The Alaska State Fair has no plans to include cannabis judging in its annual lineup this year, a fair official said Thursday, but it expects to take a "serious look" at the possibility in the future.
Responding to a report in Oregon Live that the Oregon State Fair will, for the first time, include prize-winning cannabis plants as an attraction, Dean Phipps, director of marketing and communications for the Alaska State Fair, said the state's own annual event isn't following suit, at least for now.
"That's not happening here," Phipps said.
The fair currently features exhibits for a wide variety of crops, from berries and mushrooms to herbs and vegetables.
Phipps said the inclusion of cannabis in the fair would likely "get a serious look this year, but so far we don't have any big plans."
State and local policies are still taking shape, Phipps said, so the fair is still waiting to see how everything shakes out. "I think it's in the early stages in Alaska so it's pretty hard to sort out what the norm is," he said.
Board officials will likely discuss the issue during the fair's annual meeting in February, Phipps said.
"I think that's something that somebody will come forward with," Phipps said.
In Palmer, where the fair takes place, voters have banned commercial marijuana, Phipps noted. He also noted the fair passed a smoke-free policy this year.
"I haven't heard anything that I could share with you that's going to happen this year. Other than Cheech and Chong. That's irony, right?" Phipps said, referring to the infamous marijuana-smoking duo performing at the fair this year.