Girl Scouts of America isn’t happy with cookie sales at a South Jersey weed dispensary

Girl Scouts of America is not a fan of a popular weed strain using the name of their iconic cookies, nor are they comfortable with Girl Scouts selling cookies outside of weed dispensaries, which has been an unsanctioned practice among some Scouts for at least a decade.

The conversation reared its head again this week after a New Jersey Girl Scout troop set up shop outside of a Mount Laurel recreational marijuana dispensary to sell Thin Mints and Caramel deLites. Owners of Daylite Cannabis dispensary had been trying for years to make this possible, and were excited to share the news of a “pilot program” at their store, owner Steve Cassidy said in an article for NJ.com.

“Being community-minded is a core part of our mission at Daylite. We’re a locally and family-owned business, so supporting local organizations and helping them raise funds in the community is very important to us,” Cassidy said, who runs the dispensary alongside his wife and parents.

What they didn’t expect was for it to become a national and global headline, upsetting higher-ups at the Girl Scouts of America. A representative for the Girl Scouts of Central and South Jersey said that there was no formal agreement to allow Girl Scouts to sell cookies in front of a dispensary and don’t approve of the practice.

“Our guidance for Girl Scout cookie booths is that girls should not set up booths in front of any businesses that they themselves could not legally patronize,” the representative said. “It’s just unfortunate that [the owner] was quoted as saying this is a ‘trial’ because that is factually incorrect.”

The Girl Scout troop, which Cassidy did not identify, sold cookies outside the dispensary on NJ Route 73 in February to much enthusiasm from customers, Cassidy said. Some customers even bypassed the marijuana to go to the cookies first, he told NJ.com.

Girl Scouts of Central and South Jersey said they do not know how the miscommunication occurred. Cassidy said he was told by a member of a local Girl Scout organization that a “small pilot program” had been approved.

“Our intention was simply to support a local troop and be part of our community. We’ve seen an overwhelmingly positive response from people who enjoyed supporting the girls, and we hope that enthusiasm helps encourage similar community partnerships in the future.”

Girl Scout cookie season runs from January to April, providing young girls the chance to exercise the entrepreneurial spirit and engage with their community. Girl Scouts started selling cookies in 1917, but Girl Scouts selling cookies in front of weed dispensaries has been making headlines for more than a decade.

In 2014, Girl Scout Danielle Lei garnered national media attention for selling out of cookies in 45 minutes when she opened up shop in front of San Francisco’s Green Cross medical marijuana dispensary.

At the time, Lei’s mom told press that she encourages her daughters to “set up shop at various points around San Francisco so they can learn about different environments while earning some cash” and to use it as an opportunity, “to start a conversation about drugs and how some people use marijuana as medicine while others just get high.”

A 9-year-old San Diegoan sold 300 boxes in less than six hours outside of a weed shop in 2018. Right before the pandemic, a Chicago dispensary went viral for hosting a rotation of Girl Scout troops selling cookies out front. Girl Scouts did the same at a Portland dispensary in 2016, a Michigan dispensary in 2021, and in Arizona in 2022.

In each case, the respective regional Girl Scouts organization disavowed the practice.

The Girl Scout troop that sold cookies at Daylite in February was scheduled to return Friday, but that has now been canceled.