For the first time in the state’s medical cannabis program, select members of the media were allowed inside a marijuana growing facility.
Noa Botanicals, one of Hawaii’s eight licensees, hopes an inside look at its operations will educate the public about pakalolo. "There's still a lot of misunderstanding, there's still a lot of stigmatization around this plant," said Brian Goldstein, CEO of Noa Botanicals. "And it's just a plant."
Noa's $5 million, 15,000-square-foot facility in Kunia can produce several thousand pounds of medical cannabis every year.
The warehouse is home to about a thousand plants, and Goldstein says they are currently growing 16 different strains.
Because the plants are extremely valuable, and Hawaii has the most stringent testing standards in the nation, strict protocols are in place to protect the plants. "If there is a single hair, one hair, it will fail the entire batch," said Goldstein.
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