Good Day Farm, the largest medical marijuana producer in Louisiana, is doubling production capacity this year amid strong patient demand and new regulations expanding access.
The multistate operator and the private partner of the Louisiana State University AgCenter – one of only two locations in the state approved to legally cultivate medical cannabis – is adding 40,000 square feet of capacity at its 225,000-square-foot facility in Ruston, the Lafayette Daily Advertiser reported.
“With the significant improvements made to the medical marijuana program by the Legislature, Good Day Farm Louisiana anticipated patient count and demand would eventually increase,” David Kirsch, Good Day Farm’s vice president of Ruston operations, told USA Today Network.
The company invested more than $50 million in its Louisiana operations last year, producing about 17,000 pounds of marijuana, according to the Daily Advertiser, citing a report from the LSU AgCenter.
That included $1.3 million to the LSU AgCenter as well as a $100,000 reimbursement of an annual license fee and a $500,000 performance bond, the newspaper reported.
The only other facility approved to grow cannabis in the state is the Southern University Agricultural Research and Extension Center.
Louisiana last year enacted several regulatory changes to expand its MMJ program, including:
- Allowing more labs to conduct testing.
- Transferring oversight from the Louisiana Department of Agriculture to the state’s Department of Health.
- Permitting nurse practitioners and psychologists to make recommendations.
- Mandating delivery to patients.
