What Metrc means for Oklahoma

As medical and recreational cannabis laws are put into place to ensure legal access, states are deciding the best way to track legal cannabis from seed to sale. In Oklahoma, Metrc has been officially designated as the state’s tracking system to ensure every step of the process from cultivation to sale is precisely documented, ensuring compliance and safety for distributors and consumers alike. 

Oklahoma Medical Cannabis 

While the recreational use of cannabis is still illegal in Oklahoma, medical cannabis was legalized in June 2018 when voters approved the Medical Marijuana Legalization initiative. This made Oklahoma the 30th state to legalize cannabis for medical or recreational use. Unlike many state medical cannabis programs, Oklahoma does not require patients to have any specific medical conditions to qualify for medicinal cannabis and doctors can recommend cannabis as a treatment for any condition they choose. 

In 2020, the Oklahoma Medical Marijuana Authority (OMMA) announced that Metrc had been chosen for the state’s seed-to-sale tracking system for cannabis. Metrc stands for Marijuana Enforcement Tracking Reporting & Compliance and was designed to keep track of the whole journey of cannabis from seed to sale. From harvesting to production and transporting, every step in the supply chain is recorded for easy traceability. Metrc is the most trusted and experienced provider of cannabis regulatory systems in the United States and provides a database for tracking cannabis using RFID technology and tags. This cloud-based compliance management software ensures the safety and security of the legal cannabis market by carefully monitoring the cannabis supply chain.

What Metrc Integration Means for Oklahoma 

Metrc has been chosen as Oklahoma’s provider of cannabis regulatory systems and all cannabis dispensaries and growing operations in Oklahoma will have to integrate with Metrc by May 26, 2022. OMMA has officially contracted Metrc to implement their track-and-trace system for cannabis and all licensees must utilize this system. Medical cannabis dispensaries must integrate with Metrc’s compliance system to avoid any legal violations and must sell or legally dispose of any untagged medical cannabis products in their inventory by August 24, 2022.

Oklahoma licensees will now use Metrc to track all medical cannabis and medical cannabis products through all stages of growth, production, transport, testing, and sales in the state.  OMMA’s mission to ensure patient access to safe medical cannabis will be accomplished with Metrc’s track and trace system, which will provide easy traceability throughout supply chain transfers to protect the well-being of consumers and businesses in Oklahoma’s medical cannabis industry. 

OMMA and Metrc are offering training to dispensaries in order to educate licensees on the implementation of this seed-to-sale tracking system. OMMA will conduct at least five online seminars by May 26th. All dispensary owners, employees, and managers will also complete a mandatory free online training program offered by Metrc. OMMA will also provide updates about the implementation of Metrc along with a competent call center staff to respond to inquiries about the new system. 

OMMA Legal Battle 

OMMA, Metrc and Plaintiffs all reached an agreement on February 25, 2022, allowing Oklahoma to move forward with their seed-to-sale tracking system. The Agreed Order lifts the restraining order which previously blocked OMMA from implementing a seed-to-sale tracking and tagging system for the medical cannabis industry of Oklahoma. 

Attorney Ron Durbin filed the lawsuit in Okmulgee County on behalf of a few dispensaries, wanting the state to foot the bill of the Metrc system and RFID tags. Durbin expressed that Oklahoma failed to properly require medical cannabis licensees to use the Metrc system under agency rulemaking. Since an agreement has been reached, Metrc will now be the contracted seed-to-sale tracking platform used by Oklahoma. 

How WayFast can simplify compliance

WayFast Smart Scales are compliant with Metrc, and their state-of-the-art technology makes it easy for cultivators in the medical cannabis industry to keep track of all of their important data, simplifying harvesting and compliance. WayFast can optimize business performance with secure data that is easily transferred to USB where it can then be uploaded to Metrc’s track and trace system. Our data output is agnostic, outputs into CSV, and is easily integrated by any cannabis ERP software or data software. 

WayFast cannabis harvest compliance automation scales read the RFID plant tags, offering cannabis cultivators an easy and efficient way to record data for Metrc compliance. After placing a plant on the scale, the scanner reads and records the plant weight and related plant RFID tag in under 3 seconds. The data is recorded on the onboard computer. When the harvest is complete, simply press ‘done’ and all your data is stored on a USB drive for upload to your ERP software or directly to your compliance system (Metrc). WayFast cannabis cultivation scales can save commercial growers both time and money capturing harvest data for Metrc with ease with our fast and precise systems that keep harvesting operations fully compliant.

Want to know more? 

With the upcoming deadline for compliance looming in Oklahoma (May 26, 2022), WayFast and cannabis software partner Canix are here to help. We will be attending the upcoming Cannacon OKC Conference Mar 31 & Apr 1 at the OKC Convention Centre (Booth #503). We will also be conducting two joint information sessions earlier that week at Fassler Hall Tulsa on March 29th and at Crew Workspace in Oklahoma City on March 30th. For more information on either event, please contact us at: sales@GoWayFast.com. 

Can’t make these events? Book a 10-minute demo to learn how easy cultivation compliance can be.