Keeping It Local

By Robin Gregg

What has taken a year and half to get to, is now an actual reality for a Mother and Son duo. Brooke (Ramsey) Foster, Show Me Alternatives CEO and Ethan Foster, Vice President of Development and Cannabis Operations are in the construction phase of opening a Medical Marijuana Lab and main headquarters at 211 Old Highway 36 in Clarence, Missouri in the old factory building. Brooke is from Shelbina and is married to Clay Foster who is originally from Monroe City and was the one who encouraged the purchase the factory building in Clarence.

Ethan graduated in December 2019 with his Bachelors of Science from the University of Missouri College of Agriculture in Plant Science with an emphasis in Breeding, Biology, and Biotechnology.

Keeping it local is and always will be their top priority economically. SMA Manufacturing, LLC started the paperwork application process on December 4, 2018 to receive their licenses. They found out on January 10, 2020, they had been approved for their Manufacturing Lab License. “I starting crying when we heard the news,” said Brooke. SMA Manufacturing, LLC scored #8 in the entire state of Missouri out of 425 lab license applications.

The updates to the building; cosmetic and construction will be completed in early Fall, 2020. I received a personal tour and plans of the building from Ethan. “We do not have an official opening date as of right now. As soon as we receive word about our cultivation license we will start growing and hire as we grow in size. We will have security guards and security fence around the nine acres. The entire building will be in use and we will be building a 45,000 square foot glass windowed, climate-controlled, greenhouse south of the building, if we obtain our cultivation license’’ said Ethan.

“The City of Clarence has been very supportive and excited to see us grow the economy with localized employees. Jim Johnson, Clarence Pharmacist, who is on our board is assisting us with the pharmaceutical end of things,” said Brooke.

Not only will they bring in employment to the facility, it will also bring job opportunities and increased revenue around the area.

COCO (Cannabis Only Company) will be their dispensary name and they’ve been approved for three locations in Moberly, Hannibal, and Chillicothe. The manufacturing/infused products will be available to all 192 Missouri dispensaries.

According to WebMD, “Medical marijuana is used to treat a number of different conditions, some including: Alzheimer's disease; appetite loss; Cancer; Crohn's disease; eating disorders such as Anorexia; Epilepsy; Glaucoma; Mental health conditions like schizophrenia and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD); Multiple sclerosis; Muscle spasms; Nausea; and/or Pain.

Employment Applications will be available online as soon as the Foster’s have their website (cocodispensaries.com) active, it’s currently under construction.

We will keep everyone updated as they progress to opening their doors!