“To date, the commission has approved 152 recreational marijuana applications, including 92 cultivators, 45 manufacturers and four testing laboratories.”

TRENTON - Just over a month after the first sales of marijuana for adult use in New Jersey, the market is set for its first big expansion. 

The New Jersey Cannabis Regulatory Commission on Tuesday unanimously approved five more medical marijuana dispensaries to begin selling cannabis to any adult over 21 years old, regardless of whether they're a registered patient. 

Included in the crop of approved "expansion" applications are all three Garden State Dispensary locations. The dispensaries, owned by Ayr Wellness, are the first retail marijuana locations in Central Jersey.

The five dispensaries approved Tuesday are: 

• Garden State Dispensary, Eatontown
• The Apothecarium, Lodi
• Ascend, Montclair
• Garden State Dispensary, Woodbridge
• Garden State Dispensary, Union (Union County)

"We are thrilled to be approved for adult-use sales in New Jersey and to have all three dispensaries cleared simultaneously to open for adult-use," Ayr Wellness CEO Jonathan Sandelman said in a statement. "To date, Central Jersey has the lowest number of dispensaries per capita, leaving its population under-served compared with the rest of the state.

"New Jersey is expected to become a highly influential state for the U.S. cannabis industry, and we are honored to help shape the market landscape from its early stages."

For the full story: NJ legal weed: Six more dispensaries OK'd for recreational marijuana (njherald.com)