Aurora Cannabis’ has formally revoked its cultivation licence for a large, outdoor farm in BC.
The revocation, noted today on Health Canada’s official list of federally-licensed cannabis producers, is only the newest in several licence revocations from the Alberta-based producer in the last year.
The site, Aurora Valley, was listed as Aurora’s 5th site, licensed July 12, 2019.
The revocation comes just after Aurora announced the acquisition of Thrive Cannabis, an indoor and outdoor cannabis producer in Ontario.
The Aurora Valley site is a 200-acre farm near Westwold, British Columbia, about an hour and a half northwest of Kelowna.
A spokesperson for Aurora Cannabis told StratCann that the Thrive Cannabis location replaced the need for the Aurora Valley site.
“We recently made the decision to wind down operations at our outdoor grow site, Aurora Valley, located in Westwold, British Columbia. Valley employees were informed of this decision prior to spring planting, and we supported those impacted, including offering transition opportunities wherever possible.”
“With Aurora’s recent acquisition of Thrive Cannabis, we gained indoor and outdoor grow facilities, and no longer had a commercial need for the Valley site. Thrive’s outdoor grow has been commercializing product for years and we will gain from their expertise. We remain committed to providing high-quality cannabis products to our consumers and patients across Canada.”
Valley was billed as being primarily used for research purposes on new cultivars and outdoor growing techniques. According to a company report, the first harvest in October 2019 was of around 55,000 plants divided into six different cultivars.
A company report from September 2020 says the company planted a research trial of outdoor suitable genotypes, referencing autoflower varieties.
The company’s 2021 report makes no mention of the Westwold Valley operation. Aurora’s next investor call is Thursday, May 12.
The company employed about a dozen full-time workers at the Aurora Valley site, in addition to seasonal help.
Featured image via Google Maps
