Six years after it became legal, the BBC follows one production line from plant to prescription.
Six years ago, medical cannabis became legal in the UK. The drug, which has to be prescribed by specialist doctors, is used to treat conditions including OCD and chronic pain. While the NHS says more "evidence" is needed for a wider rollout, the industry is said to be booming. The BBC followed one production line from Portugal to Sunderland to see the process up close.
"When you first tell friends and family that you work with cannabis you get jokes like, 'Do you get any free samples?' But, on the whole, people are dead interested," explains Tabitha Bonallie, 26, who is tasked with health and safety. In a secured facility, seven greenhouses spanning 20,000 sq m hold about 7,500 cannabis plants each, with each crop having an estimated market value of $4m .General manager Nuno Mendoca says the good weather is utilised for the plants, but even then, industrial LEDs must be used to ensure consistency of the crop.Dozens of workers begin cutting the mature plants, packing them into boxes before wheeling them into another room, where a team uses clippers to remove the stems.
The 46-year-old, who suffers from chronic pain, says she spent "five or six years" being told by doctors her pain levels could not be treated."I was surprised at how great it was at managing pain and it felt like that was some sort of secret, like why don't more people know about this?
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