flower and products can be purchased, and drinks and edibles can be consumed. At one end of the “oasis” fair-goers can purchase cannabis products from Embarc or, at the other end, from a group of cannabis equity companies from across the state. Customers can then walk down a path to the consumption space and enjoy their purchases with others inside a huge tent. Shade, misters, and fans provide relief from the heat in both spaces, and the exhibit space is air-conditioned.
Attendees can see the names of winning entries in various categories (Sungrown, Indoor, Mixed Light, plus edibles, topicals, pre-rolls, etc.) and use a QR code to pre-order the winners at Embarc. In no place however can customers smell or sample any cannabis before purchasing, unlike the rules for beer and wine at the fair. Indeed, booze can be purchased and consumed all over the Fair with children present, while only those 21 and over can enter the cannabis exhibit space.
Both Embarc and Ramon Garcia of the Equity Trade Network worked with officials from the state Department of Cannabis Control (DCC) and the Sacramento Office of Cannabis Management to establish rules for the cannabis sales and consumption, some of which are a bit much: any opened cannabis containers must be put into a sealed child-proof package, and Fair police made it clear they would “make an example” of offenders who consumed outside allowed areas. Attendees were also not permitted to take their CBD slushies purchased inside the exhibit hall outside to the oasis or consumption lounge.
The historic weekend drew a large crowd of enthusiasts and curious folks from across California. Many stopped at an information booth that Cal NORML shared throughout the weekend with the nascent California Cannabis Historical Society. We hope to table at the next two weekends at the Fair to tell more attendees about our recent victories in employment rights and pain patients’ rights, and our campaigns to open more cannabis consumption lounges and lower (or at least fight higher) taxes on cannabis.
With the exception of Friday, July 19 when the cannabis sales and consumption spaces will be closed (due to Brewfest happening that day), the spaces will be open for the duration of the Fair, which continues through July 28.
June 22, 2024 – The LA Times has reported, “For the first time in the 170-year history of the California State Fair, which is scheduled to open July 12 in Sacramento, visitors will be able to do something they haven’t been able to do there before — legally anyway. They will be able to purchase and consume cannabis on-site.”
Embarc, the fair’s partner on the project, will host a dispensary and 30,000-square-foot outdoor consumption lounge space at Cal Expo that will allow fair-goers who are 21 and older (and in possession of a valid government-issued photo ID) to buy and try award-winning cannabis.
In 2022 a cannabis exhibit and awards program were added to the fair lineup, and an estimated 160,000 people have come through that educational exhibit in the last two years. This year, those thousands of potential shoppers will be able to buy and consume some 300 different THC-containing products, including many of the 98 freshly crowned winners of 2024 California State Cannabis Awards.
Cal NORML deputy director Ellen Komp was quoted in a Sacramento Bee article about the move, saying that last year, “If you wanted to order or even smell the winning cannabis entries, you could place a call from your cell phone and pick it up in the parking lot, like a criminal. And inside there was no place to peacefully consume it. I told the (Department of Cannabis Control) representatives that if their agency truly wanted to help the California cannabis farmer, it needed to advocate for this change.”
“When people come to the state fair, they can try the best wine, cheese and craft-brewed beer. That’s already in place,” California State Fair Chief Executive Tom Martinez told The Times. “This was just the natural next step that the legislature and our board of directors is taking.”
This year’s California State Fair runs from July 12 to 28. Daily hours for the dispensary and lounge, award winners and additional information will be posted to the 2024 California State Cannabis Awards website at castatefaircannabisawards.com as they are available.
You’ll only be able to consume cannabis products purchased on-site. The lounge will provide rolling papers and expects to have an assortment of other smoking paraphernalia to use, so leave your favorite smoking gear at home. And last, while the dispensary and lounge will be open for most of the fair’s run, there are three dates to be aware of: July 12 and 13 (no inhalable consumption will be allowed on those days) and July 19 when the dispensary will be closed.
Cal NORML will be tabling along with the California Cannabis Historical Society on weekends during the Fair. Stop by and say high.
