The Man Starting Europe's Largest Legal Weed Farm in a Nuclear Bunker
Christoph Rossner
"I know we're planning to grow weed  but working here won't just be one big party "  Christoph Rossner  says  while striding ahead of  me  towards the entrance of a deserted nuclear bunker  in the quiet countryside of the southern German region of Allgäu.
Since March 2017  it's become legal to obtain medicinal cannabis in Germany with a prescription.  Rossner  wants to take advantage of the new law and become Germany's leading legal weed grower.  His  ambitions aren't necessarily based on delusions of grandeur – the legalisation opened up a potentially huge market. The German Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Abuse (DBDD) found that in 2015 alone  nearly five million Germans had smoked cannabis at least once that year – and that's just the people willing to admit to it.
The nuclear bunker where  Rossner  hopes to start  his  empire is an intimidating structure – 50 meters long and 15 meters high  with ventilation shafts like a medieval fortress. "I think our plants will be pretty safe within these walls " Roßner smiles.
Through the study   Rossner  hopes to provide 150 patients with cannabis grown in  his  bunker. If both the research and the necessary production of marijuana are approved by the Federal Institute for Drugs and Medical Services and the Federal Narcotics Board in Germany  Bunker PPD  could start supplying clients with medicinal weed by March 2018.
On the left   Christoph Rossner  standing in  his  future weed farm. On the right  a former radio control centre.
 Rossner  is a strong believer in the healing powers of weed. When  he  was 18   his  left shoulder was crushed by a steel beam during  his  apprenticeship at an industrial mechanics company.  He  smoked to ease the chronic pain  he  was experiencing as a result of the accident  and still does to this day. The only difference now is that  he  gets  his  weed legally with a prescription. "In case you're wondering  I'm high right now "  he  admits.
In 1994  the Federal Constitutional Court in Germany made it legal for individuals to carry a small amount of cannabis – between five and ten grams  depending on the German region. In the late 90s  Roßner took advantage of the increased demand by setting up an illegal "weed pharmacy".  His  client base grew steadily and included cancer and arthritis patients. But eventually  the police came to see  him   too. In 2000   he  was sentenced to two years and one month in prison.  He  ended up spending five months there  and four months in therapy.
If at any point the power should fail  Roßner can rely on four diesel generators to supply  his  cannabis plantation with the necessary light.
But  Rossner  has a long way to go. As we step out of the bunker and back into the sunlight   he  tells me that  his  lawyers are preparing a lawsuit against the Federal Institute for Drugs. The agency is requiring potential medicinal weed producers to prove that they've already grown  processed and delivered at least 50 kilos (or 110 pounds) of cannabis within the last three years. Considering it has been illegal to produce in Germany up until now   Rossner  can't understand why the government would expect anyone to have done that – let alone kept some sort of paper trail of it.
While he's waiting for the German authorities to approve his plan   Rossner  is keeping a worried eye on  his  competitors. In the US  a number of American companies are systematically buying up smaller producers – a dynamic that could expand into and take over the German market. Even though his lab doesn't exist yet and there's nothing to buy   Rossner  already tells me he's adamant he won't be bought. He wants to do it on his own terms  in his own nuclear bunker.
"I know we're planning to grow weed  but working here won't just be one big party "  [TGT]says  while striding ahead of  me  towards the entrance of a deserted nuclear bunker  in the quiet countryside of the southern German region of Allgäu.
Since March 2017  it's become legal to obtain medicinal cannabis in Germany with a prescription.  [TGT]wants to take advantage of the new law and become Germany's leading legal weed grower.  [TGT]  ambitions aren't necessarily based on delusions of grandeur – the legalisation opened up a potentially huge market. The German Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Abuse (DBDD) found that in 2015 alone  nearly five million Germans had smoked cannabis at least once that year – and that's just the people willing to admit to it.
The nuclear bunker where  [TGT]hopes to start  [TGT]  empire is an intimidating structure – 50 meters long and 15 meters high  with ventilation shafts like a medieval fortress. "I think our plants will be pretty safe within these walls " Roßner smiles.
Through [TGT]hopes to provide 150 patients with cannabis grown in  his  bunker. If both the research and the necessary production of marijuana are approved by the Federal Institute for Drugs and Medical Services and the Federal Narcotics Board in Germany  Bunker PPD  could start supplying clients with medicinal weed by March 2018.
On [TGT]standing in  [TGT]  future weed farm. On the right  a former radio control centre.
 [TGT]is a strong believer in the healing powers of weed. When  [TGT]  was 18   [TGT]  left shoulder was crushed by a steel beam during  [TGT]  apprenticeship at an industrial mechanics company.  [TGT]  smoked to ease the chronic pain  [TGT]  was experiencing as a result of the accident  and still does to this day. The only difference now is that  [TGT]  gets  [TGT]  weed legally with a prescription. "In case you're wondering  I'm high right now "  he  admits.
In 1994  the Federal Constitutional Court in Germany made it legal for individuals to carry a small amount of cannabis – between five and ten grams  depending on the German region. In the late 90s  Roßner took advantage of the increased demand by setting up an illegal "weed pharmacy".  His  client base grew steadily and included cancer and arthritis patients. But eventually  the police came to see  him   too. In 2000   he  was sentenced to two years and one month in prison.  He  ended up spending five months there  and four months in therapy.
If at any point the power should fail  Roßner can rely on four diesel generators to supply  his  cannabis plantation with the necessary light.
But  Rossner  has a long way to go. As we step out of the bunker and back into the sunlight   he  tells me that  his  lawyers are preparing a lawsuit against the Federal Institute for Drugs. The agency is requiring potential medicinal weed producers to prove that they've already grown  processed and delivered at least 50 kilos (or 110 pounds) of cannabis within the last three years. Considering it has been illegal to produce in Germany up until now   Rossner  can't understand why the government would expect anyone to have done that – let alone kept some sort of paper trail of it.
While he's waiting for the German authorities to approve his plan   Rossner  is keeping a worried eye on  his  competitors. In the US  a number of American companies are systematically buying up smaller producers – a dynamic that could expand into and take over the German market. Even though his lab doesn't exist yet and there's nothing to buy   Rossner  already tells me he's adamant he won't be bought. He wants to do it on his own terms  in his own nuclear bunker.