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CALGARY –Aurora Marijuana’s cannabis production facility, the province’s first production centre for medical marijuana, will start growing plants in about a week.

“We’ve just received our licence from Health Canada and we’re presently obtaining our starting materials, so within seven days we’ll be starting to grow cannabis,” explained Aurora Marijuana CEO Terry Booth during a tour of the facility, which is located on rural land near the Village of Cremona.

The facility is capable of producing up to 5,400 kilograms of medical marijuana each year and will grow 20 different strains.

“It’s interesting to see the marriage of sciences,” said Chris Mayerson, master cultivator for the facility. “We’re working with the PhD plant botanists, molecular biologists and at the same time we’re dealing with patients that have had a chance to really work with the plant, work with patients and find out what strains work best for different medical ailments.”

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The facility will be monitored 24 hours a day by 154 security cameras. Patients cannot access any product from the site. Health Canada policy requires medical marijuana be shipped in dried form directly to registered patients via courier or Canada Post.

Calgary physician Dr. Eugene Magerman says the demand for medical marijuana is growing. He currently prescribes cannabis for patients with conditions like multiple sclerosis (MS), cancer and ulcerative colitis.

“Every day we field about 300 phone calls from patients interested in using medical cannabis, but of course not everyone can qualify,” said Magerman.

The Aurora Marijuana Facility’s first harvest is expected to be ready within six months.

Watch below: Global’s Heather Yourex explains the first steps of production, from where it all starts in the “mother room” to the “clone room.”

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