ASHKELON, Israel — Not too long ago, Ehud Olmert was trying to lead Israel to a historic peace agreement.
Olmert is among a group of former Israeli leaders and security chiefs who have found new careers in the country’s tightly controlled medical cannabis industry.
“Everything will change dramatically overnight if there will be legalization,” Olmert, an adviser to the start-up Univo, told The Associated Press.
Israel is one of the world leaders in medical cannabis consumption and marijuana possession is decriminalized.
Over 100,000 Israelis have permits to consume medical cannabis, according to the Health Ministry, a 16-fold increase in the past decade.
Medical cannabis consumption in Israel grew to 43 metric tons last year, from 28.5 million tons in 2020, according to the Health Ministry.
Bitton said the facility is capable of testing, processing and packing up to 80 tons per year.
Olmert spent decades as Jerusalem’s mayor, a member of parliament, Cabinet minister and prime minister from 2006-2009 before a corruption conviction sent him to prison for 16 months.
Israel has been at the forefront of medical cannabis research since the 1960s, when Hebrew University chemist Raphael Mechoulam first isolated THC, marijuana’s primary psychoactive compound.
Sharren Haskel, a coalition lawmaker with the New Hope party, has championed cannabis decriminalization.