New Jersey Senate President exploring ‘restriction’ on legal weed edibles

Senate President Stephen Sweeney will look at a possible restriction on edible forms of marijuana in an attempt to win over legislators hesitant to vote for legal weed.

Sweeney, D-Gloucester, raised the concerns about edibles Tuesday during an editorial board meeting with the Asbury Park Press. Several Democrats had expressed concerns about cannabis-infused edibles that, if left unattended, could look appealing to a child.

In an attempt to win enough votes to pass a marijuana legalization bill, Sweeney said he was “actually looking at maybe restricting certain (edible) ones.” 

“Edibles, we have to look at,” Sweeney said. “Gummy bears? Kids can pick up a gummy bear. The thing we learned in Colorado (where recreational marijuana is legal) is about packaging. You have to make it unattractive to children.

“It’s not like a cereal box that’s all colorful with cartoon characters. It has to be very bland with nothing that makes someone say ‘that looks really cool, I want to try it,’” Sweeney said. “Kids eat gummy bears all the time. If you want to consume marijuana, I don’t think you need gummy bears. There’s other ways of ingesting marijuana.” [Read more at Asbury Park Press]