The state of Alabama could be just a couple of weeks away from the first medical cannabis dispensary opening for business. It marks a major step in the process of getting the products to those who've been waiting for years for the legal battle over it to play out.
One of the four state-licensed processing facilities is Homestead Health in Jasper. They buy cannabis plants from growers and turn them into medicine, in many different forms. The owner, Tyler Robinson, has just processed his first cannabis plants, something he's been working towards since Alabama lawmakers approved medical cannabis in 2021. Robinson said, "This has been going on almost five years, and I commend my team's tenacity. They've had to keep getting, you know, punched in the highs and lows. But we're here."
Patrick Pierson is the Operations Manager. He said, "Once we receive that, we'll actually snip all those buds, and everything off will move any undesirable material like the stems and stalks and everything to where it's just those buds and leaves will grind all of that down, and then we'll put it into our cup 30 ethanol extractor over here. Once it runs through that, this is what comes out is an ethanol and oil mixture."
Before it can be turned into a gummy or pill, the state lab will test it to make sure it's safe and free from contaminants. In a perfect world, the plant can be turned into medicine in about one week, but right now, they're waiting on lab results before they can move forward.
Source: WVTM
