Cannabis industry makes history at California State Fair

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — As the California State Fair wraps up this weekend, the fair made history allowing people for the first time to be able to buy and consume marijuana on site.

“The cannabis consumption part of it has gone pretty well, better than we expected,” said Tom Martinez, Chief Executive Officer for Cal Expo and the State Fair. “The demographic that we did not expect was a large part of the population coming through here has been senior citizens.”

With the green carpet rolled out and medals handed out, another piece of history was made at the California State Fair with the Cannabis Awards.

“This is the Oscars of cannabis,” said Dustin Moore, Co-Founder of Embrac. “It is so fitting on this 170th anniversary to be here celebrating cannabis alongside of wine, cheese, olive oil and craft beer.”

“It is a huge deal,” said Jocelyn Sheltraw, CEO of Budist. “This is a historic moment.”

In years past, the Golden Bears were only awarded to cannabis flowers, but this year they have expanded to nine different categories.

“This year, the state is allowing every category, so beverages, concentrates, edibles, pre rolls,” said Sheltraw. “It is just wonderful to be celebrated in a normalized way.”

This comes eight years after recreational marijuana became legal in the state. But also, in a time where the industry faces a challenging time due to lack of federal regulation, saturated market and high taxes.

“For these folks, this means the world to them to grow their craft products and to be able to celebrate them alongside traditional agriculture,” said Moore.

One of California’s most famous crops rolling into the spotlight.

“This is just the beginning of what I think will be a real movement to integrate cannabis responsibly and appropriately into large events,” said Lauren Carpenter, CEO of Embrac.

WATCH MORE: Large crowds expected for last weekend of California State Fair