Kentucky cannabis cultivators and processors were named on Monday following a drawing held at the Kentucky Lottery.

Governor Andy Beshear read off the names of the initial businesses receiving the 26-tiered licenses for cannabis cultivators and processors of the 4,998 applicants.

Legislation passed by the General Assembly and signed by Governor Beshear will make medical cannabis legal in Kentucky beginning next year, with caveats and restrictions. Part of those restrictions is ensuring the market is not overwhelmed with too many growers and processors.

For Kentuckians with legitimate qualifying conditions to get cannabis when the law goes into effect, the cultivators and processors are being selected now, and the dispensers will soon be named via the lottery system.

Cultivators in Kentucky must grow cannabis indoors. The tiers between the cultivators delineate the scale of the growing operation, with smaller producers classified as Tier I and industrial-sized cultivators classified as Tier III.

Processors are commercial entities licensed to purchase cannabis from cultivators and then extract resins from the plant to create cannabis oils to turn into the final product for medical consumers.

Medical cannabis practitioners are registering now in Kentucky, with more being certified by the Office of Medical Cannabis to become authorized and registered to provide qualified patients with written certifications for medical cannabis.

Many local communities have opted to hold elections to decide if medical marijuana will be sold in their locality.