Last verified: May 2026
The Eight Licensees
| Cultivator | City | County |
|---|---|---|
| BOLD Team LLC | Cotton Plant | Woodruff |
| Carpenter Farms Medical Group | Grady | Lincoln |
| Good Day Farm Arkansas (formerly Natural State Wellness) | Pine Bluff | Jefferson |
| Leafology (formerly New Day Cultivation) | Hot Springs | Garland |
| Natural State Medicinals Cultivation (NSMC) | White Hall | Jefferson |
| Osage Creek Cultivation | Berryville | Carroll |
| Revolution Cannabis (formerly Delta Medical Cannabis Co.) | Newport | Jackson |
| River Valley Relief Cultivation (RVR) | Fort Smith | Sebastian |
Source: Arkansas Medical Marijuana Commission (AMMC). The original five cultivation licenses were awarded February 2018; the final three (RVR, Carpenter, New Day/Leafology) followed through 2020–2022 amid extensive litigation. Carpenter Farms is one of the largest Black-owned commercial farming operations in the Delta.
License Fees & Capital Requirements
| Fee Category | Cultivation Facility | Dispensary |
|---|---|---|
| Application fee | $15,000 ($7,500 refundable if denied) | $7,500 ($3,750 refundable) |
| Initial licensing fee | $100,000 annual | $15,000 (initial) |
| Annual renewal | $100,000 | $22,500 |
| Performance bond | $500,000 | $100,000 |
| Asset proof | $1M assets, $500K liquid | $200K assets, $100K liquid |
| Buffer from school / church / daycare | 3,000 ft | 1,500 ft |
| Cap statewide | 8 (Amendment 98 § 8) | 40 (max 4 per county) |
Source: Amendment 98 § 8 and Arkansas Medical Marijuana Commission (AMMC) rules. Vertical integration is constrained but not prohibited — an entity may hold one cultivation license and one dispensary license. Dispensaries are also permitted to cultivate up to 50 mature plants on-site.
The Original Five (February 2018 Awards)
AMMC awarded the original five cultivation licenses in February 2018. The scoring process was contentious; multiple unsuccessful applicants challenged scoring decisions in protracted litigation that delayed program launch significantly:
- BOLD Team LLC (Cotton Plant, Woodruff County) — closely held by the Drennan and Brown families of Cotton Plant.
- Natural State Medicinals Cultivation (NSMC) (White Hall, Jefferson County).
- Osage Creek Cultivation (Berryville, Carroll County).
- Delta Medical Cannabis Co. (Newport, Jackson County) — subsequently rebranded as Revolution Cannabis.
- Natural State Wellness (Pine Bluff, Jefferson County) — subsequently acquired by Good Day Farm Arkansas. Good Day Farm has more than 100 owners, with the Stephens family of Little Rock — heirs to the late billionaire Jack Stephens — among the largest stakeholders.
The Three Latecomers (2020–2022)
- River Valley Relief Cultivation (RVR) (Fort Smith, Sebastian County) — majority-owned by Bennett "Storm" Nolan.
- Carpenter Farms Medical Group (Grady, Lincoln County) — owned by Abraham Carpenter Jr. Carpenter Farms is one of the largest Black-owned commercial farming operations in the Delta. The license was awarded through a settlement after Carpenter sued over a "scrivener’s error" rejection in the original scoring process.
- New Day Cultivation (Hot Springs, Garland County) — subsequently rebranded as Leafology.
Notable Ownership Figures
- Drennan and Brown families — close hold over BOLD Team.
- Stephens family of Little Rock — major Good Day Farm stakeholders, heirs to billionaire Jack Stephens.
- Bennett "Storm" Nolan — majority-owner of River Valley Relief.
- Abraham Carpenter Jr. — principal of Carpenter Farms Medical Group; one of the largest Black-owned commercial farming operations in the Delta.
The 2023 RICO Class Action
A 2023 RICO (Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act) class action accused BOLD Team, NSMC, and Osage Creek of inflating THC potency in lab testing in coordination with Steep Hill Arkansas, the state’s dominant testing lab. The complaint alleged that potency-inflated test results allowed cultivators to charge premium prices and enabled fraud at the patient-purchase level.
The litigation is ongoing as of May 2026. Independent of the litigation, patients with concerns about reported potency have begun comparing lab Certificates of Analysis (CoAs) across batches and operators where available.
Production Output & Quality Tiers
Indicative output and product positioning across the eight cultivators:
- BOLD Team — one of the larger flower producers; mid-to-premium positioning.
- NSMC — full-line product portfolio (flower, concentrates, edibles).
- Osage Creek — flower-focused; Northwest Arkansas anchor.
- Revolution Cannabis — flower and pre-rolls; Newport-based.
- Good Day Farm Arkansas — scaled production through MSO affiliation; premium-positioned.
- RVR — western-AR anchor; full product line.
- Carpenter Farms — smaller-scale; Delta-region anchor.
- Leafology — Hot Springs-based; full product line.
Vertical Integration
Vertical integration is constrained but not prohibited. A single entity may not hold more than one cultivation license or more than one dispensary license, but a person or entity may hold one of each. Dispensaries are also permitted to cultivate up to 50 mature plants on-site — a small captive supply allowance not counted against the cultivation license cap.
Cultivation Facility Geography
The cultivation facilities are spread broadly across the state — Cotton Plant in the Delta, Grady in southeast Arkansas, Pine Bluff and White Hall (twin in Jefferson County), Berryville in the Ozarks, Newport in northeast Arkansas, Fort Smith on the Oklahoma border, and Hot Springs in central Arkansas. The geographic distribution reflects AMMC’s zone-balancing intent in the original scoring process, though no zone has more than two of the eight cultivators.
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Related on this site: Arkansas Eight Dispensary Zones, Arkansas Cannabis License & Fees, Arkansas Dispensary Near Me.