Medical marijuana company True Leaf broke ground on a production facility in Lumby on Friday.
The 25,000-square-foot facility will include a hydroponic grow area expected to produce 2,500 kilograms of dried medical marijuana each year.
The business hopes to be federally licensed to sell their product online by early 2019 and has plans to initially hire 30 people.
It’s welcomed news for Lumby’s mayor, who hopes the medical marijuana production will help diversify the local economy.
Kevin Acton said with changes in the forestry industry over the years, a lot of mills and forest revenue have left the community.
“We’ve sort of been slowly replacing some of the forest industry stuff with other economy. Hopefully we will be able to withstand sways in the market a little bit better than just basing your entire industrial park on one economy,” Acton said.
Acton hopes True Leaf will bolster Lumby’s limited tax base and provide employment.
“I’m really excited to see how this unfolds,” Acton said.
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The new development is also welcomed news for longtime Lumby resident Cameron Hanna, who is looking forward to the community growing.
He recalls when the current build site was a lumber yard and said the community has “been hanging on” without a large tax base.
The building is expected to be finished by late summer. True Leaf said anyone interested in working at the company should apply online through their website.