North Florida’s medical marijuana production facility seeks an increase in accessibility

(Jacksonville) CHT Medical is the designated medicinal cannabis nursery for Northeast Florida following voter approval in November of state constitutional Amendment 2 that legalized medical cannabis. An outgrowth of the 35-year-old Chestnut Hill Tree Farm, it is one of seven botanical operations approved by the state of Florida to grow medicinal marijuana. During a tour of the facility, Robert Wallace, president and part owner, gave a detailed explanation of how the facility works. “We grow the plants until they’re flowered. We take the flowers and dry them. Then we extract the oil from those flowers using high-pressure CO2 [carbon dioxide] extraction equipment. We use the oil then to manufacture the different types of medicine,” Wallace said outside a laboratory where the medicine was going through final steps of preparation before being shipped to patients’ homes.