High on Debt: Cannabis Company Closing NJ Grow Sites

It turns out that selling legal cannabis isn't necessarily the license to print money that some thought when New Jersey legalized it in 2021.

Marijuana multistate operator The Cannabist Co. will close two cultivation sites in Vineland and sell three South Jersey dispensaries in response to mounting losses.

Two South Jersey Legal Weed Sites to Close

The Cannabist Co. says "company financial issues" are the reason for closing Vineland grow sites at 17 West Park Ave. and at 1560 N. West Blvd.

Last week's layoff notice said that 86 local jobs would be lost when the Vineland shutdowns take effect Oct. 11, according to a notice filed with the New Jersey Department of Labor & Workforce Development.

The Cannabist Co. also plans to sell its three South Jersey dispensaries, in Mays Landing, Vineland and Deptford, the company's only New Jersey locations.

The dispensaries were not mentioned in the July 14th layoff notice.

By all accounts, the South Jersey market has been a profitable one for the Cannabist Co,, bringing in $43.5 million in 2025, about 16% of the company's overall total.

The Cannabist is Closing Locations Around the Country

The Cannabist filed for Chapter 15 bankruptcy protection in Delaware in March, facing about $270 million in debt to lenders and the IRS.

The company also entered an agreement to sell assets in Colorado, Illinois, West Virginia, Massachusetts and Maryland at that time.

The Cannabist surrendered its New York medical permit and wound down operations in Pennsylvania after those markets drew insufficient buyer interest, according to court filings.

The Cannabist isn’t alone.

Ascend Wellness Holdings is shutting down its large grow operation in Lansing, Michigan, and PharmaCann is planning widespread facility wind-downs and major layoffs across several states due to steep wholesale price declines.

Wholesale cannabis prices have plummeted significantly across legal states due to oversupply, according to the Cannabis Industry Journal.