ROCHESTER, N.Y. (WROC) — As farmers grow legal cannabis, the product will then be taken to licensed processors, where products like gummies and edibles will be made. On Monday, the Cannabis Control Board approved the first 15 legal marijuana processors in New York, NOWAVE on Buell Road being one of them, with a new facility currently under construction on Trade Court.

Ken Gregory is the Vice President of Operations with NOWAVE. He says they soon will be working with licensed cannabis growers across the state to bring their crop here. “So at this point, they have to partner with a processor to be able to extract and make edibles, or tinctures, or cartridges for the rec marijuana program,” he said.

That’s in a nutshell what Gregory and his gang will make. What will be produced — and at a handful of other legal plants across the state — will be tested through and through. 

“So the intention is to understand what you’re putting in, whether it is exact potency content, or if there are pesticides or chemical contaminants,” Gregory said.

Because the stuff off the street or from unlicenced places — you just don’t know what’s in it. “You’re going to have a much better experience with a product if you know the lab-tested results,” Gregory said.

And with a core group of about 30 employees, this company has the potential to add about 100 more jobs to the local economy. “It just all depends on how fast the dispensaries grow,” says Brian Lane, the compliance officer at NOWAVE.

He says the marijuana industry will bring in billions for New York. “The anticipated revenue of this state is about $9 billion dollars at its peak,” Lane said.

The building at 300 Trade Court is the new intended home for NOWAVE — that move will come hopefully next month. “Once they approve everything, we’ll move all our operations into this building,” Lane said.

Provided all goes well, the company plans to host a grand opening in October.