Unlocking Colorado's Psilocybin Potential: How to Become a Licensed Cultivator
Published on Aug. 21, 2024, 3:33 p.m.

Intro:
There is an emerging opportunity for those who know how to grow Psilocybin mushrooms, often referred to as "magic mushrooms". The demand for legal psilocybin products is on the rise thanks to Colorado's known progressive stance on Natural Medicine. They are now opening the door to legal psilocybin cultivation for those who are granted a license. If you are interested in becoming a licensed cultivator, here's a comprehensive guide to help you navigate the license application process.
Understand the Legal Landscape
Before diving into the licensing process, it's crucial to understand the legal framework surrounding psilocybin in Colorado. In 2022, Colorado voters passed Proposition 122, also known as the Natural Medicine Health Act, which decriminalized the possession and use of psilocybin for individuals over 21. The act also paved the way for the establishment of regulated psilocybin service centers and licensed cultivation operations.
We will be reviewing the latest information based on the Final draft proposed by the Colorado's Division of Natural Medicine However, the regulatory environment might yet see some changes, so staying informed about any of them is essential.
Cultivator license tiers
Each Natural Medicine Cultivation Facility will be classified as either a micro cultivation tier or a standard cultivation tier, depending on its production and inventory management scale.
1) Micro-Cultivation Tier.
A Micro-Cultivation tier license is limited to cultivating, producing, and storing up to 750 grams of dried Fruiting Bodies of Regulated Natural Medicine.
2) Standard Cultivation Tier.
With a standard cultivation tier License you may only cultivate, process, and store up to 5 kilograms of dried Fruiting Bodies of Regulated Natural Medicine at any one time. This can be further increased by submitting a request to the Division of Natural Medicine of Colorado, and it might be granted if the applicant has sufficient demand to accommodate such production increase.
Tracking requirements of Natural Medicine.
Cultivation Cycle Requirements:
Here is when we want to be organized as a company and store as much information on each process in the cultivation cycle. The rulemaking authority specifies different needs.
- Accurate traceability records. (similar to Cannabis cultivating tracking requirements)
- Up to 2 years of cultivated storage inventory.
- Strain and Spore types documentation.
- Master recipe records.
Transfer Requirements:
The Division of Natural Medicine from Colorado specifies that "Tracking Events" must be reported on a monthly basis.
Here are some guidelines defined by the ruling of what is a Tracking Event and how it should be documented..
Tracking events include events when Regulated Natural Medicine progresses through the cultivation process and moves from the Natural Medicine Cultivation Facility to another Natural Medicine Business or Facilitator.
- Harvest lot number.
- Wet weight of the harvest.
- Strain type.
- Date of initial packaging.
When moving medicine to a Testing Facility:
- Harvest lot number.
- Sample weight.
- Date of transfer.
When moving medicine to a Product Manufacturer:
- Harvest lot number.
- Weight (grams) of the regulated natural medicine.
- Date of Transfer.
- Cultivator license number name and phone number.
When moving medicine to a Healing Center:
- Harvest Lot number.
- Weight of the Regulated Natural Medicine.
- Date of the transfer. The Healing Center’s License number, name, and phone number
Business Records Required (applies to all Natural Medicine licenses)
Let's dive into the general business records required that are needed to be stored and for all types of businesses that want to commercialize in some way or another psilocybin products.
1) Secure Facility Information (3010-B-1)
- Current security plans
- The business contact information for vendors that maintain video surveillance systems and Security Alarm Systems for its Licensed Premises;
- Security Alarm System documents
- Surveillance logs that identify all authorized employees and service personnel who have access to the surveillance system and maintenance and activity log
2) Marketing Records (3010-B-3)
- Marketing Records – All records related to advertising and marketing, including but not limited to, audience composition data.
3) Diagram of the Licensed Premises (3010-B-4)
- All approved Restricted Areas and Administration Areas and Identification of camera placements with associated camera numbers, the direction of coverage, and the locations of the surveillance equipment maintenance, user authorization list, and operating instructions.
4) Visitor Log (3010-B-5)
- A record of all people other than employees that enter the Restricted Area.
5) Regulated Natural Medicine Waste Log (3010-B-6)
- Records regarding waste material related to the disposal of psilocybin products and it's sub products.
6) License Application Records (3010-B-7)
- All documents given to the authorities related to the application for the license requested, Includes any required tax records and records demonstrating sources of funding
7) Internal Security Controls (3010-B-9)
- Protocols for the end-of-day handling and storage of Regulated Natural Medicine and Regulated Natural Medicine Product;
- Reporting theft or burglaries
- Identification and list of the different security measures of the Licensed Premises.
8) Current Owner and Employee List (3010-B-10)
- Maintained list with the full name and License number of all Owner Licensees and every Natural Medicine Handler.
9) Safety data sheets (3010-B-13)
- All safety data sheets of products related to the use of any solvents, chemicals, or pesticides used on the licensed facilities.
10) A map of all pest control devices (3010-B-14)
11) Standard Operating Procedures
- A documented food safety program and food safety plan. The plan must include worker training on proper food handling, hand washing, hair restraint, and use of gloves.
- Written procedures must document how workers are trained on the proper use of chemicals
- Written procedures must document pest control strategies
12) Records of product testing requirements (3010-B-16)
13) Records related to spore sources (3010-B-17)
14) Records regarding expiration date of products (3010-B-18)
- All records of expiration date determinations, along with any data used to establish the expiration date, such as test results
15) Inventory tracking documentation (3010-B-19)
- Cultivators must report on a monthly basis all inventory tracking events from the previous calendar month in to the authorities, using forms that will be provided by them.
- Harvest Lot activities
- Transfers of Regulated Natural Medicine
16) Transport Manifests (3010-B-20)
- Originating Natural Medicine Business name, License number, and address;
- Receiving Natural Medicine Business or Facilitator name, License number, and address
- Name, contact information, and Natural Medicine Handler License number or Owner License number for any individual in the vehicle transporting the Regulated Natural Medicine, Regulated Natural Medicine Product, or Regulated Natural Medicine Waste.
- Driver’s valid state-issued driver license number.
- Vehicle make, model, and license plate number.
- Planned route for transportation.
- Date and estimated time of departure.
- Date and estimated time of arrival or completion of transport.
- Address and duration of any overnight stop.
- Information about the product being transported.
Cultivators only required business records
1) Records of spore sources, certificates of analysis and other documentation demonstrating the spore species (5005-B-1)
2) All harvesting equipment must be cleaned and sanitized prior to harvesting, and on a scheduled and documented basis (5020-C-4)
3) Raw materials - Documentation of the material purchased, including the date of purchase (5020-E-1)
4) Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) (5020-E-2)
- A documented food safety program and food safety plan
- Handling of Chemicals. Written procedures
- Pest Control. Written procedures
5) Corrective Action Preventative Action maintain written procedures (5020-E-3)
- Summary: Analyzing processes, work operations, reports, records, service records, complaints, returned products, and/or other sources of data to identify existing and potential root causes of Nonconformances or other quality problems.
6) Certificates of Analysis (5020-E-5)
- All certificates of analysis provided to the Natural Medicine Cultivation Facility by a Natural Medicine Testing Facility for any Samples submitted shall be kept on file.
7) Master Batch Records (5020-E-6)
- Identification of product name.
- Bill of Materials (BOM).
- Equipment list.
- Component list.
- Statement of theoretical yield at each step in the manufacturing process
- Expected yield of the finished product.
- Specific instructions for each step and state in the process.
- Sample collection and test submission steps.
- Instructions for manual operations.
8) Labeling (5020-H-3)
- All Regulated Natural Medicine must be labeled in accordance with Rule 3305. Here are the required data that must be present on these labels:
- Establish expiration dates upon from master tests.
- Ideal storage conditions
Final thoughts..
Becoming a licensed cultivator is no small feat, as you may have realized, but we have tools to help lighten the load. At Sporehubs, we offer premium software tailored for mushroom farms, designed to keep your inventory and documentation tracking systems compliant with regulations.
For more insights into the current landscape of mushroom farming software, check out our article on The Best Gourmet Mushroom Farming Apps Right Now to get an overview on the present state of the mushroom farming software.