Georgia Picks Six Companies to Produce Low-THC Medical Cannabis Oil

Georgia has tabbed six companies to produce and distribute low-THC cannabis oil, according to WSB-TV. The names of the firms will not be unveiled until Saturday.

In all, the state will license two Class One producers with a capacity of up to 100,000 square feet and four Class Two licenses with capacities up to 50,000 square feet.

The bill allowing the businesses was signed in May. Despite there being 14,000 registered medical cannabis patients in Georgia, there is currently no way for them to legally access their medicine and many patients run the risk of violating federal law by having to cross state lines.

Under state law, the University of Georgia and Fort Valley State University are the only entities in Georgia allowed to cultivate cannabis to study its medicinal benefits; however, neither school has applied for a license.

The legislation allowed just 70 companies to apply for the permits.

The Georgia Access to Medical Cannabis Commission, which is tasked with reviewing and scoring the applications estimate it could take six to eight months for the companies to get operational and make the oil available to registered patients.

The state program only allows medical cannabis products to contain up to 5% THC and allows patients with one or a combination of just 17 medical conditions to enroll. The legislature passed the law in 2019.