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by James Pilcher, WKRC
As medical marijuana sales commence in Kentucky, Toro Infused is poised to become the state's first medical marijuana processor. Located here in Northern Kentucky, the company could start production as soon as this week, focusing on gummies and extracts. (WKRC file)
DAYTON, Ky. (WKRC) – As medical marijuana sales commence in Kentucky, Toro Infused is poised to become the state's first medical marijuana processor.
Located in Northern Kentucky, the company could start production as soon as this week, focusing on gummies and extracts.
Toro Infused plans to produce up to 17,000 gummies daily per eight-hour shift. Donny Petarra, the company's extraction director, explained the high-tech distilling process using liquid butane to extract THC and cannabinoids from marijuana plant material. These extracts will be incorporated into gummy mixtures and molded into shape.
Currently, the facility is conducting test runs without THC, as Toro has not yet received its full license and lacks actual marijuana plant materials. Once operational, the company aims to produce gummies for dispensaries, which will then sell them to medical marijuana patients.
Toro Infused is part of a chain of cannabis businesses led by CEO Mario Gadea, who also operates in Missouri and Arizona. Gadea noted that the company did not initially aim to be the first processor on the market but sees it as a significant opportunity.
"So very excited when we started this project, and even through the first few months, we had absolutely no intention of or goal of being first to market. It just kind of happened that way, but it's a huge opportunity for our business to kind of be the first and, you know, first to get exposed to the patients for better or for worse, first to work with all these cultivators for better or for worse," said Gadea. "I expect to be producing revenue in the millions. Hopefully, more than a million a month would be a great goal."
Unlike other Northern Kentucky cities and counties, Dayton's city council voted unanimously to allow medical marijuana businesses. Mayor Ben Baker stated that while the city did not offer financial incentives, it anticipates economic benefits from the company's presence, hopefully to raise pay for city workers.
"We believe that the money that Bison Pharmaceuticals is going to bring into our economy is going to be able to allow us to have competitive pay with and amongst our departments, whether that's first responders or in city offices," Baker said.
The state has issued over 24,000 medical marijuana cards, and conditions qualifying for a card include cancer, chronic pain, epilepsy, multiple sclerosis, and PTSD. Kentucky's first dispensary opened last month in Beaver Dam, with Northern Kentucky dispensaries expected to open soon.
Under state rules, plant materials are capped at 35% THC, while concentrates can reach 75%. Gummies can contain up to 10 milligrams of THC per serving, with no package limits.
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