Tiny sprouts in a sterile, virtually scent-free room will someday become 18-inch medical marijuana plants, packed into an almost unbearably bright “flowering bay.”
Aurora Cannabis, Alberta’s first commercial marijuana production facility, has just finished its first harvest at its facility near Cremona.
“It was a good crop. We have seven different strains. The buds look good,” said C.E.O Terry Booth.
The federal government is no longer allowing patients to grow their own supply. The only legal way to access medical cannabis is to get it by courier, from licensed commercial operators.
Health Canada didn’t ask Aurora’s Mountain View County neighbours if they wanted a marijuana facility down the road, though. Many are downright angry they were not consulted, citing concerns like security.
Safety and security are issues Aurora says it takes very seriously, with dozens of cameras and laser motion detectors.
“Say, for example, you tunneled up through the floor or in through the wall, we'd know,” said facility director Joel Fuzat, “There's not even a big sign on the front of the building.”
A similar facility is in the development stage in the South Foothills Industrial Park in Calgary. The Alberta Urban Municipalities Association has just released a report on marijuana production in the province, calling on better information from Health Canada.
“We're looking for stronger input, stronger information, especially when they're going to be granting an approval for a facility,” said Wayne Brown, who sat on the AUMA working group.
Aurora expects to begin shipping the product from its first harvest sometime in August.
