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Google PlayCircle K gas stations in Florida will soon begin selling marijuana products along with cigarettes and snacks, according to cannabis company Green Thumb Industries.
Per CBS MoneyWatch, Green Thumb announced on Wednesday that as part of a new partnership between the two companies, weed products will be sold at 10 “RISE Express” dispensaries starting next year, which will have separate entrances from the Circle K gas stations.
Products will include regular flower buds, pre-rolls, vapes, and edible gummies, which Green Thumb said will be procured from their 28-acre facility that they are currently building in Ocala, Florida. The facility is set to open at the end of 2022.
Circle K’s owner, Canada-based Alimentation Couche-Tard, confirmed the partnership in a statement to CBS MoneyWatch, but clarified, “Circle K is not selling cannabis in its U.S. stores,” and said the products will be sold in a separate space leased adjacent to the gas stations.
Ben Kovler, Green Thumb’s founder and CEO, told the outlet that the deal with Circle K will make it “easier and more efficient for patients to purchase high-quality cannabis as part of their everyday routine when stopping by their local convenience store.”
The global company operates about 600 locations in Florida, according to Green Thumb. While cannabis remains illegal on the federal level, the plant is sold legally in Florida for medical use, with nearly 560,000 Floridians in possession of a medical marijuana card, as reported by the Florida Department of Health.
“The opening of RISE Express stores at Circle K locations is a game-changer, Kovler added. “Convenience is a strong channel in retail, and people want more access to cannabis.”
The announcement comes a few weeks after President Biden announced pardons for thousands of people convicted of simple marijuana possession under federal law.
“As I’ve said before, no one should be in jail just for using or possessing marijuana. Today, I’m taking steps to end our failed approach,” Biden’s official Twitter account wrote. “We classify marijuana at the same level as heroin—and more serious than fentanyl. It makes no sense.”
