Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost has filed an antitrust lawsuit accusing nine multistate cannabis operators of engaging in anti-competitive conduct that reduced product choice and kept prices artificially high in Ohio's cannabis market. The lawsuit alleges the practices harmed both consumers and smaller, Ohio-based cannabis businesses by favoring large, vertically integrated companies.
The case stems from a tip submitted to Yost's office in October 2024 by an Ohio cannabis industry employee. The tip alleged widespread use of "shelf-space allotments" among large multistate operators in Ohio and across the country. According to the tip and a subsequent investigation, these companies entered into reciprocal purchasing agreements that were negotiated at the national level and implemented in Ohio dispensaries.
Investigators found that multistate cannabis operators allegedly agreed to prioritize one another's products on dispensary shelves while reducing or eliminating purchases from independent Ohio cultivators and processors. Yost said the investigation revealed allegations of an industry-wide scheme intended to push small Ohio businesses out of the market. He emphasized that Ohio's antitrust laws are meant to protect competition and consumers, not secretive arrangements that benefit a select group of companies.
According to the complaint, senior representatives from major multistate operators met in late 2022 during a period of increased supply and declining prices. During those discussions, the companies allegedly agreed to reduce purchases from independent businesses to preserve shelf space for one another. The tip further alleged that some companies established internal quotas that reserved a substantial portion of dispensary shelf space for products obtained through reciprocal agreements with other multistate operators.
The defendants named in the lawsuit are Ascend Wellness, Ayr Wellness, The Cannabist Company, Cresco Labs, Curaleaf, Green Thumb Industries, Jushi, Trulieve, and Verano. The lawsuit alleges that each company violated Ohio's Valentine Act by entering into reciprocal trade agreements with competitors, sharing competitively sensitive information, and engaging in discriminatory distribution practices that disadvantaged independent Ohio cannabis operators.
According to the complaint, these actions reduced product choice and quality for Ohio consumers, stifled innovation, and allowed the defendants to maintain or increase prices above competitive levels in the state's cannabis market. Attorney General Yost is seeking injunctive relief to stop the alleged unlawful conduct.
