WJZ tours Maryland's largest cannabis farm ahead of legalization of recreational weed sales
WARWICK, Md. – Jake Van Wingerden's ornamental plant business in Cecil County dates back generations. He now runs the largest cannabis farm in the state.
"When I walk through the greenhouse and I don't see a yellow leaf anywhere, I know we're dialed in," Van Wingerden said last week.
The SunMed Growers president gave WJZ a tour in advance of Maryland's move to recreational cannabis sales July 1.
RELATED: Weed legalization in Maryland: How we got here
"We're growing more. We're hiring more. We're packaging more. We're producing more," Van Wingerden said. "I'm sure we're going to have some supply imbalances."
SunMed recently expanded its flowering square footage to 240,000, up from 40,000 square feet when it began cannabis production for the medical market in 2014.
"Every single room in the greenhouse, we're monitoring temperature, humidity, CO2 levels, light levels," Van Wingerden pointed out in one of SunMed's expansive greenhouses.
The greenhouses let in sunlight and are complimented by thousands of LED lights.
The facility's monthly electricity bill is in the six figures, Van Wingerden said. It uses 15,000 gallons of water a day, he said.
The plants take about 20 weeks from propagation to consumption with more than 100 strains of cannabis offered, each with a state-mandated yellow tag to track it.
"Cannabis is a lot like wine, right? There's a lot of different kinds. A lot of different flavors," Van Wingerden said.
SunMed's most popular strain is called "Snoop Dogg," named after the hip hop star and cannabis enthusiast. The strain represents about 40 percent of SunMed's sales, Van Wingerden said.
SunMed is also expanding into the edibles market as the state approves recreational use, building an additional processing facility to create baked goods infused with the drug.
"The vast majority of Americans don't smoke any more. But, everybody eats," Van Wingerden said.
SunMed is purchasing additional machines to help process the additional product in anticipation for the increased demand.
Some studies have predicted the recreational market will expand the demand five-fold, although Van Wingderden predicts the market demand will triple once it levels out.
As the state's top producer, SunMed's processing division manager Drew Reich described a sense or responsibility to keep supply in dispensaries.
"That's our big objective is don't run out," Reich said. "It kind of falls upon our shoulders to make sure there's always a supply for the state."