A former Pepsi factory that sat vacant for a decade is being reincarnated as an indoor marijuana grow — one of the largest in the pot-friendly state of Colorado.
Doyen Elements, a holding company that leases real estate properties out to legal cannabis companies, bought an old bottling plant in Pueblo County. Upon completion in 2019, the facility could potentially produce up to 70,000 pounds of marijuana flower a year.
According to a recent report in Forbes, the company is one of a growing number of real estate investment firms that are making money in legal weed without actually touching the plant.
Here’s a sneak peak at the massive grow-op coming to Colorado in 2018.
Pueblo, once an economic center of the state’s plains, has struggled to recover from the steel-market crash of 1982. Its unemployment rate, at 7.2%, ranks among the highest in Colorado.
The booming legal marijuana industry could save the area from further devastation.
Since the first dispensary opened in Pueblo County in 2014, cultivation facilities, infused products manufacturers, and over 100 retailers have created more than 1,300 jobs in the industry. In 2015, more than one-third of construction projects there were tied to weed.
For many years, the 104,000-square-foot plant at 1900 South Freeway was used for bottling Pepsi products. But the soda company — like the steel industry — left Pueblo County.
Google Earth screenshot
Pueblo, once an economic center of the state’s plains, has struggled to recover from the steel-market crash of 1982. Its unemployment rate, at 7.2%, ranks among the highest in Colorado.
The booming legal marijuana industry could save the area from further devastation.
Since the first dispensary opened in Pueblo County in 2014, cultivation facilities, infused products manufacturers, and over 100 retailers have created more than 1,300 jobs in the industry. In 2015, more than one-third of construction projects there were tied to weed.
A subsidiary of Doyen Elements acquired the property in 2015. It plans to double the production space and create one of the most sophisticated grow-ops in Colorado.
Courtesy of Doyen Elements
Upon completion in 2019, the facility could produce between 60,000 and 70,000 pounds of flower (the fluffy, green smokable stuff) a year. Those quantities could generate around $20 million in annual sales of marijuana to pot shops, at a price of $300 per pound.
Courtesy of Doyen Elements
Source: Forbes
The conveyor belts and bottling equipment are long gone. But Geoff Thompson, CEO of Doyen Elements, said the company will take advantage of some equipment left on site.
Courtesy of Doyen Elements
Pepsi used an air filtration system that sucked carbon dioxide out of the air. Thompson said the same technology can be used to inject CO2 in the grow rooms and feed the marijuana plants, improving yield up to 30%.
Doyen Elements also plans to team up with a robotics company in order to bring in robots capable of uprooting marijuana clones — or plant cuttings used for cannabis breeding — and sending them on a conveyor belt to their destination. The work is ripe for automation.
Doyen will lease the facility to one or more licensed cannabis growers and provide the tenants with support services, including research and development and consulting.
Courtesy of Doyen Elements
Thompson, a serial entrepreneur who has worked in real estate and financial services, said Doyen Elements will assist in all operations — without ever touching the plant.
Over the last year, the company has acquired 16 small businesses across real estate, logistics, consulting, financial services, R&D, and green technologies, to help marijuana growers who lease.
Marijuana has full legal status in Colorado, but it remains a controlled substance on the federal level. Doyen Elements wants to capitalize on the fast-growing market without dealing directly with the Schedule I drug. It hopes to someday list on the New York Stock Exchange.
“We like to say we can do everything for [legal cannabis operators] other than me physically going in there and trimming plants,” Thompson told Business Insider.
By 2021, Doyen Elements hopes to operate over 1 million square feet of production space.
Courtesy of Doyen Elements
Once the Pepsi factory-turned-farm is up and running, it will create an estimated 160 jobs.
Courtesy of Doyen Elements
New opportunities in legal weed are welcomed in job-starved Pueblo County.
The economic recovery is ongoing. But county officials say the industry generates almost $4 million in annual tax revenue, which funds 4H and Future Farmers of America efforts, medical marijuana research at Colorado State University Pueblo, and a first-of-its-kind scholarship program that will send graduating high school seniors to local universities this fall.
Before breaking ground on the facility, Doyen Elements sent representatives door-to-door to gather support from the community — a requirement of the land entitlement process.
The sun rises over Los Suenos Farms in Avondale, Colorado.Brennan Linsley/AP
Thompson said the project received signatures of approval from 100% of doors knocked on.
“They asked when they’re going to have jobs there,” Thompson said.
YCL Founder’s quote: “The science behind cannabis will disrupt the pharmaceutical industry as a whole.”
To stay informed with YourCannaLife & the Cannabis Industry please enter your name
& email to subscribe to our mailing list.
YourCannaLife is a Cannabis Industry Consulting Service. If you’re seeking to enter the
Cannabis Industry please feel free to contact us by filling out the contact form down below. We assist your business venture from start to finish.
Currently YourCannaLife has access to hundreds of thousand of cannabis followers, patients, customers & etc. All thanks to our network. We’re able to send you social media analytics to support these claims upon request.
If you would like to interact with us on social media you may join our
Facebook group. Share and leave your comments down below.
One thought on “ABANDONED PEPSI FACTORY IS BEING TURNED INTO A CANNABIS BUSINESS”