Provinces Archives

Manitoba looking to repeal 6% fee for cannabis retailers

Written by Staff on November 28, 2022. Posted in Cannabis News, Government, Manitoba, Retail.

If passed, the legislation will be in effect as of January 1, 2023.

The fee was originally put in place to ensure cannabis stores contributed to the social costs that were expected by some to come with legalization, such as increased health costs, public education, and addiction services.

“The social responsibility fee is a key component of our regulatory framework for non-medical cannabis,” said Justice Minister Cliff Cullen when the legislation was first introduced in 2019. “It would be used to protect vulnerable populations, help eliminate the illegal market, and pay for social costs connected to cannabis use. This approach ensures retailers would share in the social costs of public education, safety, health, and addictions.”

In the nearly three years that the fee has been in place, the province has brought in around $2.4 million to pay for these kinds of services. Since then, the cannabis market in the province has grown significantly, with approximately 170 retail stores currently listed as open.

The bill to repeal the social responsibility fee, Bill 10, The Liquor, Gaming and Cannabis Control Amendment Act (Social Responsibility Fee Repealed), was introduced on Monday, November 28, by the Minister of Finance, Cameron Friesen, and seconded by the Minister of Indigenous Reconciliation and Northern Relations, Alan Lagimodiere.

Minister Friesen said repealing the 6% fee is another step the provincial government is taking to help the legal cannabis industry displace the illegal cannabis market in Manitoba.

“After four years of legalization, the cannabis market is maturing, the regulatory costs to the province are well known, leading to the repealing of the social responsibility fee and the transition to a new taxation regime for the long term,” said Friesen. “Repealing the social responsibility fee will continue to reduce the cannabis cost to consumers looking to switch from the illegal market.”

The bill will still need to go through second and third reading before potentially passing and becoming law.

Cannabis sales brought in over $24 million for Manitoba in 2021-2022 (Year ending March 31) after all operating costs and allocations. This was up nearly 75% from the earnings in the previous year of $14.1 million.

Although it doesn’t break down specific cannabis dollars, the province released more than $11 million in social responsibility funding in 2021-22 and more than $12 million in the previous year.

Revenue generated by cannabis operations in the province was $113.9 million in 2021-22, an increase of $33.7 million, or 42 percent from revenue of $80.2 million in the prior year.

Sources say the province is also looking to join onto the federal excise tax program, which the province originally opted out of. This would increase the tax collected in Manitoba from $0.25 a gram to $1 a gram.

Manitoba also launched a “cross docking” service in 2022 to address some of the challenges the province’s direct-to-retail distribution can pose.

Feature image via The Cannabis Market in Winnipeg

Newfoundland and Labrador now allows cannabis vape sales

Written by Staff on November 24, 2022. Posted in Cannabis News, Newfoundland and Labrador, Retail.

Consumers in Newfoundland and Labrador are now able to purchase cannabis vape pens through the legal cannabis market.

The recent policy change, which resulted in vape pens appearing on shelves in late October, reverses a previous ban on the products in the province.

In 2019, when the products were first made legal, the provincial government said vapes had too many unknown health effects, and that they were waiting until there was more evidence about the connection between cannabis vaping products and severe lung disease.

Quebec took a similar stance, with a ban on not only vape pens, but any cannabis concentrates over 30% THC.

Since that time, vape pens have rapidly grown in popularity—garnering around 15% of the total market in Ontario—Canada’s largest market—behind dried flower and pre rolls. The products are also widely available in the illicit market with no regulatory oversight.

Chris Crosbie, the founder of Atlantic Cultivation, which operates a production facility and retail stores in Newfoundland, says his company was the first to have vapes on shelves in the province.

“We work closely with our partners in the provincial government and the NLC cannabis regulator. Through multiple years of conversation around the efficacy and benefits of locally regulated vape pens we are tremendously happy that vapes have become a legal option for consumers in the province. Atlantic was the first supplier of HTFSE and Distillate vape carts in the province.”

The NLC told SaltWire that the decision to allow the products was driven by this increasing popularity.

“This is now an established segment of the legal cannabis market throughout most of the country, with the category, nationwide, representing approximately 20 percent of legal sales,” the statement read. “Given the significant portion of the illicit market that vape represents, we believe this is a positive step in continuing to capture market share from illegal operators.”

While cannabis became legal in Canada in 2018, products like vape pens and other concentrates, as well as edibles and topicals, weren’t approved for commercial sale until the end of 2019. This timeline coincided with a rise in uncertainty around cannabis vape pens in the US—primarily in the illicit market—tied to serious health issues often associated with Vitamin E acetate.

This concern informed decisions from provinces like Quebec and Newfoundland and Labrador to disallow these products. Other provinces that have allowed them, like British Columbia, have attached additional fees to them in recognition of similar health concerns.

The provincial online store in Newfoundland and Labrador currently lists 12 vape products, both disposable pens and carts.

Sixty-one million dollars of cannabis was sold through the NLC’s licensed retailers’ 2021-2022 fiscal year, a 17% increase from the previous year. As of June 1, 2022, the NLC carried 800 products from 27 suppliers and says it will continue to work with its partners to provide additional options to meet customer demand.

Growth was driven by increased sales of pre-rolls, concentrates, edibles and ground/milled product, while dried flower remained the most popular product category.

There are currently 40 Licensed Cannabis Retailers in Newfoundland and Labrador, compared to 30 one year earlier.

The NLC began warehousing cannabis in October 2021. Prior to then, producers shipped directly to Licensed Cannabis Retailers (LCR) in the province.

Quebec sold nearly $140 million worth of cannabis in Q2

Written by Staff on November 23, 2022. Posted in Cannabis News, Quebec, Retail.

The Société québécoise du cannabis (SQDC) has released its most recent quarterly report for sales between June 19, 2022, and September 10, 2022.

In the most recently-reported fiscal quarter, the SQDC saw $139.1 million in sales, with an overall net income of $22.3 million.

The province also brought in $33.6 million in their share of federal excise taxes ($47.1 million in total).

The sales in the most recent quarter were down slightly ($3.9 million) compared to the same period last year, where the province saw $142 million in sales. The SQDC sold 25,095 kg of cannabis during this most recent quarter.

Despite this drop relative to last year, sales were up slightly compared to the previous quarter. In Q1 2022, sales generated $54 million for the Quebec government, with the crown corporation posting a net income of $20.5 million and another $33.5 million in taxes.

The SQDC blames this “stagnation” of sales on the ongoing strike, which continues in 22 of their 90 branches. Although these branches are still open, they are operating at reduced hours and face picket line pressures.

The provincial organization is still negotiating with the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE), which represents 28 of its 90 branches. Twenty-two of them have been on strike since May 20, and are operated by managers on a reduced schedule. In September, the Superior Court of Quebec issued an injunction to limit union “pressure tactics” against SQDC.

In June, members of a different union, the Confederation of National Trade Unions (CSN), voted to accept an agreement with the SQDC for increased wages, hours, and better working conditions.

Like other provinces, the majority of sales are through brick-and-mortar storefronts. The majority of the 3.2 million transactions through the SQDC (23,864 kg or $132.5 million) were through the now 90 stores operating in the province (as of August 1), while just over 5% of sales were through the SQDC’s online store (1,231 kg) for a total of $6.6 million.

Net operating expenses for the SQDC totalled $21.5M, for a ratio of 15.5% of sales.

The province has also been expanding and changing its approach to cannabis. The SQDC introduced a 90-minute delivery service for the greater Quebec City region and certain localities in Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean. Currently in the test phase, the program could be rolled out more widely in the coming months.

The province also introduced several new cannabis edibles that adhere to the province’s strict limits on such products, namely cannabis-infused oven-baked beets, dehydrated cauliflower, and dried figs and “cannabis bites” made of dates, hemp hearts, sunflower seeds, currants, and cinnamon. They are produced by Ontario producer Aphria under their Solei brand.

Earlier this year, the SQDC’s President and CEO Jacques Farcy told StratCann that the province plans to begin shifting from adding new stores to refining consumer experience, including a new “small lot” program to introduce new, unique products into the market.

If the pilot project is successful based on producer and consumer feedback, the SQDC plans on fully implementing the program in April-May 2023.

Quebec reinvests its cannabis revenue in cannabis prevention and research, and to combat any harm related to the use of psychoactive substances.

As of September 10, 2022, the SQDC had 1,036 employees within its network and head office.

Other provinces

In comparison, British Columbia—which has about 5.3 million residents compared to Quebec’s 8.5 million—sold just under $110 million worth of cannabis in Q1, while Ontario’s Q2 results showed $394 million in sales. Ontario’s population is about 15 million.

While Quebec had about 70 stores in their most recent reporting period, BC had around 440. Ontario had about 1,100.

BC credit union receives award for cannabis campaign

Written by Staff on November 21, 2022. Posted in British Columbia, Cannabis News.

A BC credit union has received two awards for a campaign that highlights the unequal treatment of cannabis businesses by banks in Canada.

Community Savings Credit Union, which operates seven branches across British Columbia, recently received two awards from the Canadian Marketing Association (CMA) annual award ceremony.

Many cannabis companies in Canada have long found it difficult to find and keep a bank or other lending institution even to allow them to maintain an account. Community Savings Credit Union is one of a handful of organizations that have actually worked to create solutions for cannabis companies turned away by other institutions. They even recently launched an account specifically for micro-cannabis licence holders.

The awards were given out at the annual CMA Awards, recognizing the best in Canadian marketing, including the top campaigns of the year.

A press release from Community Savings says the campaign raised awareness of the inequitable and unfair treatment cannabis businesses face from mainstream financial institutions and highlighted how the lack of access to banking services limits the sector’s growth in Canada. Community Savings was recognized with two awards for its creative campaigns and advocacy.

“Fees for cannabis businesses with traditional banks were (and still are) high,” continues the release. “Cannabis businesses face either outright refusals to open accounts, or overpriced application costs and high banking fees—fees tend to run from 1,500% to 5,000% higher for a cannabis business compared to other retail businesses.”

Community Savings says they created their own unique direct mailing campaigns, including ‘Roll with us’, featuring custom-branded rolling papers, and ‘Does your bank deliver?’, featuring custom-printed pizza-scented pizza boxes with a ‘menu’ detailing Community Savings’ account offerings.

Alongside these direct mail campaigns, Community Savings also used media engagement and influencers to further its message of support for the cannabis industry, raising awareness of what they say is the prejudiced treatment of cannabis businesses.

Mike Schilling, President and CEO of Community Savings, said: “There is a serious side to our campaigns that have fun with cannabis culture. We meet too many businesses in the industry that are being exploited and paying up to 5,000% more than they should for a simple account. We treat cannabis retailers like any other small business, with best-in-class service and products.

“This campaign isn’t only about the cannabis industry—it is about equal access to fair and affordable banking services. Community Savings will continue to advocate for what is right and what is fair, and supporting the cannabis industry is just the beginning.”

For more on cannabis banking, visit www.comsavings.com/rollwithus.

OCS eliminates recall liability insurance requirement

Written by David Brown on November 18, 2022. Posted in Cannabis News, Government, Ontario.

This week the Ontario Cannabis Store announced that they will be eliminating their requirement for product recall liability insurance and increasing their commercial general liability insurance.

Producers and insurance providers say this is a step forward in terms of lowering the cost of entry into the Ontario market.

As of November 17, the provincial agency is eliminating the requirement for product recall insurance, as long as producers can show they have increased their commercial general liability insurance requirement from $5M to $15M per occurrence.

The OCS notes these changes are due to producer feedback concerned with the impact of the high rate of recall insurance, especially for smaller producers seeking to sell into Ontario.

…there are a lot of producers who have been holding back from entering Ontario because of that cost. Now producers will be able to access another market.
Kieley Beaudry, lberta Cannabis Micro Licence Association

The previous rate for recall insurance required by the OCS was $15 million, which translated to a $50,000 annual fee for any producer to be an approved OCS vendor. As a comparison, British Columbia requires $10 million for both recall and general liability, and some provinces have no such requirements.

These kinds of insurance requirements have been a barrier to some producers—especially for smaller producers—even entering into some provincial markets. The Alberta Micro Licensing Association (ACMLA) has been calling for changes in Alberta and other provinces.

In Alberta, Alberta Gaming, Liquor & Cannabis (AGLC) does not require that micros have recall insurance, unlike Ontario, which previously had seed recall coverage at $10 million, and all other insurance at $15 million.

“It’s a move in the right direction. It removed this barrier for all producers,” says Kieley Beaudry, President of the ACMLA. “The costs are enormous and there are a lot of producers who have been holding back from entering Ontario because of that cost. Now producers will be able to access another market in the space.”

A $15 million recall policy can end up costing a producer $100,000 or more a year, she notes.

James Clay, the CEO at J.T. Insurance Services, which provides insurance solutions for companies operating in the cannabis space in Canada, points out that Alberta has recently shifted their own requirements and thinks Ontario may have come to the same conclusions about limited risk due to recalls.

Although recalls for cannabis products are not uncommon, Clay points out that most recalls are for issues like labelling errors, rather than issues where there’s been any significant risk to the public.

“I think probably Ontario has reached the same decision as Alberta in that this is a significant problem and they didn’t think that maybe the fifteen million dollar product limit aligned with what the actual risk was.I think Ontario is trying to help the insurers.”

Clay also points out that the issue isn’t just the cost to producers, but also the costs for insurers. Because not all insurers are able to take on that level of risk, the pool of possible insurers Canadian cannabis companies can work with can be limited.

“Perhaps they have data in Ontario that suggests that…as long as they get the commercial liability up to $15 million, that’s the better option and more insurers will be able to provide the coverage. I think that’s probably the big issue that’s driving this: that (producers) are struggling to get (insurance).”

Although the commercial general liability increases from $5 million to $15 million, Clay says this is still likely less expensive for most producers, noting it would no longer be a single flat rate like recall insurance, but based on the specifics of the company and their products.

Gord Nichol, owner of North 40 Cannabis, a producer based in Saskatchewan, says the high insurance recall requirement in Ontario was one of the things that have kept him out of that market up until now.

“To me it looks like a win,” says Nichol. It might even mean I can come into Ontario.”

The OCS notes that existing producers can opt into these new insurance requirements by emailing their office no later than January 16, 2023. Producers that do not opt in to the new requirements will continue to follow the current insurance coverage requirements under their MSA. All MSA renewals will include the new insurance requirements.

Despite constitutional concerns, northern Ontario city seeks to limit homegrown cannabis

Written by David Brown on November 16, 2022. Posted in Cannabis News, Government, Ontario.

A small city in northern Ontario is looking to establish bylaws to control where people can grow cannabis, despite some concerns that such a bylaw could be unconstitutional.

Elliot Lake, a small community of about 11,000, located about two hours west of Sudbury and about six hours north of Toronto, has been working on the bylaw for much of the past year, passing it on November 14.

The bylaw could effectively ban cannabis in smaller yards by requiring cannabis to be at least 10 metres from neighbouring properties and from any properties near areas where minors congregate.

Although the bylaw has now passed, the municipality will be sending it to the Attorney General of Ontario for review and approval.

The bylaw sets three rules for outdoor cannabis growing in the community: all cannabis plants will be required to be ten metres from any neighbouring properties, must be kept out of sight and reach of children or anywhere children may congregate, and cannot be grown on properties that have any point in common with schools, parks, playgrounds, daycare facilities or other public places frequented mainly by persons under 18 years of age.

The fine for any infraction of the bylaw is $150 plus additional costs. The city says they are putting the bylaws in place to protect children in response to complaints and concerns from the community.

The city’s solicitor advised that such a bylaw—possibly the first of its kind in Canada—could potentially violate federal law, and instead proposed a public information campaign.

In a letter to the city, the solicitor noted that the ability to impose restrictions on home cannabis production is under provincial jurisdiction, not municipal, and that there was a current Supreme Court appeal in Quebec that could impact these jurisdictional issues.

“At this time, it is not possible to provide a definitive opinion regarding whether the By-law is constitutionally valid,” wrote Laura Dean, a municipal and land use planning lawyer, in her advice to Eliot Lake on their bylaw.

“However, the Supreme Court of Canada (SCC) recently heard an appeal from the Quebec Court of Appeal, which is likely to shed light on this issue and assist provinces (and by extension, municipalities) to understand the scope of their authority, if any, to impose restrictions on the personal cultivation of recreational cannabis.

“The City is advised not to adopt the by-law until it has had the benefit of reviewing the SCC decision which is expected to be issued within the next six months,” the letter continues. “If the SCC rules that the province (and by extension municipalities) may not curtail the ability of individuals to possess and cultivate up to four cannabis plants (as permitted by the federal Cannabis Act) then it will be clear that the by-law is unconstitutional and should not be enacted. If the SCC rules that the province may impose more stringent regulations than the federal Cannabis Act provides, then the City can be more confident in the constitutional validity of the by-law.”

Many municipalities have sought more control over cannabis production, namely medical cannabis laws. Elliot Lake’s efforts to regulate non-medical home-grown cannabis appear to be a first in Canada.

The bylaw itself went through some extensive revisions before passing. It initially proposed only a two-foot setback from the neighbouring property liner, along with a potential height restriction and a requirement to have plants in a secured enclosure at least 5 feet high, before hearing from community representatives, police, and advisors.

Matt Maurer, the co-chair of the Cannabis Law Group and a litigator with Torkin Manes LLP, says he doesn’t see any potential legal challenges when it comes to Elliot Lake establishing land-use bylaws. However, if the bylaw effectively prevents someone from being able to grow cannabis entirely, he notes there would be legal challenges similar to the concerns raised by Dean.

“By-laws pertaining to how land can be used (including cultivating cannabis) are generally within the purview of a municipality, notes Maurer. “There is an argument, though, that if the rules effectively prohibit people from cultivating at home (for example if their property is not large enough), then it is contradictory to the federal and provincial rule which allows home cultivation.”

He also says the part of the bylaw that says cannabis must be kept out of sight and reach of anywhere children may congregate could also outstep a municipality’s jurisdiction.

“The federal government has allowed cultivation within a dwelling house and explicitly gave the provinces and territories the right to modify that right. Neither the federal nor the provincial government has delegated to municipalities the right to impose further rules on how people must treat the plant within the property when those rules appear to have no relation to land use itself. It would be an interesting court case to follow if the by-law was challenged on constitutional grounds and could potentially be struck down.”

Federal cannabis regulations allow Canadians to grow up to four cannabis plants per home; they delegate further management of those activities to the province. Some provinces have imposed other limits on personal cannabis production, such as requiring that it not be visible to the public, and Manitoba and Quebec have both banned growing cannabis at home entirely. Both provincial laws are facing court challenges.

H/T to CBC.ca

Constitutional challenge brews following Indigenous dispensary raids in Nova Scotia

Written by Kieran Delamont on November 6, 2022. Posted in Cannabis News, Government, Nova Scotia.

A Mi’kmaq band councillor from Millbrook First Nation in Nova Scotia, arrested in a 2020 police raid of Indigenous cannabis dispensaries, is mounting a constitutional defence arguing that his right to sell cannabis on First Nations land is constitutionally protected.

Nova Scotia RCMP officers raided Chris Googoo’s High Grade Smoke Shop, which sits on reserve land in Cole Harbour, NS, in December 2020 as part of a series of raids on five unlicensed cannabis dispensaries operating in the area. Googoo was arrested and charged with illegal possession and distribution of cannabis.

Googoo—who is being represented by long-time cannabis rights lawyer Jack Lloyd—is now staging a constitutional challenge under section 35 of the Constitution Act, which protects Indigenous treaty rights in Canada. Specifically, Googoo is referring to the 1752 Peace and Friendship Treaty, which promises the Mi’kmaw “free liberty to bring to sale to Halifax or any other settlement within this province skins, feathers, fowl, fish or any other thing they shall have to sell.”

“Exercising our inherent treaty rights is something that all of our people should be doing freely, and not have to be harassed by any bodies of government,” said Googoo, at a rally of supporters outside a Nova Scotia provincial courthouse in early October, where he was appearing to set trial dates.

The constitutional case will proceed next October, with four days of hearings scheduled in advance of Googoo’s criminal trial in November 2023.

“I am presenting a constitutional challenge to the court, and I am standing on my Aboriginal and Treaty rights to provide cannabis as a medicine,” Googoo wrote in a subsequent social media post. “I always stand up for our inherent and treaty rights, as sovereign peoples on our sovereign lands. Whether it be for fishing, hunting, cannabis, or tobacco, land or resources.”

Googoo is being backed by former president of the National Indian Brotherhood (precursor to the Assembly of First Nations) and one of the authors of section 35, Chief Del Riley, who has argued that the section grants Indigenous communities the authority to write their own cannabis regulation in parallel to federal and provincial law and to sell cannabis on reserve land. “You’re actually in a hell of a good position here,” he told members of the Millbrook community in April.

The High Grade Smoke Shop was part of a raid by Halifax RCMP in 2020

However, in 2019 Millbrook First Nations Chief Bob Gloade also said that such businesses are not supported by treaty rights.

“There is no treaty right protecting them in regards to selling, growing or distribution of cannabis whatsoever,” Gloade said. “It’s not a treaty or an aboriginal right because it does not state that anywhere. Our treaty rights basically focus around hunting and gathering not growing and distribution,” he said. “Individuals feel that it is a right and they’re extending it beyond the meaning of how the treaties are laid out in black and white and it puts us in a difficult situation.”

Since then, the Chief has changed his tune.

“Since that time, council has debated and discussed how to advance a cannabis strategy that is respectful of, and a benefit to, all community members, carried out in a way that prioritizes community sovereignty, safety, and well-being of everyone,” Gloade said in 2021.

“This is consistent with our inherent right to govern and our fiduciary duty to exercise jurisdiction over matters such as the community’s health and safety as a whole,” he said. “We continue to discuss the development of a cannabis regime and measures necessary for the Millbrook First Nation residents’ safety and enjoyment of life.”

Case could clarify jurisdictional disputes

The case, if escalated to the federal courts, could prove significant for the nascent Indigenous cannabis movement, which has sought in parts to operate independently of—some say in defiance of—federal legalization rules. Many Indigenous cannabis operators argue they have been effectively shut out of Canadian legalization, and support has grown for a so-called sovereign cannabis industry. There are estimated to be over 300 Indigenous cannabis dispensaries now operating across the country.

A similar constitutional challenge being brought by a group of 10 Anishinaabe dispensary owners in Ontario recently cleared a major legal hurdle when a judge refused the Crown’s motion to dismiss the case.

Last year, the Assembly of First Nations called on federal politicians to “recognize First Nations jurisdiction over cannabis and remove regulatory barriers that exclude First Nations from the marketplace.” Thus far, federal and provincial governments have held that Indigenous communities are able to harmonize their regulations with Canadian law, and governments have attempted (to varying degrees of success) to help with that process.

Millbrook First Nation is one that finds itself in just such a position, and they have had a rocky relationship with the legal cannabis industry. Initially hopeful that legalization would be a source of economic opportunity for the community, in 2018 the band council invested $5 million in licensed producer Zenabis’ growing facility in Stellarton, NS, which opened in 2019 but was decommissioned in 2022, less than three years later. Financial statements show that Millbrook had lost more than $4.2 million on that investment, amidst a broader market downturn for public cannabis companies.

Early this year, Millbrook First Nation published a report following a community consultation exploring the idea of sovereign cannabis regulations, concluding that there was significant community support for “developing Millbrook laws and regulations.” A group called the Mi’kmaq Cannabis Association has also formed in the wake of the raids and has argued that “cannabis can be regulated informally by the customs and conventions of the Mi’kmaq people.”

It’s unclear if Googoo’s case will be escalated to the precedent-setting, constitutional fight he appears to be angling for. An almost identical case in Cape Breton, where an Indigenous man was arrested for operating a dispensary on reserve land, was dropped by the crown suddenly this past September, averting a planned constitutional challenge. “I’m kind of upset about it,” said defendant Albert Marshall. “I would have liked to have gone all the way to the end of it—right to the Supreme Court—to justify our inherent right to trade medicine, to trade plants.”

Googoo will return to court on November 14.

~Kieran Delamont. Kieran is a writer and photographer in Halifax, Nova Scotia. He has written on the cannabis industry for The Walrus, This Magazine, The Outline, Leafly and others.

Featured image via APTN News

Cannabis council frustrated by illicit dispensaries taking part in Toronto Halloween event

Written by David Brown on November 1, 2022. Posted in Cannabis News, Ontario, Retail.

A cannabis industry association is raising concerns with what they say were two illicit cannabis dispensaries taking part in a recent children’s-themed cannabis event in Toronto.

The Cannabis Council of Canada (C3) is drawing attention to a recent event held by the CityPlace Residents Association that included participation from two unregulated cannabis stores.

C3 has shared two different ads that CityPlace shared online for the event showing unlicensed cannabis retailer CAFE listed as a sponsor and location for the City Place Halloween Crawl. The CityPlace Residents Instagram feed shared a post that included a reference to the CAFE location as well.

A request for comment from CityPlace was not responded to by press time.

The Fort York Blvd CAFE location takes part in the children-themed Halloween event. Image via George Smitherman

George Smitherman, the president and CEO of C3, says he visited the event on Halloween night and was surprised to find that not only was CAFE participating, but a second illicit dispensary on Fort York Blvd, 1Tonamara, was inviting people, including minors, into their store for free popcorn.

“Halloween in Toronto’s City Place Neighbourhood is the perfect backdrop to highlight how illicit cannabis stores can operate with impunity from enforcement under the Cannabis Act, even when it comes to marketing and promotion to kids,” says Smitherman.

“Toronto, like other places in Canada, is experiencing an alarming outbreak of unlicensed retail cannabis stores. These illegal stores do not pay licensing fees like other retail stores, they sell unregulated and unsourced products that have not been tested, and they don’t follow the Cannabis Act.”

While most illicit cannabis dispensaries in the city have been closed, CAFE currently lists several locations in Toronto. The City of Toronto has failed to shut the business down on numerous occasions, including changing the locks and placing large concrete barriers in front of the building.

Similarly, 1Tonamara has operated on-and-off-again in Toronto for years. It lists a second shop on Spadina Avenue on its website.

Although no one from CAFE was available for comment as of press time, Scott Cameron, Head of Operations at 1Tonamara says the retailer was happy to take part in the event, saying there was a line down the street for people wanting to get their free (not unfused) popcorn and candy they were giving out.

Although 1Tonamara is not licensed by the city, Cameron says they have operated in their current locations for about three years now, which currently is open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. They were happy to take part in the event, he explains.

“We just like to give back to the community, so we had candy to give out and we got the popcorn machine going, and people just came out in droves.”

Although the business’ Spadina location was raided in 2018, Cameron says they have not faced any pushback since.

“Now that cannabis is just a plant, the government has no right to tell us what tomatoes to buy, so what gives them the right to tell us what flower to buy?”

Another 1Tonamara location in Brampton faced legal scrutiny after a raid in 2020.

Toronto Police Service did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

All Nations launches their first cannabis store in Shxwhá:y Village in Chilliwack, BC

Written by David Brown on October 31, 2022. Posted in British Columbia, Cannabis News, Retail.

All Nations, a First Nations-run cannabis company, is partnered with Shxwhá:y First Nation on a production facility in Shxwhá:y Village in Chilliwack, BC. All Nations is opening its own retail store, featuring its own products, as well as an array of cannabis from licensed producers around Canada.

The cannabis store is located just down the street from their indoor production facility, all located on Stó:lō land, and will feature exclusive products grown in the community.

While the soft launch for the retail store is currently planned for Wednesday, November 2, they also plan on a more formal grand opening event in the coming weeks.

The store itself is infused with references to the community where it sits, from the logo that includes local landmarks, the cedar siding that was harvested from Stó:lō lands, the Halq’eméylem language used on the signs inside, and other Shxwhá:y artwork and imagery.

Signs include the Halq’eméylem language, traditionally spoken by the Stó꞉lō people

Darwin Douglas, CEO of All Nations, says it’s taken a long time to get to this point, but he’s proud to help create what he sees as long-term economic development on reserve which will support sustainable jobs for the local community.

“At All Nations, we strive to represent connection to the Indigenous communities. We want to build positive social impact with the Indigenous communities where we operate and we can represent Indigenous people and nations in this industry,” says Douglas. “That’s what we’re about.”

Because of their ability to carry their own products through a special agreement with the province, the store is, in practice, the second cannabis “farmgate” to be licensed in BC, and the first in the Lower Mainland. The first was another First Nations community in Williams Lake that operates the Sugarcane cannabis production and retail store and recently began selling their own products as well.

The unique licenses (called section 119 agreements in reference to the section of the BC Cannabis Control and Licensing Act) allow the provincial government to enter into agreements with Indigenous Nations, “providing a mechanism for meaningful government-to-government dialogue and supporting collaboration that enables both governments to achieve individual and shared goals.”

BC has now signed Section 119 agreements with six First Nations in the province. The agreement with Shxwhá:y Village took several years, and was only finalized this past July, explained Chief Robert Gladstone, Shxwhá:y Village, when the agreement was announced.

“We set out to harmonize our interests and approach with those of the provincial government. We had some tough discussions, and finalizing this agreement took the better part of three years, but I am proud we signed an agreement that sets a strong foundation for ongoing government-to-government collaboration,” said Gladstone.

“This is reconciliation in action. However, reconciliation has no end. The work continues through the implementation of this agreement. This would not have been possible without the support of my community, colleagues at the BC Cannabis Secretariat and my negotiating team at All Nations.”

Douglas says All Nations has plans for up to seven more All Nations Retail locations, through its Shxwhá:y partnership, which they hope to have more news about in the coming months. The goal, he says, is to partner with other First Nations communities throughout the country and help them enter the industry as well.

He says that they have continued to hear interest from other First Nations communities in BC and all across Canada as their production facility and now retail stores have evolved.

“This model is really starting to get some recognition from Indigenous communities right across the country,” says Douglas. “I think it really speaks to where Indigenous communities are in their quest for economic sovereignty and their desire to build prosperity, is to look at other business opportunities within their Nation.”

Plants in the early stages of growth inside the All Nations production facility

While the new retail store is big news, All Nations also has several years of cannabis production behind them now, and are still building out new grow rooms in their 30,000 sq ft production facility. They also have plans for building a potential second facility on adjacent property.

All Nations currently employs 18 people, ten of whom are from the Shxwhá:y nation. The store will add another six employees. Douglas says he sees a lot of inspiration in what he sees as long-term economic opportunities, especially for young people in the community.

“It’s about producing high-quality cannabis and growing Indigenous participation in an industry that is sustainable, creating hope for communities where there’s a future that’s sustainable and making positive social impact.”

“We have people working here who can see themselves as the master grower or quality assurance manager, and they’re working here now to train for those roles. That gives them hope, and that gives me hope.”

BC LDB releases first wholesale quarterly sales report

Written by David Brown on October 27, 2022. Posted in British Columbia, Cannabis News, Government.

New sales figures from the BCLDB show that wholesale grams sold and wholesale cannabis sales in the province have increased significantly in Q1 2022 compared to the same quarter in 2021.

The new figures, the first ever offered from BC, give a look at wholesale sales in different product categories, as well as both volume and dollar amounts.

Wholesale sales represent the cost value (wholesale price) of cannabis products shipped to all wholesale customers in the province. This includes private stores, BC Cannabis Stores (BCCS), the BCCS online sales platform, and the LDB’s distribution centre.

There was a nearly 30% increase in the total grams sold in the province in April, May, and June 2022 compared to the same period in 2021, along with a more than 17% increase in wholesale sales. Price compression has led to sales figures being lower than total volume, with the average price per gram on all cannabis products dipping by nearly 10%, from $4.86 per gram in Q1 2021 to $4.40 in Q1 2022.

The average price for a gram of dried cannabis dropped from $4.19 a gram to $3.86, while the number of retail stores—public and private—increased from 363 to 442.

Mirroring similar figures from other provinces, sales for dried flower continue to dominate in BC, but have declined modestly from the previous quarter (Q4 2021), while pre-rolls and inhalable extracts, especially infused pre-rolls, continue to gain momentum.

With inhalable extracts, vape cartridges continue to dominate sales, accounting for around 64% of all sales in the category. This is followed closely by infused pre-rolls, a quickly-growing product category, at about 21% of total sales. Shatter, resin, rosin, dry-sift, hash, and disposable vape pens make up around 15% of sales combined.

For edibles, gummies (“chews”) continue to dominate with about 86% of all edibles sales, followed in a distant second by chocolates at around 11%. Baked goods account for about 3% of sales.

In cannabis beverages, carbonated drinks continue to dominate with 84% of total sales and around 13% in the non-carbonated category. Drink mixes, teas, and coffees account for less than about 3% of total cannabis beverage sales in the province.

The report also provides insight into sales figures in the four different delivery zones the LDB serves in BC. Zone 1, which includes BC’s Lower Mainland/Metro Vancouver regions, saw a nearly 32% increase in sales compared to the same period last year, from just over $33 million to nearly $44 million.

Zone 2, or Vancouver Island, saw a 12% increase in sales, from nearly $23 million in Q1 2021 to almost $26 million in the most recent quarter. Zone 3, BC’s broader Interior region, saw an increase in sales of around 10%, from $22.6 million to $25 million. Zone 4, representing BC’s northern regions, saw an increase in sales of about 3%, from $14.2 to $14.7 million.

London, Ontario-area cannabis stores face string of break-ins

Written by Staff on October 26, 2022. Posted in Cannabis News, Ontario, Retail.

Several cannabis stores in London, Ontario, say they have been the victims of break-ins in recent days and weeks.

The targeted stores had their front doors, back doors, or windows broken into, with products stolen from display cases.

Jesus Pantor, a supervisor at The Cannabist Shop on Richmond St. in London, says someone broke into their store in the early morning of October 26. The person or persons broke the glass at the store’s entrance, breaking through two doors before taking products from inside display cases.

Pantor says this is at least the second break-in of this nature the business has experienced in the last six months or so. The issue isn’t just about cannabis stores, he says, although he suspects cannabis stores are an easy target because products can be easily liquidated.

“To be honest, everybody in London these days, if you’re on Richmond St., you’ve got to deal with it. There’s really no distinction between cannabis stores, restaurants, and retail stores of any fashion. It’s just a crime of opportunity.”

Another cannabis store in the London area, Forest City Marijuana on Dundas, recently posted two videos on their Instagram account showing a handful of individuals breaking in. Several individuals can be seen smashing two layers of glass to enter.

A video shared on Instagram by Forest City Marijuana

An employee at Rightpuff Cannabis on Commissioners Rd in London told StratCann that the business experienced two such break-ins in the last month, just nine days apart from each other. Like several other retailers who spoke with StratCann, the employee said the damage to the store was worth more than the product taken from display cases.

A manager at The Tokyo Smoke on Commissioners Rd. in London said they faced the same type of break-in about three weeks ago, with their entrance glass and several display cases broken. While the crooks only stole a few hundred dollars in product, manager Ryan Ridsdale says they caused thousands of dollars in damage.

An employee at Tree Tops Cannabis on Kilally Road in London says they also faced a similar break-in recently, but little cannabis was taken as they don’t keep much in their display cases.

An employee at Cannabis Link Highbury—who, like many other people StratCann spoke to for this story, asked not to be named—said they also lost a small amount of cannabis in a recent break-in, noting that most of their product remained secure in a locked back room.

“It seems that the locations that are hurting more are the ones that have their products locked in display cases in the showroom,” the employee told StratCann. “Luckily, we didn’t have much on the floor, so they didn’t take a whole lot. But it sounds like it has been more severe for other stores.”

The employee also said they think this issue is a good reason to remove the covered window regulations for cannabis stores in Ontario. Alberta and British Columbia have recently removed such restrictions due in part to concerns with robberies and break-ins.

London Police were not immediately available for comment.

Smashed display case inside Rightpuff Cannabis following a recent break-in. Image via a CityNews video

Robberies of cannabis stores have occurred sporadically for years now across Canada. Police in Ontario reported a handful of similar break-ins of cannabis stores earlier this year, with large quantities of cannabis products stolen.

In October 2021, a cannabis store in Toronto was robbed, with numerous cannabis products stolen, prompting Toronto Police to put out an alert.

Alberta has seen a handful of cannabis store robberies and burglaries. In September, a Calgary cannabis store was robbed. In December 2020 and January 2021, two other Calgary area cannabis retailers were also robbed.

In June of last year, four men robbed a cannabis store at gunpoint, and in February, a man allegedly assaulted an employee and robbed a BC Cannabis Store in Oliver, BC.

According to a recent CBC report, there were 29 cannabis store robberies last year in Alberta and ten so far this year. Almost half of these instances involved violence or threats of violence.

The Cannabist Shop in London, Ontario. Image via Google Maps

Police in BC said a couple robbed a cannabis store in Kelowna in November. In September, an Alberta cannabis store was robbed.

Robberies of cannabis stores are not limited to legal retailers. In BC in early 2020, a masked man robbed an unlicensed cannabis store in Abbotsford. In 2016, a Vancouver cannabis dispensary was also robbed at gunpoint.

In May 2015, thieves broke into the same store by crashing a van through the front window. Another unlicensed dispensary in Vancouver was robbed in 2019. Right before legalization in 2018, a cannabis store owner in Ontario fought off several robbers with a bong.

Ontario Micro Growers (OMG) is a four-person team in Ontario looking to help micros find a path to market in the province

Written by David Brown on October 9, 2022. Posted in Ontario, Processors, Profiles.

Started by a handful of trusted friends and cannabis enthusiasts with different levels of experience in both the cannabis industry and consumer packaged goods, the team at OMG has already brought two micro-grown cultivars to the Ontario market, with a growing number of producers waiting in the wings.

Craig Penstone, who spends much of his time visiting micros across Ontario, says they created OMG to help small growers navigate the sometimes difficult and complicated provincial listing process.

“We are seeing 1-2 person operations, with 10m x 20m of grow space, consistently outgrow the big guys in their small grow rooms, only to get slaughtered on route to market: zero credit for their harvests, getting paid on consignment, or not at all. Growing the best flower and bringing it to market are two completely different skill sets,” says Craig.

“We wanted to help change that. We have experience in bringing new products to market, so why not use our skills and resources to help local growers. That’s been our focus, staying local and sharing our skills with craft growers who have the kind of flower we love.” says Martin.

Part of that experience comes from Martin Fedor, Jeff Phisanoukanh, and Victor Lai, who bring years of experience in consumer-packaged goods, as well as experience at a larger LP where they brought many new cannabis products to market.

“Consumers want to support local and craft, but they just don’t know how to identify those products. We’re helping retailers discover these great local products and they can pass that on to their customers.”
Craig Penstone, Ontario Micro Growers

“We are product developers and innovators, and we have brought many products into the cannabis market,” says Jeff. “We know there are great growers out there who can produce excellent flower, but navigating the market takes focus away from what they do best: growing. So, in that sense, OMG is a cooperative where we help those small local growers get their flower into Ontario.”

The team’s process in selecting the right strain includes a visit to the facility to evaluate their grow methods and their flower. It’s not only about the numbers, they review the bud for unique genetics, appearance, aroma, flavour, density, and overall bag appeal.

“Helping growers get products approved and listed by the OCS is part of it”, says Craig. “Another piece is visiting retailers/budtenders and educating them about these growers and the unique and high-quality flower they grow.”

“Most people don’t fully understand just how small micros are compared to every other legal option,” says Craig. “So a lot of our work is education. Consumers want to support local and craft, but they just don’t know how to identify those products. We’re helping retailers discover these great local products and they can pass that on to their customers.”

One way OMG distinguishes itself in the market is they don’t charge their micro partners any fees and pay them for their product upfront, rather than on consignment. While micro growers get paid upfront, OMG gets paid months later after shipment to OCS. Although this means more risk for OMG, it’s part of their company culture of wanting to help small local growers. “A lot of these small growers are struggling, so getting cash into their hands upfront will help them keep going and survive. The provincial markets aren’t necessarily built for small growers. They might have the best flower, but if they don’t know how to navigate the provincial buying process, they will struggle to get their product into market,” says Jeff.

Although they started with two initial strains—Slap and Tickle from Frost Cannabis and Desi from Five Rivers—Jeff says they have many more micros that they hope to launch in the coming months. The next new micro, which will be launching in the new year, is grown out of St. Catharines, Ontario. As a new brand, Jeff explains that the OCS wanted to start with just a few initial 3.5-gram varieties. But long-term they hope to begin offering more strains, pre-rolls and infused pre-rolls.

“We’re a grassroots small business,” explains Martin, “so we know what it’s like for other small growers out there. We know if they succeed, we succeed.”

“If there are micros in any province that would like to work with OMG to get their flower into market, reach out to info@ontariomicrogrowers.ca.”

West Blvd Cannabis is Canada’s first culinary cannabis facility

Written by David Brown on September 28, 2022. Posted in British Columbia, Processors, Profiles.

Located in the heart of Mt. Pleasant, West Blvd Cannabis (WBC) is Canada’s first culinary cannabis facility. WBC is the first licensed micro processor approved by the City of Vancouver, focusing on “culinary cannabis” brands, edibles, as well as high-quality dried flower.

The four-person founder team had its roots in Vancouver’s dispensary scene in the years prior to legalization, before pivoting to the production space in 2019.

The micro processor expects to launch its first product soon, a 3.5-gram premium flower SKU under their Choklit Park brand, in collaboration with craft cultivator partners from BC. The company also expects to launch their culinary cannabis brand, featuring unique cooking products that are unseen in the current market.

In addition to their micro-processing licence, West Blvd has an R&D licence that allows them to do palatability testing of edible products.

Nico Sto Tomas, the company’s co-founder and CMO, says that while he and his partners were first looking at a standard processing licence, once the micro categories came about, they saw the advantage of a more low-cost, streamlined approach to licensing.

“We started looking at it back in 2018,” says Tomas. “We are an agile team, and we were looking at all the capital expenditures that were going into the larger standard cultivator or processor licences. We wanted to be strategic, avoid price compression, choose a shorter pathway to licensing that didn’t require as much capital expenditure as a lot of the other players at the time, and focus on value-added products.”

“There are so many good growers here in BC, we knew we didn’t need to grow it ourselves. We want to develop partnerships with growers who we can help get to market.”
Nico Sto Tomas, West Blvd Cannabis

Although there were some initial delays in getting approval from Vancouver, the licensing process itself was relatively smooth, explains Tomas.

“Once we started securing the permits and building everything out and submitted our application in full, it really wasn’t very long in getting our processing licence, and our R&D licence, as well.”

They chose their Vancouver location, the first and only of its kind in the city, because of their roots in the area, and because they hope to be able to operate an urban “farmgate” store in the future. Although the province hasn’t yet released their final rules, Tomas says he’s hopeful it will allow for a stand-alone micro processor to operate a store.

Rather than looking at more rural or suburban areas of the province, the West Blvd team wanted to run a business in their own backyard.

“Our whole vision was to create a lean manufacturing facility to maximize efficiencies and allow us to be hyper-focused on edibles, launch a flower program in partnership with other growers, and to choose a location that we can deliver directly to retailers in the future.

“We want to build a community brand in the area we all grew up in. Our dream would be to have a farmgate retail store at the front of our facility.”

As a micro processor, the company cannot grow cannabis but can package dried flower for growers—either under the West Blvd brand or toll processing for others—as well as manufacture edibles products utilizing oils processed by other companies.

Although a micro processor is limited to processing no more than the equivalent of 600kg of dried cannabis (150kg of processed oil), because of the equivalence factor, they can still produce millions of 10mg edibles.

This limit, though, will mean West Blvd will have to be very selective with what kinds of dried flower they process and package.

“We want to focus on only the best, highest quality craft cannabis,” says Tomas. “There are so many good growers here in BC, we knew we didn’t need to grow it ourselves. We want to develop partnerships with growers who we can help get to market.”

Having the R&D licence is another advantage, he says, both for their own products, as well as other companies looking to test their products with consumers before launching them into the market.

Although the company has big plans, including eventually scaling up to a standard processing licence and additional edible products like gummies, he says they plan to take each step with careful consideration.

“We waited this long, we can afford to take the time to do it right. We want to make sure we work with our community, build our management team and focus on what we do well.

And that’s one of the benefits of the micro licence. It was a much more affordable and streamlined process, and it allows us to take each step with the care needed to do it right. But you’ll be hearing a lot more from us very soon.”

Microcraft Cannabis Workshop focussed on cultivation in Coldstream

Written by David Brown on September 16, 2022. Posted in British Columbia, Cultivators, Profiles.

Located in Coldstream, BC, Microcraft Cannabis Workshop is a small micro cultivator in the process of finishing up its first crop for market.

Smaller than even the typical micro, Microcraft Cannabis Workshop is operating with a canopy of only around 95m2, a little under half of the 200m2 canopy allowance for micro cultivators. Although the size is small, owner Adam Proskiw says this is intentional as a good starting point that he can manage with minimal help.

“I approached this with an amount I could handle by myself,” says Proskiw. “I know it will be a lot of work, but this is a manageable size with myself and some help. I could see expanding in a few years, but for now this gets me into the market with manageable risk.”

“It would be great to see prices start to stabilize long term. But I just think that being small and doing as much as I can on my own, not taking on too much, and doing it as well as I can is key.”
Adam Proskiw, Microcraft Cannabis Workshop

Spending under $500,000 to retrofit a building he had previously, briefly, been growing in under a medical licence—including the cost of a few year’s rent—the 300m2 facility holds his grow rooms, plus space for drying, curing, trimming and storage.

Proskiw expects to harvest his first crop of Chatterbox, a cultivar sourced from a Saskatchewan nursery, and he’s in talks with a processor in the region as well. Although ideally he says he would like to be selling into his own region of BC, Proskiw figures his first year will be focused on establishing a viable company and building a name for himself before he starts to focus on BC’s Okanagan region.

While some micros are eager to control more of the supply chain by processing and selling their own products, Proskiw says he prefers to just focus on cultivation, at least for the time being, while letting others deal with getting his flower into provincial markets.

“That doesn’t appeal to me as much as the horticulture side, to be honest. It’s not really something I want to spend my time doing.”

Long term, he says he could see moving his site to a new location (under a new licence) so that he could operate a farmgate store. But as with processing and sales, he says this is more of a long-term goal.

“As soon as I heard about (farmgate), I loved the idea. It’s a great way to both educate consumers and give them a chance to enjoy the product. “But I don’t think it would work in my area where I am now. It’s too rural, too out of the way. It’s a great place to grow cannabis: the water is pristine, and the air is clean. But it would take so much work and not a lot of people would come out here. So it would be better somewhere else, I think.”

Although the licensing process took a few years from the initial site retrofit, Proskiw says that contrary to some people’s experiences, he had a positive experience with licensing, and found Health Canada fairly easy to work with.

“I found out pretty early on that a lot of what they are doing with the RMI’s is just finding out if they can work with you,” he explains. “They just want to know, are you open to hearing changes? I never felt like I was being bullied. I felt like if I needed to talk to somebody I could. That’s not always the case with government processes. But I had a guy who, if I emailed him, would help me, so that was pretty big.”

Now that BC has opened direct delivery options for small-scale BC growers like Microcraft Cannabis Workshop, Proskiw says he would also like to start looking at that as an option, depending on the processor they end up working with.

By maintaining such a small canopy—allowing him to run the facility with essentially just two people, including himself working full time—he thinks even with the currently low margins for wholesale flower, he can make it work.

“It would be great to see prices start to stabilize long term. But I just think that being small and doing as much as I can on my own, not taking on too much, and doing it as well as I can is key. I don’t care too much about the size and the numbers in the next year or so, I just want to establish this company as consistently producing top-quality cannabis flower. That’s the only thing that I am about. The market will do what it’s going to do, but that’s always going to be my north star.”

Anyone interested in contacting Proskiw at Microcraft Cannabis Workshop can visit their website at http://cannabisworkshop.com/.

App seeks to shed light on cannabis supply chain

Written by Contributor on August 25, 2022. Posted in British Columbia, Profiles, Services.

Cropsify, a seed-to-sale software company located in BC, is helping Canadian cannabis producers tell their story while giving consumers a chance to tell retailers what kinds of products they want to buy.

Cropsify’s Crops Connect aims to shed light on an often murky and confusing supply chain by helping growers and processors highlight their products and helping retailers better understand consumer demand for products that are often at the mercy of provincial distributors.

For cultivators in BC, before they add a product to the Provincial list, they can survey what consumers want by posting it early on in the production stream first; then they, and the retailers, will know what will sell before it’s even on the Provincial list.

Crops Connect will allow consumers to follow a product from propagation, learn about how the cannabis products they enjoy were created, and to follow the product through the app from seed to shelf. Consumers can submit a personal “request” which is transmitted out to the retailers, allowing them to see which production “lots” consumers are most interested in.

“What we’ve seen is for those cultivators without a processing license it can be hard for them to get credit for the effort they put into growing and creating the cannabis that’s in the products,” explains Dallas Devam, the company’s founder and CEO.

“Our app helps solve this by including the cultivator’s name and a link back to their story. Even for products like vape pens or gummies, people can go check out how the plants used in those products were grown.”

This, he continues, will not only help better inform consumers about the products, but it can also help them discover other products they may not be aware of. This can assist not only the cultivators but also processors and retailers.

“By linking back to the cultivator’s story, this can lead consumers to other products and production lots from the same grower where they can request more from the same retailer, or other retailers. Stores don’t even need to have stock for consumers to make a request.”

This can also help processors and retailers to better understand and respond to ever-evolving consumer demands.

“For producers and retailers, the procurement process between them and distributors is horrible in some areas,” says Devam. “The app solves this by connecting all partners in the loop where they can all see how many customers are waiting to buy. Then, it’s up to the retailer to get a hold of that lot from the distributor.”

The process of developing the “social media marketplace” has been a long process, he explains. While the base design comes from Cropsify’s regulatory software, building out a robust, dynamic platform that can work with the constantly-changing products and producers in the market required extra fine-tuning.

But taking the time to build it correctly was worth the wait for Devam, who says he has been processing feedback from his long list of clients utilizing his Cropsify ERP platform for seed-to-sale tracking and reporting.

“What I’ve been hearing from the majority of people in the industry is that the “lot story” is important because cannabis producers want consumers to have full transparency about what went into growing and processing the plants and materials they are enjoying. It’s vital for consumer confidence and loyalty.”

By telling each lot’s story, he adds, the producer also benefits by gaining credibility for being so transparent and providing this level of access to customers.

Another benefit is having a direct connection to the entire distribution partners chain to end consumers, all while being compliant with provincial and federal marketing regulations.

“Cannabis retailers will benefit by having direct sales leads on production lots so they can plan procurement based on projected sales. As well, their reputation should go up for offering fresher products based on personal customer requests. And there should be no issue with the regulations because the consumer is the only active party in the connected product request; the retailer may act on public knowledge from an aggregated private list to seek out this lot from their distributor.”

“Consumers will benefit by having better information about each lot they purchase. They can request products directly from the producer before or after the plant is harvested, and are more likely to receive fresher product. And, they will have fun with the social media aspects with product ratings and regular social posts.”

Devam is now launching Crops Connect and invites all producers and retailers to get on the app as he unveils the product for the larger market; a “Lot Story” is free to post. Anyone looking to learn more about Cropsify and Crops Connect can contact them at: https://www.cropsconnect.com/

Download the App:

ANDROID:
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.cropsify

APPLE:
https://apps.apple.com/us/app/cropsify-connect/id1605224383

Content sponsored by: Cropsify

Ontario’s Frost Cannabis is focussing on their craft

Written by David Brown on August 12, 2022. Posted in Cultivators, Ontario, Profiles.

Scott and Brad Acton are two brothers running Frost Cannabis, a micro producer in Burlington, Ontario for just over a year now.

For Scott Acton, focussing on their craft is the most important thing, not growing millions of square feet of cannabis.

Scott is the co-founder of Frost Cannabis running much of the front end of the business, along with Brad who is the head grower, although he says they each end up wearing a lot of hats as a two-man operation.

Licensed in 2021, the brothers manage the majority of the day-to-day operations running their two flower rooms, plus the mother and veg room inside their 200 square meters of grow space.

Also in possession of a micro processing licence and dried/fresh sales licence, Scott Acton says they hope to have their own product on shelves in Ontario around the end of this year.

In the meantime, Frost has released their first four crops—Slap N Tickle, Fire Cake, Bacio MaiThai, and Lemon Shortbread—through a few processing partners, and has popped up in a few provinces. This, he explains, has allowed them to focus on getting the business up and running, dialling in their grow rooms, and beginning to work through their large collection of in-house genetics. (Slap and Tickle is currently available in Ontario through Ontario Micro Growers (OMG)).

“We know what we have is good and it’s what we like to smoke….We know the quality of the genetics is just as important as the quality of the grower, so we just wanted to keep everything in our control.”
Scott Acton

Both being experienced growers “on the ACMPR side”, Acton says he and his brother really became interested in the micro licence when he saw how little quality cannabis was available as legalization began.

“We were seeing, let’s say… a lack of good flower on the market. So it motivated us to do this ourselves. We knew we could grow good cannabis and we knew people wanted something better than what we were seeing.”

Part of this approach was bringing in their own genetics that they were experienced with, rather than relying on suppliers.

“We know what we have is good and it’s what we like to smoke. So we brought a lot in with us. We know the quality of the genetics is just as important as the quality of the grower, so we just wanted to keep everything in our control.”

Another part of keeping everything in-house, he explains, is to begin packaging their own flower, ideally by the end of this year.

Frost received their micro cultivation and micro processing licence in April 2021, and then received their sales amendment, which allows them to sell dried flower to provinces, earlier this year. Although there are still additional approvals to navigate through the provincial buyers, Acton’s hopeful he’ll find a way to retailers in the GTA.

He says that they expected the first few years to be focused on dialling in their systems in new rooms. Partly because of this, he’s utilized other processors who already have agreements with provinces, but ultimately he hopes they will be able to do it all themselves and sell directly into the Ontario market, ideally close to where they work.

“We would love to be in other provinces, but we want to focus on our local area, and Ontario is large enough to take everything we can grow. And I think that’s how it should be.

“I think that’s the future in this market. You’ll have the really big guys—and that’s what some people are looking for, and that’s great—but then you’ll have a lot of little guys who are maybe selling to their community and can grow something better than that. And there’s obviously a demand for that too.”

Inside one of Frost Cannabis’s flowering rooms

Getting the sales amendment to sell their own dried flower was a big step in that direction.

“That was really big news for the industry. It’s going to open the floodgates, letting the market decide whose flower they want to buy. Maybe making it a little harder for the middleman but the growers will have more ability to release their flower more easily, which is where I think the market should be.”

Still not using all of their approved canopy space, Acton says they currently pull between 20 and 30 kg a month out of their two rooms. Although he notes it’s not as much as the larger growers, it’s a manageable amount for the two-person team.

Beyond their growing area, they also have a modest processing space they plan to use to package their own dried flower: hand-packaging after hang-drying, hand-trimming, and curing.

And although the focus is on a high-quality craft product, the price needs to be reasonable too.

“We like to keep it really lean, that’s the recipe for our success. It’s not the number of plants: it’s about having a lower price per gram, and we can do that by doing it all ourselves. The less labour you have in there, the less it is per gram.

“And plus, we love what we do.”

Anyone wanting to reach Frost Cannabis can reach out on Instagram at @FrostCannabis.

Vancouver Island’s micro grower Craft Kings focusses on small batch quality

Written by David Brown on August 4, 2022. Posted in British Columbia, Cultivators, Profiles.

Craft Kings Enterprises is a micro cultivator located within a cannabis business park in Sooke, BC.

Licensed in February 2021, the three-person team behind Craft Kings have been building a name for themselves as quality craft growers, selling dried flower in most provinces through their network of processing partners.

Tye Harlock, one of the founders of Craft Kings, along with his longtime friend Kyle Windle, both grew up on Vancouver Island, gravitating towards cannabis about ten years ago. Harlock explains that they were both growing with ACMPR licences for several years when they both saw the writing on the wall with legalization.

They began looking into micro licences and, after discovering the cannabis micro park as a solution to some of the zoning issues they ran into in other areas, began the process of retrofitting their building and getting licensed.

“To walk into something like a shell that was purpose-built for micro cannabis operations and had already been zoned and approved for commercial cannabis cultivation, was very appealing,” says Harlock. “And then to have a processor/packager located in the park as well, it was a solution to many of the barriers we had come across up to that point”.

“I really do believe that the industry is going to be heavily reliant on craft. So that’s what we’re focused on. It’s what we know how to do, and the people buying it seem to agree. We just want to keep finding new strains to bring them, and to keep getting better.”
Tye Harlock, Craft Kings Enterprises

The cannabis business park itself, located about a 45-minute drive from Victoria, is home to several other micro cultivators in addition to Craft Kings. Sitka Weedworks is also located in the park and holds a standard processing and cultivation licence.

They have entered into processing agreements with all of the micro cultivators located in the park and partner with them to process, package and sell a portion of the cannabis product grown in most provinces and territories.

Heading up Craft Kings operations is Harlock with the official role as President & Responsible Person in Charge and, Windle as the Master Grower.

They run four small grow rooms within their allotted 200m2, staggered to ensure they can handle the harvests with their small team. To maximize their grow space, they get all their genetics from Saskatchewan cannabis nursery Mother Labs.

“It’s a lot of work, what we have now. If we ever expand, we would need to bring on more help. But it’s a great starting point. In terms of the canopy space, it’s a good size for a team of two or three. Anything bigger and you would need to bring on more people.”

Despite the hard work, he says he’s glad he decided to transition into the legal market.

“I put everything I had into this legal business, the micro, and completely shifted over and thank God I did because the black market went (belly)-up, overnight basically. Now all those guys that I used to work for don’t have jobs.”

One difficulty Harlock says he’s happy to see beginning to be addressed in BC is the province’s new Direct Delivery program and the moves towards more cannabis tourism and farmgate stores.

“I think (Direct Delivery) is fantastic, and that’s what needs to be done. The process right now is so slow…so if we can remove some of those steps, then we’re all for that.

“I think it’s a great step forward on streamlining and bringing the product to the (stores) and the consumer. The sooner we can get product from our facility and into the consumer’s hands, the better. So getting that one step (provincial warehouse) out of the way so we can deliver it to consumers fresh, is fantastic.”

Although he’s a little more skeptical of future farmgate options, he hopes it can evolve into something akin to winery tours.

Tye Harlock (left) and Kyle Windle of Craft Kings

“I like that it’s an option and that it’s there, but we’ll see how it goes. If cannabis tourism becomes a thing, then I think it becomes more viable and makes sense. Kind of like wine tours where you can go on a cannabis tour, and there will be a little storefront where people can test and also buy the product. That would be where it really makes sense.”

It’s changes like this that he says will help the industry evolve and develop in a positive way.

“I really do believe that the industry is going to be heavily reliant on craft. So that’s what we’re focused on. It’s what we know how to do, and the people buying it seem to agree. We just want to keep finding new strains to bring them, and to keep getting better.”

Vigr Life Cannabis on their two micro cannabis licences

Written by David Brown on July 18, 2022. Posted in Cultivators, Profiles, Saskatchewan.

Vigr Life Cannabis Inc. is a micro cultivator and processor operating two licensed facilities in Regina, Saskatchewan.

Initially licenced in October 2020 with two micro cultivation licences, VIGR (aka VLC) received two micro processing licences in December 2021 before receiving their own sales licences for dried cannabis in June of this year.

The company has already introduced numerous cultivars into the market through processing partners. They are now gearing up to utilize their own facility to process, package, and sell cannabis directly into their local market in Regina.

“Partnerships are still huge,” says VIGR’s co-founder and Master Grower, Dylan Bailey. “We’re always looking for good partnerships and to team up with people, but at the same time, we want to do as much on our own as we can, and we want to be able to offer services to others down the road.”

“We’ll still need to ship a fair amount of product, but especially for local stores in regions, that’s great. Then they can tell customers that it was taken just down the street three or four weeks ago.”

Left to Right Dylan Bailey – Master Grower / Responsible Person / Co-Founder Jake Farebrother – Alternate Master Grower David Limacher – Quality Assurance Person / Director of Marketing / Co- Founder Jared Dumba – Head of Security / Chief Operating Officer / Co- Founder

Although initially VIGR relied on bringing in starting material from an outside nursery, Master Grower Dylan Bailey, who manages both micro grow sites, says they have recently begun shifting to utilizing the space they have with their two micros inside their nearly 14,000 sq. ft facility to operate their in-house nursery, growing their own genetics.

This will mean a whole new array of dried flower and pre-rolls hitting the market in the coming months, including more offered under the VLC brand.

“As of right now, we have a total of 18 cultivars on site that we’ll be able to bring on and sell into the market within the next six to eight months,” explains Bailey.

Getting fresh, dried flower to market quickly is important to the VIGR team. Dumba says one of the reasons they opted to get their own processing and sales licences is how much longer products can sit in vaults or distribution warehouses when relying on partners to get to retailers.

Since Saskatchewan doesn’t require growers to go through a provincial distributor, the ability to sell directly to retailers in their own backyard will mean they can bring some of the freshest cannabis to market in all of Canada.

“The cost savings and time speak for themselves,” says Bailey. “It allows us to get to market sooner because we’re not waiting on anyone else who may have other priorities or dealing with outside QAPs or their own SOPS.

“That gives us a clear path to market and lets us save more money. And this allows us to pass on those savings to the customers.”

“Partnerships are still huge. We’re always looking for good partnerships and to team up with people, but at the same time, we want to do as much on our own as we can, and we want to be able to offer services to others down the road.”
Dylan Bailey, VIGR’S CO-FOUNDER AND MASTER GROWER

Bailey says he was drawn to the micro licence category based on his previous experience growing with an ACMPR licence. Although VIGR does have plans to potentially look into expanding to a standard licence down the road, he says the micro licence is a good starting place that allows him to focus on quality plants in a craft setting without the need for remediation or irradiation.

“It’s very manageable. We also have a great team to support us in everything we do. What I’m already learning to do in this space, I could see being able to expand with additional help, especially with all the great growers here in Saskatchewan we can potentially tap into as we expand.”

For now, Dumba says they plan to keep working at mastering their craft and slowly growing.

“Our goal is to keep our head down and keep working,” says Dumba. “Stay ahead of everything, keep doing our research and planning, working our tails off and focusing on ourselves. Obviously we worry about what people want, but we’re not too worried about what other producers are doing. We’re bringing people what they like and continually moving, continually growing.”

Evolved Extraction Solutions

Written by Staff on July 6, 2022. Posted in British Columbia, Ontario, Profiles, Services.

Rooted in Canada to serve an emerging global marketplace, Evolved Extraction Solutions is transforming the cannabis industry with disruptive extraction technology while providing long-term value to their clients through rapid, localized delivery of all the supplies they need for processing.

With two warehouses near Vancouver, and a new location serving Ontario, Evolved Extraction Solutions has expanded to offer engineering, training, design, and manufacturing of their extraction technologies for leading licensed producers across the country.

Evolved is the brainchild of the company’s CEO, Adam Temple, who says he saw the demands of an evolving industry and decided to build a business that could meet those demands.

“I was a medical grower who wanted to make my own extracts for patients,” explains Temple. “Between 2013 and 2014 the Canadian Government announced the rollout of MMPR regulations, essentially making Canada the first to commercially regulate commercial cannabis sales.

“As a cannabis patient myself, I saw an opportunity that couldn’t be passed up to address the global need for cannabis. At first, a lot of people wanted to grow, because they saw that growing and cultivation was profitable. But cannabis is like any other crop, and I saw that the opportunity was in transforming an agricultural product into a consumer-packaged good. The ingredient needed to make the consumer products was the extract.”

Temple says that by taking part in early online forums and interacting with extraction pioneers like Greywolf, he was able to take part in the development of the first closed-loop extraction machines.

Though there was a large community developing these first open-source extraction techniques, Temple says he found that the main difficulty was in sourcing the parts that were needed. Often these components came from the brewing industry, HVAC, and the food and beverage industry, located all around the world.

Lead times for these products could be very long, and shipping costs were so high that it was cheaper to buy high volume wholesale rather than part by part. As he began building his own stock, he saw a market demand he could help meet.

“I started building my own stockpile for what was needed—pumps, solvents, equipment, and consumables,” he continues. “This made things easier for me, but people in my network started contacting me looking for these parts and began ‘raiding my stockpile’. That’s when I realized that I was not alone in experiencing this problem, a lot of people were dealing with the same challenges.”

At this point, Temple approached his two business partners, his best friend, Matthew Erickson, and his brother, Liam Temple, to form Evolved Extraction Solutions Ltd.

“These challenges have not changed even to this day,” says Temple. “Licensed Processors need to source so many unique and specialized products without spending excessive amounts of time or money procuring what they need and shipping it to their facilities. That’s why they choose to work with one trusted source like Evolved Extraction where they can solve not only these supply chain challenges but also get the equipment for starting up their facilities and the process engineering for implementing upgrades to scale up production. Evolved is the trusted partner for all of it.”

Evolved quickly grew from its initial stockpile of parts in the corner of a tiny warehouse in Vancouver in 2016 to a 3,500sq ft warehouse in Maple Ridge. Very soon after their official launch at the 2017 Lift&Co Expo, sales skyrocketed, rising 300% in the first few months.

“Within 12 months we were running out of space,” says Temple. “Customers were literally climbing over our inventory because the warehouse was completely full of crates full with product.”

By early 2018 a second location was added in Pitt Meadows, becoming Evolved’s flagship location that includes its current showroom, followed by a third location in Hamilton, Ontario in 2021 providing more coverage to points outside BC.

“Hydrocarbon extraction is in our roots and it’s what we’re known for,” adds Temple. “Our first systems 6 years ago used butane and propane as the solvent. Our latest technology is the Genome line that is also a hydrocarbon system, so we’ve essentially come full circle.”

The Genome Hydrocarbon Extraction Platform is “a real game-changer” in modern extraction technology,” he argues, “because it eliminates the need for a substantial number of downstream processes that extractors currently need to do to purify the product.

“Genome turns biomass into high purity THCa crystal and high terpene extract, directly from the extraction machine. It does this by rapidly crystallizing the cannabinoids and separating the high terpene extract into a separate vessel. No further refinement steps needed.

“This is a real breakthrough that saves massive CapEx dollars and the majority of the labour that’s normally needed. On top of that, the value of the extract is higher than the typical extraction that requires heat and at some point in the process degrades the terpenes. The two ingredients produced in our process, typically THCa and “terp sauce” or “HTE” can be transformed into virtually any cannabis product – vape cartridges, edibles, topicals, and infused pre-rolls, just to name a few.

“The typical C02 extraction process requires seven refinement steps after extraction, just to get to a purified product, and even then a lot of the terpenes are degraded in the process,” says Temple, “the extract needs to be re-dissolved into ethanol, put in a freezer to winterize, then filtered, then solvent removal, decarboxylated, then finally multiple passes of distillation.”

Evolved addresses two main market gaps. First, they help processors build extraction facilities and scale up their extraction processes by providing industry-leading extraction equipment, ancillary services and technologies. Second, they help companies reduce operational costs and risks by delivering the solvents, and other process inputs they need for their extraction facilities, quickly and reliably.

Clients can source all the products they need from a single touch point. This includes their 6 product profiles that include Extraction, Filtration, Post-Processing, Maintenance & Safety, Solvents & Processing inputs, and On-Demand Parts. As Evolved keeps almost everything they need in their BC and Ontario warehouses, saving time and logistical costs for their customers.

“Our solutions to our supply chain challenges are also designed to prevent and solve bottlenecks,” continues Temple. “We have facilities and delivery trucks in Ontario and BC where we stock a wide array of consumable products like solvents, filtration media and a large inventory of parts that our clients rely on us to deliver just-in-time, and on a frequent basis. This alleviates logistics costs, and procurement time and reduces the amount of space that our clients need to store these critical materials.

“By offering both the equipment and the supply chain solutions for our clients, we align our clients’ success with our own. Our business is all about supporting our clients’ success over the long term.”

Although the current cannabis industry in Canada is going through a lot of changes, and consolidation, Temple says he has a lot of hope for the future as newer small and mid-sized companies run by people more familiar with the industry seem to be taking their place.

“I think that there is going to be a hay day in the future. Large-scale producers have begun to shut down supply; the day of the giant bloated cannabis companies is over. Eventually, there will only be a few large companies that share about half the market share. Then a lot of small to medium size companies, that can run lean and have lower-cost production, will become the main players. At all scales, the operators who are the most efficient and can operate lean will end up being the most successful.

“Helping processors overcome operational inefficiencies in extraction and refinement processes is where we shine. As for Evolved, in ten years we will still be servicing our loyal, long-term clients and replicating the success we’ve had domestically in new legal jurisdictions that are coming online all around the world.”

Watch “Designing and Assembling our EV-MASS Centrifuge” video on YouTube.

Content sponsored by: Evolved Extraction Solutions

AirMed seed-to-sale business solutions

Written by Staff on June 13, 2022. Posted in British Columbia, Profiles, Services.

AirMed Canada Systems was officially launched in 2015 by a team of innovative thinkers who had been designing compliance-based software for decades and recognized that software solutions need to evolve from record-keeping compliance to industry-specific ERP platforms.

Always aiming to help clients find solutions, AirMed’s award-winning software platform has evolved from helping licensed producers with compliance and best practices into a complete cannabis producer management solution.

The team brings more than 25 years of experience in building, implementing, and supporting software systems in high-consequence industries such as the military, banks, law enforcement, health care and pharmaceuticals. They draw on this expertise to deliver seed-to-sale solutions that are comprehensive, easy to use, and cost-effective.

“Various changes have occurred in the Canadian cannabis space since AirMed’s inception,” explains CEO Justin Hearn. “We are constantly challenged to adapt the software to meet evolving regulatory requirements.”

AirMed is also evolving to meet the industry’s needs. With a diverse customer base ranging from micros to some of the largest producers in the world, AirMed continues to streamline system workflows to simplify the user experience while maintaining data integrity.

“Cannabis production in Canada involves strict compliance with government regulations,” says Shane Nielsen, Director of R&D for AirMed. “Health Canada requires a monthly report containing 2,300+ unique fields. Canada Revenue Agency and other regulators require additional data. To meet these requirements, cannabis producers must report on literally thousands of fields of information with absolute precision. Data entry errors could potentially cause days of work to uncover and account for.”

New smart forms in AirMed help to ensure accuracy by alerting users of potential errors based on their prior use of the system. With more than 500 standard reports, automated data exports, a built-in report designer and dashboard analytics, all information is available for both compliance and business intelligence.

“When showing our software to prospective clients, they are always blown away by how much information AirMed provides,” says CEO Hearn. “In fact, we’ve had clients move to AirMed from other cannabis management systems because of that level of detail. Producers tell us that our system shows more fine-grained data for every record and offers more control over their inventory.”

R&D Director Nielsen elaborates, “Users quickly discover all the different ways they can use the vast amount of information that we track to give them an edge in their business. For example, one producer told us that the live count of production consumables, such as fertilizer, would save them hours upon hours of valuable staffing time compared to manual tracking. And because we record so much information, we can auto-fill monthly CTLS reports.”

For producers with medical platforms, patient sales are supported via two web-based interfaces including a WordPress plugin and custom two-way API.

Pricing for AirMed is adjusted depending on the size and needs of producers, large or small. Each customized approach is based on square footage and not on the number of users, allowing a producer to have as many accounts as necessary to meet employee needs.

“As with many new industries, there has been a shift away from vertically integrated solutions to a supply chain,” explains CEO Hearn. “AirMed is adapting to this supply chain-model by building enterprise resource planning functionality to support production lines, shop floor management, inventory valuation, and legacy ERP integrations. AirMed already covers every aspect of cannabis cultivation, processing, packaging, and distribution. When these new features are incorporated over the next year, AirMed will also offer unmatched enterprise planning, resource management, and business intelligence.”

With more expected consolidation in the cannabis industry in Canada, Hearn says systems like AirMed must evolve to meet those market changes.

“Most likely, this trend will continue, and the market will evolve into a smaller number of large producers and continued proliferation of small craft producers. As the large producers become more familiar with product demand, more emphasis will be placed on product quantities that can be readily sold to avoid costly inventory write-downs,” Hearn says.

“Solutions like AirMed will need to feature more ERP-related functionality to manage production planning including routing through external organizations. Complex production orders and automated task management will become critical for manufacturing efficiencies. Software solutions will need to evolve from record-keeping compliance to cannabis industry-specific ERP platforms.”

Content sponsored by: AirMed

Cannara Biotech

Written by Staff on June 9, 2022. Posted in Cultivators, Profiles, Quebec.

With a focus on quality at scale, Cannara Biotech is positioning itself as a trusted source of premium brands and products rooted in cannabis culture, offered at market-disrupting value propositions.

First licensed in January 2020 with 170,000 sq ft of production space in Farnham, Cannara quickly expanded into a second Quebec facility in Valleyfield with over one million sq ft of production space.

Although the company is growing cannabis at a very large scale, they say they have been able to buck the trend of first-wave licensed producers by recognizing that product quality remains the number one driving force behind organic growth, brand awareness, and continued consumer demand.

Rather than scaling out too fast and trying to create too many different products at once, Cannara is focused on perfecting a handful of products and brands that cater to what both seasoned consumers want and what newer consumers are interested in.

“Cannara is about giving consumers what they want—premium quality at accessible, value-based pricing fit for frequent cannabis consumers and new entrants across our three brands: Tribal, Nugz, and Orchid CBD,” says CEO Zohar Krivorot.

First launched in Quebec, Cannara’s brands are also now making waves in Ontario in the form of dried flower, pre-rolls and several types of hash.

“One major gap in the market is the value proposition offered to consumers,” adds Krivorot. “Too often consumers experience inconsistent quality regardless of the price they paid at the retailer. We have developed a unique capability of growing and offering premium cannabis at scale, with healthy gross margins and three flagship brands that resonate with our consumers.”

After first launching their three brands in Quebec in 2021, the company quickly realized they needed more space to satisfy consumer demand.

When we launched our three brands last year in Quebec only, we quickly realized that we were on the right track with consumer demand far exceeding our supply. This led to the purchase of a second 1,033,506 sq. ft facility in Valleyfield, Quebec, in June 2021,” explains Nicholas Sosiak, Chief Financial Officer at Cannara, and the driving force behind all strategy, operations, marketing and sales, and product innovation, with continued support from the executive management team.

“Our mission since day 1 has been to grow premium cannabis from our rare genetic library of over 400 unique strains, and the opportunity to purchase our second facility in Valleyfield offered us the ability to do so at an even greater scale,” he continues.

The Valleyfield Facility comprises a main greenhouse separated into 24 grow zones measuring close to 600,000 square feet, in addition to a 200,000 square foot rooftop greenhouse and a potential phase two expansion.

“This controlled approach to scaling up ensures we continue to meet our growing demand in a fiscally responsible manner. We have achieved 4 consecutive quarters of positive adjusted EBIDTA while significantly scaling up our operations,” adds Sosiak.

“With this foundation, we are now ready to take on the Canadian market with the expertise to truly grow premium cannabis at scale, offering consumers the premium quality they expect, at affordable everyday pricing.

With a growing list of newer products brought to market, Cannara argues they can distinguish themselves by focusing on sticking to a handful of products they can do well, and that consumers actually want.

“Cannara Biotech has positioned itself as a trusted source of brand and products rooted in cannabis culture, launching premium products with a demand that outpaces supply,” says company CEO Krivorot. “We pride ourselves in remaining transparent in our operations and strive to maintain authentic relationships with our ever-growing consumer base.”

“In addition, the financial and operational restructuring facing many large Canadian licensed producers is leaving large gaps in the ability to consistently supply the market, let alone meet the quality consumers demand. Cannara has remained focused on developing the ability to produce premium quality cannabis at scale while remaining lean operationally.”

Editor’s note: This article originally stated Cannara’s licence was awarded in January 2021. It was awarded in January 2020.

Content sponsored by: Cannara Biotech

MF Cannabis License and Regulatory Consultants

Written by Staff on June 5, 2022. Posted in Ontario, Profiles, Services.

With more than two decades of experience in quality assurance and regulatory affairs, MF Cannabis License and Regulatory Consultants are able to provide skilled licensing and regulatory services in the cannabis industry.

Founded in 2021 by company president Mussarat Fatima, MFLRC’s team has helped guide numerous companies through Canada’s various provincial and federal licensing processes. The goal, explains Fatima, is to help others benefit from her 25 years of experience working as a quality assurance and regulatory affairs personnel in the food, pharmaceutical and cannabis industries.

Navigating the complex regulatory world isn’t just about industry knowledge, she notes, but also ensuring an applicant has the time to manage all of these expectations.

“People may have difficulty complying with regulations, whether in the areas of quality, security, or inventory, but it’s not necessarily due to a lack of qualification. It could be due to a variety of factors, including a lack of time, insufficient staff, or just being unable to keep up with regulatory changes.”

These demands also extend beyond just the initial licensing process.

“I decided to offer all of these services in a single location, whether pre- or post-licensure. Most people hire consultants to help them with licence applications, but they overlook the importance of post-licensing requirements. Compliance is critical for running a regulated facility and should be considered from the beginning.”

As the company’s owner and president, Fatima aims to be the primary point of contact for clients and oversees all consulting services.

“With degrees, certificates, and diplomas, I have a nice mix of qualifications and experience in the cannabis, food, and pharmaceutical industries. This enables me to provide quality-related compliance solutions that meet the specific needs of various clients. Because, just like every person, every facility is unique, and one size does not fit all. I can provide customized compliance solutions to various clients who require them.”

“In addition, I have a team of qualified individuals with work experience in various areas of the cannabis industry.”

One known issue for new applicants, she continues, is a client’s business planning and understanding of costs and timelines.

Other issues include the fact that most clients are unaware of the cost of maintaining quality assurance compliance. Most applicants and licence holders want to save money by launching products that aren’t long-term viable. This can lead to product recalls and Health Canada inspection observations.

One specialized service MFLRC offers is assistance with various provincial farmgate licences. Currently, two provinces (Ontario and New Brunswick) have a specific farmgate licence in place, with British Columbia expected to launch their own sometime in 2022.

“When it comes to farmgate licensing, the rules vary across Canada,” says Fatima. “Every province has its own rules for obtaining a Farmgate licence similar to a retail store licence. Our team has researched how regulatory requirements differ between provinces and is ready to assist our clients.

“Farmgate licences, in my opinion, will become increasingly popular in the cannabis industry. In the cannabis industry product, branding has become difficult as a result of regulatory restrictions on promotion and marketing. These new licences can play a significant role in LP’s branding strategy and can allow them to promote their product face-to-face and receive direct feedback from their customers.”

Although the process for any type of licensing in the cannabis industry can be challenging, this industry veteran says she sees many opportunities for those still seeking to enter the market.

“Regardless of regulatory constraints and other challenges, the industry has a promising future. In addition, regulations are changing to address the public’s challenges and needs. Health Canada continues to improve and streamline the licensing procedure by offering more guidance and speeding up the process.”

Learn about MFLRC services at:

MFLRC Services: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A-ve8c4AiBE&t=8s
MFLRC GMP Services: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=go_PQgrnCfo

Content sponsored by: MF Cannabis License and Regulatory Consultants

Green Rose Farms prepares for their second outdoor micro crop

Written by David Brown on June 3, 2022. Posted in Cultivators, New Brunswick, Profiles.

Green Rose Farms is a small, sun-grown micro cultivator in New Brunswick, about 20 minutes outside of Moncton.

Licensed in 2021, owner Adam Jones is busy preparing for his second season on the 30-acre farm where he and his wife live. (Last name changes at request of the owner).

Initially intimidated by the cost and scope of some of the larger production licences, Jones says he began looking at an outdoor micro licence after being inspired by other outdoor micro growers, including some in New Brunswick.

“I had the land, and I saw that some others were getting licensed with just a fence and a garage and it seemed like something I could do,” explains Jones.

After finding a buyer for his first crop—around 25kg of flower—to a third party processor, he’s aiming for a much larger harvest this year, and also rented a small indoor space to do a run of feminized seeds over the winter—a Bad Breath/GMO cross—something he also hopes to begin selling into the provincial or medical markets, potentially with a partner.

“I can sell seeds directly into the provincial markets now, but I think it’s hard to build excitement for a seed release that’s only maybe four out of ten provinces. I’d like to see the seed brands be coast-to-coast, so I am looking for a medical partner for that.”

He says that building partnerships to get to market is something he quickly learned. Although he wants to get his own processing and sales licence in another few years, finding someone who can just take a crop and deal with all the other steps has its advantages.

After running a modest 25kg crop in the first year, Jones says he’s planning for around 80kg this year, which he hopes will be enough to justify his time and expenses. Ideally, he is looking for a local processor that offers solventless extraction.

Although he says he loves growing cannabis, he emphasizes that with current prices for cannabis—especially outdoor cannabis—sometimes going for as little as under $1 a gram, it’s a tough row to hoe.

“I’m under less pressure than some because I’m not renting the space. I farm twenty feet from my house, so that’s giving me an advantage. So I think we’re in a good position to weather any storms, especially price compression, but it’s hard to say when we’ll become profitable.”

Ideally, he thinks the 200m2 canopy limit for an outdoor micro should be increased. While an indoor micro with the same canopy limit can do five or six crops a year. Even with potentially higher yields in an outdoor crop, he argues it’s still a big disadvantage.

“I don’t think people should get an outdoor micro if you want to get rich. I don’t think you should be interested in the cannabis space at all right now unless you’re a real cannabis person because it’s not easy. I don’t know if you can be an outdoor micro farmer without holding down other jobs. Not under the current canopy.”

Cannabis in flower last year on the farm

One possibility for increasing profits is a farmgate store. Although he’s skeptical it would make sense to build and manage a full-time store, running something part-time could work.

“I’m thinking of setting up a small farmgate that’s seasonal. Somewhere that people can come and get clones on a Saturday afternoon, so I’m not paying someone to sit there six hours a day every day waiting for someone to drive by.”

Clearly passionate about his craft, Jones says he really wants to make it work, but again cautions others to do their homework before diving in.

“Try to find allies in the industry that you can trust. They can be invaluable when sharing information, best practices, and even sharing the cost of expensive cultivation tools.”

Building partnerships locally, especially when finding processing and distribution partners, can help save money, too. Partnering with small, local companies can also help ensure you aren’t waiting in the line behind much larger growers.

And in the meantime, run lean and mean and hold on for dear life.

“Try to keep your cost of production as low as you can, in an attempt to weather the current storm of price compression. The larger LPs can’t produce an ounce for $150 and sell it for $100 forever. Outdoor micro-cultivators can also lower their costs of production by growing in their native soil instead of pots and growing some of their own amendments, like alfalfa.

“If you’re growing outdoors, under the sun, I recommend getting some hoop houses or some type of greenhouse. With storms becoming more intense due to climate change, it brings some peace of mind to know that the plants and resin that you’ve worked so hard to grow will be protected late in the season. The big challenge with hoop houses, though, is to make sure you’re not trapping humidity, especially during flowering.”

Censored Edibles brings artfully infused shapes to the adult market

Written by Staff on June 1, 2022. Posted in Ontario, Processors, Profiles.

Censored Edibles brings a welcome dose of creative fun while pushing the boundaries of societal taboos, and bringing cannabis along for the ride too!

With the emergence of edibles in the cannabis space, Censored Edibles Co-Founder, Sarah Kulbatski, recognized a niche opportunity to provide exciting, flavourful and colourful cannabis products and make them cheeky and fun for adults and adult-only events.

The artisanal infused edibles come in a variety of colours and… erm, shapes… and are sure to raise the conversation and an eyebrow or two amongst the adults. Along with the currently available penis soft chews, additional shapes such as “booby” and “booty” will be rolling out across Ontario this summer (2022). As the market continues to mature, they have several other innovations in the pipeline they are excited to bring to market.

Censored Edibles is a joint venture with licensed producer Loosh Brands that brings a wide network of industry partners and suppliers to the partnership. The Loosh team is highly experienced in navigating the Canadian Cannabis industry and the complexities of regulatory compliance, a high priority for Kulbatski.

“Bringing new and innovative products to market while working within the confines of The Cannabis Act is no easy feat”, said Ilya Serebryany, CEO Loosh Brands and Censored Edibles Co-founder. “Where many saw limitations, we saw an opportunity and believe that we’ve identified a space in the market.”

“We are here to fill a niche and carve out space in the market as we grow the creativity and differentiation of the offerings. We are proud to push the conversation forward,” Kulbatski continued.

The initial wholesale launch sold out within days through the Ontario Cannabis Store (OCS) flow-through program and the team is working hard to keep up the supply. The OCS flow-through program allows retailers to order products not stocked in the OCS warehouse. With this proof of demand in hand, Kulbatski’s plan is to next work with Saskatchewan, Alberta and British Columbia to get their products to retailers across these provinces.

The ultimate goal is Canada-wide, but getting products through the various provincial retail chains takes time and requires careful planning.

As product appeal to children is a primary concern of The Cannabis Act, Censored Edibles works diligently to remain fully in compliance and ensure their products are explicitly for the adult market. With shapes outside of the well-known bears, worms and sour-patch kids, combined with cannabis store age-gate requirements and their compliant packaging, Kulbatski is confident in their direction.

The brand positions its edibles as must-have gifts and swag for adult events such as bachelor/bachelorette parties, bridal showers, wedding favours, funny/personalized gifts, and adult birthday parties. Packages contain 4 gummies each at 2.5mg of THC for a total of 10mg THC.

Navigating the marketing and advertising of these products is not without its challenges, something Kulbatski navigates thoughtfully. There are advertising restrictions in place in both the cannabis and also the adult-market industries, but these fun edibles have quickly attracted attention and sales.

“The current Censored Edibles lineup has received incredible early feedback,” according to Kulbatski. “We know this line has stickiness, staying power and a rightful place on store shelves for the long-term.”

“We strongly believe that not all edibles are created equal. Who says recreational cannabis products can’t be fun?” Definitely not the team at Censored Edibles and the retailers currently selling these fun products.

Content sponsored by: Censored Edibles

Trygg Collective

Written by Contributor on May 26, 2022. Posted in British Columbia, Profiles, Services.

TRYGG Collective wants to establish a trusted co-packing solution for cannabis micro-cultivators bringing their products to market.

Founded in early 2022, the company was started with the idea of creating more packaging and processing options for Canada’s small, craft cannabis growers, rather than them needing to rely on a handful of larger LPs.

“Our mission is to empower cannabis enterprises by finding common ground in our shared evolution, whatever their size, scale and relationship to this complex and wonderful plant,” explains TRYGG Collective’s CEO Fabrizio Rossi.

Rossi and his team have a long history of working within the legal cannabis industry in Canada, which has helped them understand the needs of the industry and identify the current gaps, especially for craft and micro cultivators.

The TRYGG Collective team has over 50 years of knowledge and partnership experience within the cannabis, pharmaceutical and CPG industries, ranging from sales and marketing to distribution and supply chain logistics and regulatory backgrounds.

Rossi notes that these years of experience in the logistics of cannabis and other regulated markets give them an edge in representing micro-cultivators with the provincial governments.

“Our experience in the consolidation of the cannabis industry as a whole has given our leadership team a unique perspective,” continues Rossi. “We’ve seen what works and what doesn’t and we know that we’ll be providing an exceptional service that offers better value for our client brands.”

“We take care of our customers’ products like they’re our own. Because they are. Your brand is valuable. Make sure you get the recognition you deserve.”

TRYGG Collective offers co-packing services that protect the integrity of craft cannabis products, with no hidden fees or services. From the first point of contact, the co-packer’s services can include assessment, analytical testing, packaging and distribution. Rossi says they take pride in being responsive to clients’ needs, working with cultivators in whatever capacity they require while making sure to account for every dollar they spend.

“We understand that — for micro-cultivators in particular — trusting us with your harvest is a big financial commitment. We take that responsibility seriously and we are very transparent with our process and fees.”

Although micro-cultivators are an integral part of the cannabis ecosystem, argues Rossi, current packaging arrangements decidedly favour larger players with their opaque processes.

“TRYGG Collective prides itself on transparency from beginning to end. Our clients know what they’re paying for every step of the way. Our regulatory team understands the importance of compliance, providing expert QAP support to help smaller growers navigate the legal landscape around cannabis packaging and distribution.

“We believe that co-packers should treat their client brands as partners and vice-versa.”

As the cannabis industry in Canada continues to evolve, Rossi says he sees micro and craft growers having more of an opportunity to make their mark and thrive—something he and his team hope to assist with.

“Over the next few years, we think we can reasonably expect to see more consolidation as the sector settles and matures. That said, consolidation doesn’t mean stagnation. As will happen in almost any product category, cannabis has been on retail shelves for long enough now that consumers are becoming increasingly sophisticated, which leads us to believe that the more artisanal cannabis micro-cultivators with unique offerings are due for their day in the sun. Bring on the craft.”

“What it boils down to is that we see how the industry is evolving and we want to make sure that the opportunities we’re helping to create are there for legacy growers and new cultivators at the micro-level, who might not have had access to some of the same options as the larger LPs in the past.”

Content sponsored by: Trygg Collective

Evora: Seed-to-sale sale systems need to work for all license types, and sizes

Written by Staff on May 5, 2022. Posted in Alberta, Profiles, Services.

Operating as a Cannabis Management Platform (CMP) in Canada for several years, the team at Evora Technologies has been improving on and refining their Cannabis Software platform. The platform includes Production Management, Quality Management “eQMS”, as well as Cannabis Cultivation and Processing. They provide an all-in-one Cannabis compliance and operations software solution for producers of all sizes.

The company works with numerous clients in Canada, primarily cultivators, who say they are quite happy with both the platform and the team. And with that experience, Evora has been able to expand its platform to fit the needs of other types of license holders, such as stand-alone processors.

“We’ve had great feedback to date from our clients,” says Evora Co-Founder Matt Howardson. “We’re working with a number of great partners who are focused on processing bulk to finished good products and receiving lots of beneficial feedback to help shape Evora into the tool they’ve been missing. ”

We’ve upgraded our support portal where you will find our ticketing system and knowledge-base library, which has started to take on a life of its own. We’ll be adding additional content including tutorial videos and quick how-to documents throughout the year.
Matt Howardson, Evora Co-Founder

“We’ve heard from a number of license holders around the industry that have 1 or 2 systems in place to capture data and are still tracking their inventory and finished good product through Excel sheets. This is our demand to fill, and the heart of the problem that the team at Evora set out to address.”

This is because seed-to-sale sale systems need to work for all license types, and sizes, from cultivation and processing to quality management, inventory reporting and production planning.

“We’ve put in a significant amount of work into our onboarding and support areas this year in anticipation of scaling for growth,” he continues. “We’ve upgraded our support portal where you will find our ticketing system and knowledge-base library, which has started to take on a life of its own. We’ll be adding additional content including tutorial videos and quick how-to documents throughout the year.”

Evora’s processing and production tools compliment those roles by taking the guesswork out of calculating how much material inventory a license holder is going to have and need over the duration of three, six, nine, twelve months—however long one needs to forecast out.

And with covid-related supply chain challenges, this becomes even more important.

“Some of the feedback we’re getting has been around the time people are saving recording their data entries, taking a load off people in terms of removing question marks around inventory levels or reorder times. Plus, with supply chain breakdowns, being able to know they will have product to complete a run can be vital, versus playing a guessing game.”

Evora makes no claims to replace any financial tools and highly recommends every client find a reliable ERP, whether it’s Microsoft Dynamics Business Central or Sage X3, or another tool. With Evora’s new 2-way API, it doesn’t matter which ERP platform or BI reporting tool your finance and executive team are comfortable with, Evora is ready to integrate with it!

“With our new 2-way API, we’re able to further reduce the barriers of data integration and inter-connectedness and help teams make decisions from fewer platforms. Finance teams are able to stick with a platform they’re comfortable with, non-finance industry people can use a web-based tool that feels more like Facebook than an ERP, and everyone’s data is together when they need it. A win-win for the client.”

Additionally, the team has created a one-click CTLS upload file and B-300 report details, saving significant time for users when reporting to Health Canada and the CRA.

Anyone attending the 2022 Lift&Co. Expo in Toronto from May 12-15^th is encouraged to stop by the Evora booth, #2122 in the Discovery Zone, to meet the team and experience Evora firsthand.

Content sponsored by: Evora Technologies

High North Laboratories

Written by Staff on April 27, 2022. Posted in Lab Profiles, Ontario, Profiles.

High North Laboratories has been identifying and addressing gaps in cannabis testing standards since they received their testing license, and they’ve spent over three months planning and designing operational flows in analytical models for their state-of-the-art facility located in Ontario.

Founded in 2016 by John Slaughter and Jeremy Pindus, the team recognized that many labs focused on environmental, public health, or pharmaceuticals were adapting their current methodologies, operations and facilities in an effort to address the specific needs for cannabis testing. They felt this approach would not necessarily meet the specific testing requirements for the highly specialized field of cannabis.

Slaughter shared that “when it comes to cannabis, specialization and quality really matters – whether you are a grower, extractor, or testing laboratory.” Cannabis testing falls somewhere in between testing for food quality and the highly regulated field of pharmaceuticals which are often synthetically derived with a long shelf-life.

A long-time cannabis consumer, Slaughter previously worked at pharmaceutical and CPG companies in marketing and analytics. He brings his passion for identifying consumer insights and needs to all of his work at High North. Pindus brings a long career in the cannabis industry, and even created a growing system called “The Spinner” which made it onto the popular television show “Weeds”. He has run multiple ACMPR, MMPR, and MMAR facilities.

In 2018, Rick Moriarity, a certified master electrician with over 23 years of experience in cultivating and processing cannabis, joined the team. At this time, High North moved its operations from Vancouver to their brand new, state-of-the-art 16,000sqft facility in Vaughan, Ontario.

They designed and built their new headquarters and developed cannabis-specific methodologies, operations and services in order to properly serve the growing industry. The Toronto facility was designed to be a GMP/ISO facility that could process 500+ orders per day, with the fastest turnaround time possible.

Cannabis testing standards and practices are constantly evolving. There can be a lot of ambiguity in the regulations which creates a source of confusion among the regulators and those on the analytical side of the industry.

For labs that adapted existing methodologies for testing food, environmental and pharmaceutical samples, this created a patchwork of testing procedures and standards for clients and producers.

High North recognized the need to establish and deliver above and beyond the basic testing requirements, and they focus their work on achieving the highest levels of accuracy and sensitivity while still allowing flexibility for the myriad of testing standards and regulatory requirements that clients want satisfied.

“We go above and beyond where it really matters – offering an unparalleled number of terpenes, cannabinoids, flavonoids – and we’re constantly pushing boundaries and exploring new possibilities to improve. This flexibility, plus our science and our dedication to customer service, resulted in High North being recognized as the Best Laboratory of the Year for 2021.”

High North offers methodologies specifically developed with cultivars and product types in mind. “We go above and beyond our analysis to partner with customers and improve their products in a way no other laboratory is equipped to do,” says Slaughter. “Customer service and turnaround times are key differentiators that meet our client’s needs”.

Having a strong laboratory partner can make a difference when it comes to great product development and success in the marketplace. “We will continue to grow, develop and strengthen our position as the best Cannabis laboratory in Canada.”

Content sponsored by: High North Laboratories

Crown Buds

Written by Staff on March 21, 2022. Posted in Cultivators, Ontario, Profiles.

Crown Buds is a small, family-run micro cultivator based in Glencoe, Ontario, a small farming community southwest of London.

Licensed this past June, Crown Buds is already finishing up their second crop in their small, retrofitted facility on an eight-acre farm.

The indoor operation is led by Benjamin McAuley, along with his wife, brother and mother who all share different roles at the company, from head grower to head of security to bookkeeping.

Some tasks, though, are shared by all.

“When trim day comes, we’re all trimmers,” laughs McAuley.

Despite all the family help, Crown Buds was the dream of McAuley for several years now. With a background in horticulture and several years working in the cannabis industry at two other licensed producers, he took the next step in 2019 by purchasing the farm with his wife and family.

“I’ve always been into the culture of cannabis and I’ve been smoking it since before I even realized it was a medicine to me. It’s just always been a part of my culture and my life. So when I went to school for horticulture it was based on that. And everything I learned I applied to cannabis.”

McAuley finished his degree in Applied Science with an eight-month field study at Peace Naturals in Stayner, and two years at WeedMD in Aylmer where he covered numerous positions, including quality control and as both the QAP and AQAP.

When he purchased the land in 2019, one of the reasons they chose their location—in addition to favourable zoning and bylaws—was a 5,300 ft barn already on the property that was then transformed into an indoor micro facility.

Crown Buds built out two flowering rooms within their 200m2 of production space, only half of which is currently in production while they put the finishing touches on room number two.

“We’re 100% in-house. We’re family-owned, family operated. So we wanted to build out what we could to start. Plus, this will allow us to work out the kinks before we go into full swing.”

McAuley says Crown Buds is now looking for processing partners to find a path to market, either from those interested in buying their in-house—including their first harvest of Dosi-Do and their current crop of Dark /Shadow Haze—or contract growing for an LPs existing SKUs.

While some growers are looking to control as much of the supply stream as they can, from cultivation to packaging, marketing and sales, McAuley says his focus, at least for now, is strictly on cultivation.

All of these other steps come with many extra costs, especially when dealing with provincial buyers and provincial recall insurance.

“At the core of it, we’re just looking to be farmers and do what we love doing and let a partner do most of that stuff because that’s what they’re good at. Leave those headaches in the hands of those qualified to do it”

“We’re really lean, we want to keep low overhead costs and keep it as lean as we can, so if we can outsource that stuff would be ideal.”

And although he knows many of the realities of the industry will still be a challenge, McAuley says he’s also very excited and happy to have brought his vision this far, and he looks forward to what the future will bring.

“We live on site, so it’s a short commute. We’re family-owned, we’re small, we love what we do, and we want to keep doing it. We’re just here loving the culture and trying to make a living do it.”

Mauve et Herbes / CANNA Canada Research

Written by Staff on March 16, 2022. Posted in Cultivators, Profiles, Quebec.

William Fournier had the idea for building his own small cannabis facility, Mauve et Herbes, in 2019 while he was working as the master grower for a licensed producer in Montreal.

Fournier had recently purchased agricultural land on the north shore of Montreal, transforming an old horse barn into a small indoor facility.

Initially intended to be a micro facility, Fournier eventually opted for a standard licence allowing him a slightly larger indoor facility, as well as a greenhouse and two outdoor fields. He also formed a partnership with CANNA Canada, a company specializing in nutrients and growing substrates, to develop the CANNA Canada Research & Knowledge Center, conducting plant research, field product testing and analysis for product development for specific plant needs.

Take a 3D tour of the CANNA Research & Knowledge Center

With more than a decade of growing experience under a medical licence, plus working at hydroponics stores where he first met people from CANNA Canada, and studying Landscape Architecture at the University of Montreal, Fournier was able to bring in an array of unique cannabis genetics and skills that can assist in some of the work through the Research & Knowledge Center, as well as developing products for the consumer market.

“At Mauve et Herbes we are able to conduct research, do on-field product testing, analyze for product development and further look into specific plant needs,” he explains. “Next to that, the facility serves as a wealthy source of information sharing between both companies. CANNA brings over 25 years of knowledge and experience, but through this partnership, we’ve also created a space for the exchange of information between the different global CANNA Research facilities.”

“It was a natural choice, the benefits were obvious for both parties and it would give us a lot of opportunities,” he continues. “I share the same philosophy and way of thinking as CANNA do which is knowledge sharing and collaboration. We also share the same values of a family business type of environment and freedom of choice. With this partnership, we can consolidate many years of experience from the scientists from the company and it gives CANNA an extension to their already existing and strong ecosystem of knowledge.”

The vision, he continues, is one where the knowledge center can hold industry seminars, workshops, tours, and meetings, and potentially collaborate with universities and other licence holders.

Fournier says his past experience with cannabis and agriculture in general, as well as the highly regulated world of Canada’s cannabis industry, gave him many advantages—including receiving his licence in only 10 weeks—but points out it was still a lot of work.

“I pretty much went all in alone on this project, wearing all the hats, with of course the tremendous help of my life partner. I was lucky enough to have a background in pretty much all the elements that you need to have to start this kind of business. We love what we do.”

Working with the plants and continuing to learn more about them seems to be a primary motivator for Fournier. Being able to work in not only a highly controlled indoor environment but also a vertical growing system in the greenhouse and an outdoor field of over 50,000 sq ft will lead to all kinds of new and interesting innovations, he hopes.

“This partnership with CANNA allows us to do repeated field trials with different products but also under different conditions that are conducted on the farm. This is where I see a great deal of potential in different aspects. Improving the efficiency of growing systems, breeding, certified CANNA grown flowers, and sharing knowledge with the public.”

“CANNA already has multiple Research Entities around the world and with the addition of the Canadian branch with this partnership, we globally increase the level of knowledge. Ultimately it is all about quality inputs whether we take this literally with the CANNA fertilizer/supplement and growing media, or if we talk about the great collaboration and exchange of knowledge we have within the different research entities. The end goal is clearly quality. And quality for CANNA, as well as Mauve et Herbes, means way more than just products. We keep looking to make every grower a better grower by understanding all the elements in the grow cycle.”

Sponsored content by: Canna Canada

The Micro Collective on getting their first two licences, and plans for more

Written by David Brown on February 28, 2022. Posted in Alberta, Cultivators, Nurseries, Profiles.

A company seeking to develop several dozen cannabis production licences across Canada in the coming years reached a significant milestone in January with their first micro cultivation licence.

Located just outside of Calgary, The Micro Collective’s first micro cultivation licence already has plants growing in it, destined for provincial markets through a third-party processing partner.

In the long term, the company plans to also build their own processing centres for what they hope to be more than 20 micro cultivation licences under their umbrella, across Canada.

All of these micro cultivation licences would then be supplied with fully-vegged plants by the company’s cannabis nursery licence, also located near Calgary. Currently licensed as Stigma and Stamen (undergoing a name change at the moment to bring it under The Micro Collective banner), the nursery was the first to be licensed, in late 2020.

A second micro cultivation licence was submitted last year and is expected to be issued in the next 30 days.

Micro Collective’s CEO, Ed Wilson, explains that by having a separate nursery to start their genetics before the flowering stage, they expect to be able to harvest a room in about eight to ten weeks, with two to four flowering rooms in each micro utilizing its 200m2 of flowering space.

Wilson and his small team chose to take a slow, steady approach to licensing and capacity by utilizing the micro licences as an easier entry point.

“Primarily, it’s the cost and ease of getting through the process,” says Wilson. “It’s much more cost-effective, the security requirements are much less stringent, and when dealing with municipalities we’ve found they are much more amicable to having a small agricultural building, as opposed to a big warehouse.”

Although they have lofty long-term goals, Wilson says their step-by-step approach along with some unique partnerships with landowners, and doing much of the work themselves, has helped them keep costs much lower, with minimal debt, than some other licence holders.

“Controlled growth is something we’re not seeing enough of in this industry,” he adds. “We’re seeing people throwing every penny they can at it. And maybe more than they should have, and now they’re in trouble. We’re taking a different approach and I think it can give us a real advantage, especially as the market sorts itself out.”

“Take your time, and get creative. Just because it’s the standard answer for everybody else, doesn’t mean it has to be the standard answer for you. You don’t have to listen to what everyone else is doing and spend $2.5 million to build one of those facilities that are going to be an albatross on your back. Take your time. The industry isn’t going anywhere. Do it right.”

Kailey Parkin, The Micro Collective’s Chief Growth Officer, gives one example that saved them potentially hundreds of thousands of dollars by doing their own HVAC system, rather than going with a contractor who had worked with other licence holders.

“Do your research, just because it doesn’t come on your doorstep in a little plug and play box doesn’t mean that it can’t work. Get creative and do it yourself.”

Although Wilson says their partnerships with third-party processors are agreeable, once they can have their own standard processing licences, they also hope to take more control of their product with their two future standard processing centres. The long-term plan is for about 20 micro cultivation licences in both western and eastern Canada, with one nursery operating in a full-size micro footprint and one to two processing licences to serve both divisions.

Their second micro licence will also be in Alberta, but they are also in the process of looking at properties in British Columbia and other parts of western Canada.

Although the Collective currently has one head (“master”) grower, Jerry Drews, for their micro cultivation licence and nursery licence, they also intend to begin apprenticing new growers to operate each new micro licence that comes along. They estimate each facility can be managed by two full-time employees, trained by their head grower, with additional staff for harvest and other periodic tasks.

“It’s a matter of taking people who are very interested in growing, but maybe don’t have the experience to be a licensed master grower with Health Canada, and giving them that experience, giving them the benefit of working in a facility while having the safety net of an apprenticeship program,” says Wilson.

“I’m a big believer in being able to learn like that”.

In the meantime, the first cannabis plants are already beginning to flower in the Micro Collective’s first hybrid greenhouse and could be on shelves in Canada by this summer, most likely under a third-party’s own label.

Although still in its infancy, Parkin says she thinks the small, “craft” approach of micro licences will allow the cannabis industry to evolve in a way that will be similar to the beer industry.

“The craft play is really going to be able to stand on its own as well,” she says. “I think there are a lot of similarities. There’s room for big companies and smaller craft ones, just like with craft beer. We still have a way to go, but I can see a very different cannabis market in five, ten years.”

Everest Craft Family – a unique cost-saving solution for Canadian cultivators

Written by Contributor on February 2, 2022. Posted in British Columbia, Processors, Profiles.

Everest Craft JV Partnership will provide radical cost-saving solutions for craft cannabis growers without processing licenses.

Health Canada states that 64%¹ of all products sold in Canada are dried flower or derived products such as pre-rolls. The 300 Canadian Cannabis Cultivation Licenses below that produce these products cannot, according to the Cannabis Regulations, sell these directly to the provincial liquor boards.

Cultivators are required to either obtain a processing license or in the alternative sell their product via a licensee that has a Processing License and pay up to or more than 15% of their margin to the LP.

Canadian Cannabis Cultivation Licenses Without Processing:

Analyzed from Health Canada’s Website, as of February 2, 2022

Everest Craft, a service division of Everest BioPharma International Inc., has a Health Canada Certificate of Readiness (COR), with imminent standard processing license grant for their facility in Kelowna, BC. Everest will offer packaging and solventless extraction services, with a limited number of processing opportunities for equity joint venture cultivation partners.

Unlike other independent processors and co-packers offering these services, Everest’s JV craft equity model allows the individual cultivation licence holders to own an equity position in a processing licence.

“Cannabis growers who sign up as a member of the Everest Craft Family will be able to save up to 45% on their flower packaging and labelling costs—or up to $250,000 on an annual 350kg micro crop, with an additional choice of producing solventless products such as rosin vapes also at a vastly reduced processing cost,” says Boast.

Everest’s cost-saving model allows cultivators to maintain control of their product throughout processing with added benefits of dividend payment, and EBC 30% tax credit,” explains Nigel Boast, President of Everest BioPharma.

“The Everest model is similar to the highly successful 50-year-old BC Fruits Co-op in Kelowna that comprises 350 apple farmers who benefit from multiple sales channels and annual profit sharing,” continues Boast. “Similarly, Everest Craft members will benefit from highly lucrative dividend payments derived, not only from the profits of the processing revenue paid by its members to Everest, but also from other revenue streams.”

Everest members will also be able to sell under their own proprietary brands, helping newer cannabis growers build a name for themselves while enjoying the dual benefits of critical cost savings and profit-sharing through their dividend payments.

In addition, Boast explains that “Everest has been conducting its own R&D program in predominantly CBD medical products and has plans to partner up with US JV partners in garnering international revenues. Members will also benefit from the profits generated from its medical exports”.

“We are here to support and assist the craft industry that cannot afford the high costs of obtaining and maintaining their own processing licence,” says Boast. “Using our JV equity model, they will have proprietary rights to a standard processing licence with sales amendment, SKUs, and be masters of their own destiny in terms of scheduling, the sales process, quality control, and cost control, while also participating in the profits of the operations.”

Everest was co-founded in 2018 by Nigel Boast MBA LLB B.Sc (President & CEO) and Robert Hatch B.SC (Hons.) (COO), with the facility building owned by Robert Hatch. The co-founders, along with Everest’s full-time QAP Braden Job B.Sc, all comprise a highly skilled and experienced business, legal and technical team.

¹https://www.canada.ca/en/health-canada/services/drugs-medication/cannabis/research-data/market.html

Content Sponsored by: Everest Craft

Sugar Cane Cannabis on their new micro cultivation licence

Written by David Brown on January 26, 2022. Posted in British Columbia, Cultivators, Profiles.

The Williams Lake First Nation passed a significant milestone last week with the issuance of a micro cultivation licence to their Sugar Cane Cannabis production facility.

The community has spent the last few years working towards building out and licensing their micro production facility on band land near Williams Lake, right next door to their retail store, Unity Cannabis.

The plans for the Sugar Cane facility include an additional micro production facility and built-in retail space for what they hope will be an eventual farmgate licence by May 1, 2022.

Although the intention was initially to get both a micro cultivation and micro processing licence at the same time, the company pivoted in 2021 to focus first on a micro cultivation licence before moving on to a production licence and sales amendments that would allow them to operate an on-site farmgate store to sell the products they grow and produce.

Meanwhile, they are getting everything ready to get plants growing as soon as possible now that they’re licensed.

Kirk Dressler, the Director of Legal and Corporate Services with the Williams Lake First Nation (WLFN) and the CEO of both Unity Cannabis and Sugar Cane Cannabis who has assisted with the Sugar Cane project, says as they start to grow crops out, they plan to first work with a third-party processor to get their products onto shelves, including many of their own Unity Cannabis stores, not only in Williams Lake but also in Penticton and Merritt, with another planned for Lac La Hache.

But in the long term, they still intend to get a micro processing licence so they can do that on their own, as well as for others in the region—especially other First Nations growers.

“We’re still very interested in occupying the processing space and that will be the next step in the buildout of our cannabis enterprise,” he explains. “And the province is also very interested in seeing an Indigenous operator in the processing space.”

“Everybody is watching”

Dressler says it’s not just the WLFN that are eager to see Sugar Cane succeed, but many other First Nations are watching to see if this approach is one they may wish to follow as well.

“I think everybody is watching with bated breath to see how this goes and there are a lot of Indigenous operators who are curious about this particular model,” says Dressler. “So it would be really neat from a sort of Indigenous craft perspective, to have a (processing licence). But there is also a general need in terms of processing capacity and it would really support the province’s desire to involve First Nations in the cannabis industry, to have a dedicated Indigenous processor.”

Inside the Sugar Cane Cannabis retail space.

Although they won’t be using their Sugar Cane retail space for cannabis sales until at least next year, the WLFN say they hope to still use the space for events that will also give the public a chance to see their facility up close. The future retail space includes a window into one of the facility’s grow rooms, that Dressler says he thinks can help demystify cannabis to those in the community who may still have questions or doubts.

“It’s separate and apart from the cultivation space so we can have people in there without fear of people intruding into our operation, but still give them a glimpse as to what’s going on. It gives people a unique opportunity to have a glimpse into our operation and teases the excitement of what’s to come in a few months.”

Although the Band faced resistance from some of the Williams Lake City Council as well as some community members, they also received support from various provincial and federal government agencies, including from the BC government, the Northern Development Initiative Trust, and Indigenous Services Canada.

Sugar Cane isn’t the first Indigenous producer to be licensed in Canada, or in BC, but it’s one of the first to do so in BC with so much direct assistance from the province.

Sugar Cane was also able to utilize the federal government’s Cannabis Navigator program that is accessible to those businesses with Indigenous affiliation. The process gives applicants like Sugar Cane a direct connection with Health Canada’s cannabis licensing department, but Daniel Penny, the COO of Sugar Cane Cannabis, says there were still challenges with their licence process.

This was especially the case when it came to the RCMP-run security clearance portion—a bottleneck many applicants, Indigenous or otherwise, are familiar with.

“There’s a firewall between the RCMP and Health Canada so the Indigenous Navigators who are helping us out can’t even communicate with the RCMP to let us know where those security clearances are at. I know that’s a pain point not only for us but for everyone in the industry.”

He says he thinks the application process needs to be further refined to address these issues, especially if it’s seeking to encourage First Nations’ participation in the federally-regulated industry.

“If there’s a legitimate commitment to reconciliation and to involving First Nations in this industry, then you need to develop a process that ensures that First Nations applications are given some kind of priority (when it comes to security clearances).”

Blazing a trail

WLFN Chief Willie Sellars argues it’s in the federal and provincial government’s own interest to try and work with more First Nations communities to provide them with the opportunity to take part in the cannabis industry. Since many First Nations in Canada argue they can manage cannabis all on their own—which the provincial and federal governments generally dispute—encouraging compliance with more success stories will be important.

“Some people might argue with that statement (that FN’s should get special treatment), but if we look at the market where it is at today and the amount of First Nations communities that are taking that sovereign route, living in that gray market world…they need to make it easier for First Nations communities, to entice them to come over without seeing any difficulties. It is getting better, but there’s still a lot of room for improvement.”

Sellars points out they still have a long way to go to fulfill their vision of a full micro cultivation, processing and farmgate location, and praises his entire team for how far they have already come.

“We try and stay as humble as we can because we know that there’s still a lot of work to do to make sure that what we’re doing is a success in that we can tell the story in a way that people will want to do the same thing. To be a trailblazer so that other communities can follow suit. We can grow this industry and have this other economy, especially in a region like Williams Lake where it’s forestry and mining, diversify in a way that we can see these good news stories where people are providing for their families and loving to go to work every single day.”

Life Cycle Botanics ready to supply genetics to growers

Written by David Brown on January 19, 2022. Posted in British Columbia, Nurseries, Profiles.

Life Cycle Botanics is a cannabis nursery operating on BC’s Vancouver Island getting ready to begin supplying new genetics to commercial cultivators, especially those in BC.

Located about twenty minutes north of Nanaimo, Life Cycle Botanics Nursery is run by Kim and Mark Qvist, who also run a small micro cultivation site in Langley, BC in the Lower Mainland, Covert Valley Reserve.

When Covert Valley was licensed in 2020, Mark says they quickly learned that nurseries were a missing element that was needed in the industry, especially for micro cultivators with a limited amount of space to grow in.

“As a micro facility, we have built relationships with purchasers, processors and the provinces,” explains Qvist. “As a nursery this allows us to have a better understanding of what our cultivation clients need to get their products to market.”

Life Cycle Botanics currently has about 25 different varieties ready for sale in the coming weeks, many of which they have also been able to grow out in their own micro cultivation facility, another advantage, says Qvist.

“We have an in-house research and development program, advanced pest management methods and our own in-house laboratory to test for pathogens,” he continues. “We run our strains from plantlet to finished flower (utilizing their micro cultivation licence), which allows us to document all the characteristics of the genetic and its optimal environmental conditions. Our grower’s notes come from the experience of growing our own genetics.”

The licensing process took them about four months from submission of their evidence package to when the nursery was licensed in October of last year. Qvist attributes the relatively short timeline to their past experience with licensing.

“It was much faster this time around, we had all our security clearances already out of the way and knew what they would be looking for in terms of our facility. So that helped a lot, it was really quite fast.”

Qvist says Life Cycle can ship clones to any cultivators anywhere in Canada but is especially looking to develop relationships with growers in BC and Alberta, ensuring any shipments are not at the mercy of Canada’s cold winters and hot summers.

“We are happy to work with anyone, obviously, but we’re in BC and we’re BC growers and, especially because we’re located on the island, we think we can work well with other local growers to be their genetic supplier so they can just focus on growing good BC bud.”

“We have an extensive genetic bank offering the classic favourites as well as never seen before cultivars. We have a continuous rotation system that will always allow us to maintain a fresh strain list, which in turn helps limit over saturating the market.”

“The micro works great for doing R&D on our genetics, too. We have the flower rooms there so all the strains we bring in we can grow them out and get our COAs and helps us get all our data for our genetics.”

“By passing along the responsibility of cloning to Life Cycle Botanics, cultivators receive consistent access to unique genetics and healthy clones while allowing them to generate the greatest return per square foot.”

Content Sponsored by: Life Cycle Botanics

Micro processor Uniik Organica brings topicals and creams to market

Written by David Brown on December 30, 2021. Posted in Processors, Profiles, Quebec.

Uniik Organica is a micro processor in Quebec with a line of body care products being launched in provinces in 2022.

First licensed in August 2021, the small company has been working on building up a supply of product and developing relationships with distributors and provinces, all while securing their own sales licence at the same time. The sales licence arrived in late November 2021.

Products will first arrive in Yukon, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba in January 2022.

Denise Penczak, the company’s owner, started out making a magnesium cream for muscle pain to manage issues related to cancer. In addition to a cannabis-infused personal lubricant and magnesium cream, Uniik Organica has a line of other non-infused body care products like salves, face creams, and deodorant.

She’s also currently working with a researcher at UBC on a cannabis-based female suppository that she hopes will be available in some provinces by spring 2022.

The process has been a long one, says Penczak, but one with a pay-off.

“It doesn’t come easy, you have to work really hard. And when you’re at the point of giving up and feeling like you’re not really getting ahead, that’s when things start to fall into place.”

“You have to be prepared to put the time in, to have a good support team and really rely on them. Lean on the people you have on your team and distribute the work and keep pushing through. It will happen.”

Although Uniik has its own sales licence, Penczak explains they will still be working with a third-party processor/distributor who already has connections with the provinces, at least for the time being.

But for provinces that have their own warehouse, Uniik can still do all the packaging and labelling at their warehouse and ship it out themselves without ever physically sending it to their processing partner.

The micro size is also a good fit for a topicals company, she says, and there are no plans to expand their footprint. Micro processors are limited to bringing in no more than 600kg of dried cannabis per year (or its equivalent). Uniik buys cannabis isolate to add to her products, which contain THC and/or CBD.

“For now we’re just producing and deciding where to go next. We want to see how these products sell and then go from there.”

Sweetgrass Cannabis

Written by David Brown on December 16, 2021. Posted in British Columbia, Cultivators, Profiles, Sales.

Kootenay-based Sweetgrass Cannabis recently became the first micro cannabis cultivator in BC to get a sales licence. They hope to have products on shelves in BC very soon, followed by Ontario and several other provinces. The path of getting to this significant milestone has been decades in the making.

Mathieu “Jimmy” Page and Tim Deighton both moved to the Kootenays about 20 years ago before meeting through a common love of cannabis. The two operated their own medical cannabis production facilities under their ACMPR licenses, before eventually retrofitting them to house two indoor micro cultivation facilities, side-by-side on adjacent 10-acre plots of land located about 20 minutes south of Nelson.

The first Sweetgrass cultivation licence (obtained in May 2020) was a long process, says Deighton, but their second micro facility only took a few months. Both were costly retrofits, and the two partners had to raise significant funding on their own, as well as acquire loans through the local Community Futures groups that have helped them create several new jobs in the region.

Sweetgrass is also one of only a handful of growers who are certified organic. They are certified by the Fraser Valley Organic Producers Association.

By January 2021, the Sweetgrass team was ready to send in the application for the sales amendment for dried cannabis flower. The process took nearly 11 months, which they say was in part due to long delays in communications from Health Canada’s licensing division.

They finally got the sales licence in November 2021 which now gives the company more control over its product. Despite those delays, Deighton says he’s optimistic about the next steps and being able to now control more of their own sales and build their brand.

“It was a learning curve and took a bit longer than expected due to some issues with coordinating lab results, but I think it will be easier the next time around. Our first micro (site) took over a year but our second was only two months so I think once you know how to do it, the next time around will be easier.”

In order to get products to market before they had their own sales licence, Sweetgrass was wholesaling to a few other cannabis producers who were able to get their products in a handful of provinces, mostly in the Maritimes.

While this approach worked and they may still work with one of the processors to handle sales in eastern Canada, they are both eager to be able to really build their own brand by selling it all themselves.

“It’s been good, the B2B, but we’re definitely ready to take on more ourselves with the sales amendment,” says Deighton.

Consumers in BC and Ontario should be able to find their 3.5-gram offerings of Mint Chocolate Chip and Crunch Berries in the coming weeks, and they hope to have pre-rolls available in some provinces in early 2022.

Page says he’s happy to see more businesses like theirs being able to contribute to the local Kootenay economy which has relied on the cannabis industry for a long time.

“Being some of the first here in the Kootenays, I think a lot of people are going to follow our path and jump on board so we can have a little hub here (to) help the local economy,” he says. “The Kootenays are already very well known in the legacy market so we just have to create that in the legal market.”

Page also operates a restaurant in Nelson, and he says he sees a lot of similarities to the level of regulations he deals with in both the restaurant world and the cannabis world.

“I see a lot of positives for where we will be in about ten years,” he explains. “It hasn’t been easy, but if you compare it to other things like running a restaurant or having a liquor licence, this is just the nature of things.”

“But a healthier market would be one with more opportunities for craft growers and more assistance from the government to help transition and to….make sure consumers can buy our product.”

Deighton shares the cautious optimism.

“I’m pretty hopeful that it will come around but it has a long way to go. We really need to support more people, especially in the Kootenays, coming onto the micro scene to support community employment.”

Metro Green Logistics providing warehousing, packaging, delivery solutions for cannabis industry

Written by Staff on December 15, 2021. Posted in Nova Scotia, Ontario, Processors, Profiles, Quebec.

With their recently-issued processing licence, Metro Green Logistics—already the largest logistics service provider to the Cannabis market—is one step closer to the full-service supply chain solution they see the market needs.

Combining decades of experience in warehousing and order fulfillment, transportation solutions, and contract packaging, Metro Supply Chain Group has taken a more unique approach to the cannabis industry in Canada.

Rather than focusing on cannabis production, the company entered the legal space several years ago doing what they do best; providing warehousing, packaging, and delivery solutions for several licensed producers and two provinces.

Now the company is one step closer to providing a full suite of services with their new processing licence from Health Canada—operating as a dedicated division solely focused on the needs of the Cannabis market Metro Green Logistics—that will allow them to store finished, sealed and tax stamped cases of cannabis from any Licensed Producer other producers at their Mississauga facility, as well as distribute that product to provinces across the country.

In 2017 Metro Supply Chain established Metro Green Logistics, which has been offering a variety of solutions ranging from warehousing and eCommerce fulfillment for the SQDC in Quebec and the NSLC in Nova Scotia, as well as primary and secondary packaging on-site for licensed producers.

With their new processing licence, they can store packaged goods in the new Mississauga facility and then distribute them to various provinces. The company says the service is being offered on a flexible, transactional, shared resources basis which is very beneficial to Licensed Producers as they can preserve precious capital for brand development, manufacturing or inventory investments , freeing up valuable space in their own facilities for production rather than storage.

“Given the shortage of Health Canada-approved warehousing and distribution space in Canada available to licensed producers, Metro Green secured its own Health Canada Standard Processing License on November 26, 2021, which allows us to store and distribute sealed, tax stamped recreational cannabis for all licensed producers destined to all provincial wholesalers and retailers,” explains Richard Cranwill, Vice President of Metro Green.

“Our Mississauga site is temperature-controlled, fully racked and WMS enabled, and we will be commencing operations as of January 4, 2022, for a broad range of licensed producers.”

For both Nova Scotia and Quebec, Metro Green manages a warehouse for the province, doing both order fulfillment for stores, as well as eCommerce fulfillment for each province’s online sales. While Nova Scotia takes ownership of all product that comes through the warehouse that is managed by Metro Green, Quebec uses a system where producers maintain ownership of the product that is then coordinated and “cross-docked” by Metro Green before making final delivery to the provincial retail stores.

These relationships, operating now for more than three years, have given the Metro Green team unique insight into some of the supply chain challenges, and has positioned them well to run their own private warehouse, says Cranwill.

Although initially many producers, especially larger ones, tried to integrate as many aspects of the supply chain as possible under their own banner, increasingly they are learning to outsource aspects of the production process.

“The next natural step for us was to help our customers with some of the pain points they have. Many of them didn’t have room to store product. One big advantage we’re going to bring to the market from this site is consolidated shipping to the wholesalers or provinces. The market itself is still searching for efficiencies, still searching for ways to compete against the black market, still searching for ways to continue to reduce their cost of operation.”

In addition to warehousing and packaging, Metro Green offers full transportation management for licensed producers through a network of in-house and contracted secure carriers. This includes not only distribution from their Ontario warehouse to various provincial distributors or retailers, but also high security transportation for things like irradiation services, and—in those provinces where it is or will be allowed—third-party delivery services for retailers.

“We can pick it up from your store with our secure delivery service, and deliver it to your customer’s home,” he says.

As the industry becomes more streamlined, especially as provincial supply chains get more refined, Cranwill sees a lot of opportunity for cannabis producers to outsource many aspects of warehousing and distribution.

“I think this is the first step in allowing licensed producers an alternative to doing their own supply chain fulfillment. A lot of the LPs have had to do everything from day one. So we got involved to offer a service to those LPs that don’t want to focus on storing and picking products to ship to stores and instead let somebody who is dedicated to that side of the business take care of that process.”

La Feuille Verte – a long road to legal cannabis

Written by Staff on December 1, 2021. Posted in Profiles, Quebec, Retailers, Sales, Services.

Dany Lefebvre knows all about patience. He’s been waiting nearly a decade to see his vision for a cannabis business unfold. And, he knows it could still be a few more years before everything falls into place.

In the meantime, he’s been keeping busy building a consumer skincare brand and taking the time to learn more about hemp production so when the time is right, he can connect them like the entourage effect.

Lefebvre’s first entry into the cannabis industry began in early 2013 when he first started looking at acquiring a licence to produce under Canada’s newly-announced MMPR (Marhuana for Medical Purposes) regulation, then only in its early stages of discussion.

By 2013 with his partner Marie-Eve, they had decided to apply for such a licence and they moved their young family to a farm in a small village near Drummondville named Saint-Lucien Quebec. They began retrofitting an old on-site garage for an indoor medical cannabis production facility.

In that same year, they submitted an application for Vert Medical. After big media coverage, because they were the first Quebec corporation to go into that new industry, they received the help of Paul Rosen and Lorne Gertner; they invested with Pharmacan (now Cronos Group).

In the long wait for licensing during the Harper Government, Lefebvre then started working as a consultant and project manager for Pharmacan and Abcann Medicinals. This helped him build his Canadian network and a lot of new things. In 2015, he also began learning about the health benefits of hemp seeds and started looking at getting a hemp production licence, in addition to his commercial licence to produce medical cannabis.

Because a hemp production licence at the time only allowed for harvesting of seeds or fibre, Lefebvre says he started looking at how to integrate hemp seeds into a diet and often experimenting with recipes in his own home, sourcing material from others already licensed for hemp production in Canada.

“I started to really believe in hemp seeds. I began in my house, designing and packaging products I was getting from farmers in Saskatchewan and Manitoba and I found they were not only delicious but seemed to have great health benefits for the skin and the brain too. The more I looked at the possibility of hemp, the more I wanted to invest time and energy with this unique, perfectly balanced ingredient.”

While he was still waiting for his license for Vert Medical, Lefebvre received his hemp production licence for Groupe Hemp CA, his new hemp company, in 2015. The idea, he says, was to understand this plant and the growth phase like a farmer. In 2016, 11 different hemp cultivars were grown, male and female. With the family house within 50 feet of the field, summer 2016 was a great experience for them seeing the cannabis plants growing and flowering every day.

During that time, the cannabis company Canopy Growth was seeking a footprint in Quebec and Lefebvre met Bruce Linton. After a couple months of negotiation, and just after Tweed acquired Bedrocan and before the Mettrum acquisition, they completed the deal on November 1, 2016. Both Vert Medical and Groupe Hemp were acquired by Canopy.

“The deal with Tweed was insane and it really helped”, he explained. “What an awesome moment for us, we’d run out of cash flow at that time and it started to be alarming. The deal was an all-stock deal and happened just before the cannabis stock bubble, so it was a game-changer financially. At that time, I didn’t know much about the stock market and pubco but we’ve started to understand more after our shares were deposited in our new brokerage account!”

“I was hired by Tweed for a one-year contract. During that year with a team in Drummondville, we registered a hemp supplement for animals and brought it to market. As well we’ve been working transitioning the medical cannabis operation with the Tweed staff from Smith Falls to Saint-Lucien.”

After his one-year contract was done with Canopy, he immediately sought a new venture. Instead of starting from scratch, he decided to acquire La Feuille Verte (LFV), a Quebec corporation established in 2004. That small company was focused on natural skincare for 15 years with a consumer brand named CHANV.

Since day one, hemp seed oil has been part of all the formulations as an ingredient. Quickly, Lefebvre built a team of passionate people, now known as the LFV closeguard. They took CHANV, rebranded it, reformulated some products and before the end of 2017, CHANV hit the shelves at a couple of pharmacies and online store www.chanv.co/en.

At the same time, they moved the LFV headquarter from Sherbrooke to Drummondville inside a small and old Irish pub where Dany and his partner Marie-Eve operated for a couple of years prior. At the same time, Lefebvre had the ambition to create a Quebec flagship green corporation and was seeking a facility where he could manufacture consumer goods. They found an old slaughterhouse of 65,000 sq.ft facility situated on 220 acres owned by the municipality of St-Cyrille de Wendover.

In June 2018, they completed the transaction and acquired the industrial building and the land. During the same time, they’ve acquired a hemp licence holder company with the goal of growing female hemp at the new LFV headquarter. A big retrofitting operation took place and the office and warehouse moved from the Old Irish Pub to the slaughterhouse just before the legalisation of cannabis in October 2018.

During the construction phase, the LFV team pursued their operation and hit more shelves with their skincare products. Dany and Marie-Eve brought a chairman to the table, M. Claude Lafleur, a well-known business person in Quebec. Lafleur has been the chairman of LFV for over 4 years now and also assists the LFV closeguard.

With a goal to innovate, LFV applied for an R&D cannabis licence and created a partnership with a Quebec University, just after legalisation. Consumer interest in “plant-based” products has been enormous, says Lefebvre. With an R&D licence, LFV was able to begin formulating active skincare products they could eventually sell over the counter.

The LFV farm subsidiary has grown female hemp for 3 years now and they harvest cannabinoids in a unique manner with a team of Guatemalans.

“Since then, our farm subsidiary has been playing with cultivars and techniques with a goal of harvesting unique active ingredients. At the same time, our product development team continues to play with formulations and prepare for the rules in Canada – a regulation to allow us to sell our CHANV ‘’Plant-Based’’ skincare products with cannabis active ingredients directly to consumers. We look forward to hitting the shelf with unique and efficient natural skincare products. Our own LFV entourage effect has something special, consumers already love our CHANV brand and with all the innovation and R&D in place now, the future looks green for us.”

Their strategy is to position themselves for a future regulation in which such products can be sold over the counter to consumers, rather than through the medical system or provincial non-medical cannabis stores. The ideal, he says, is selling cannabinoid-rich products through pharmacies and wellness stores and direct to consumers via the CHANV online store. He explains it is very different to work in an over-regulated industry like cannabis in Canada rather than a less regulated industry like the health and wellness sector.

Health Canada is currently in the process of consultation on the possibility of allowing a potential market for health products containing cannabis that would not require practitioner oversight, although if and when they rule in favour is still unknown, and could even be a few more years before a decision is made.

Lefebvre says he knows the process may still take a few more years. He’s spent the last nine years waiting for the law to catch up with his ideas, and waiting a few more is fine. In the meantime, he says, he can continue to experiment with formulations and build a stronger team, as well as stronger partnerships in the supply chain and distribution of the CHANV brand.

During that time, LFV is selling hemp seed products and the farm subsidiary is selling premium CBD and CBG flowers in bulk to Canadian licensed processors. All of this brought revenue and made La Feuille Verte a profitable corporation already.

“Our business model and the synergies of our ecosystem gives us an unfair advantage for the future. I’m happy to learn every day and make sure the team has the resources to reach their goals. As well, we are green at LFV. Climate change is a thing we care about and we make moves and take action to be a carbon-negative and sustainable company. With the LFV closeguard and a team of 35 employees, the evolution of our business model is great. The more we advance the more we learn. The relationships with partners are solid. It’s been a long road to get to this point and I’m really excited about what the future can bring.”

Canna-Curious can visit the LFV farm during summer and learn more about the potential of cannabis for their skin. All canna-tourists are welcome from July 15 to October 15.

Content Sponsored by: CHANV

Behind the scenes at BC’s Organnicraft

Written by David Brown on November 29, 2021. Posted in British Columbia, Cultivators, Profiles.

Organnicraft was an idea Josh Udala had wanted to build upon for many years now.

The owner of the BC-based micro cultivator has been making waves with consumers with their small-batch, high-quality craft cannabis product for all of 2021, with products in six provinces and one territory. But the process of getting to this has taken him and his partners many years.

Udala and his team were growing cannabis in BC under medical licences for several years prior to legalization and had initially looked at a commercial licence under the MMPR but found the process too complex and costly.

Then, in 2018 when word of a new, smaller micro cannabis category came along, he and his partner decided this was a model they could take on, and they began the process. They found a location just outside Vernon, BC, acquired their micro cultivation licence in May 2020, and then their micro-processing licence about a year later.

Organnicraft works with Saskatchewan-based processor Shelter Cannabis to sell in several provincial markets. The processing licence, says Udala, has been key in maintaining the quality and pricing for consumers that Organinicraft is known for, while also helping make the business more financially sustainable.

Cultivation and processing licences for cannabis are two separate licences in Canada, allowing growers to specialize in one or the other, or combine the two. Although he says he’s happy to own more of the supply chain and be able to do more quality control on his own products, Udala emphasizes that Shelter has been a very useful partnership for them, managing many aspects of the supply chain beyond packaging that they were not yet initially ready to handle.

“We couldn’t have done it without their team. They hit the ground running and helped us establish the brand. But controlling our own packaging has really helped because it gives us that much more control over the process before we hand it off for sale.”

Udala believes the ability to control more of the supply chain is part of why they have been successful thus far. Packaging in their own facility means being able to move product from drying and curing and into a bag much faster, which preserves freshness, before shipping the product off to a provincial buyer themselves.

Shelter also helped them to implement new packaging labels and nitrogen sealing methods to take their packaging to the next level. Although they still partner with Shelter to utilize their sales license and sales team, their processing license allows them to do most things themselves. Nothing in our packaging, drying, trimming or even growing is automated,” explains Udala.

“Everything is done by hand. There are eyes on everything all the way through, and there’s no shortcut to quality. We watch everything so tightly, from when we bring soil into the grow room to when we put the bud in the package.”

The next step for Organnicraft is two new micro cultivation licences in BC. Although they had originally considered expanding their facility, Udala says they found it more affordable to retrofit existing buildings in other locations.

“Quality sells, and as more micro producers come on-line, or even the people going into standard facilities but still doing small-batch, those are the ones who are going to be able to stay ahead of the game in the long run.
Josh udala, Organnicraft

By maintaining the small grow rooms of a micro in new locations, Udala says he thinks they will have a chance to replicate what they are beginning to perfect while also seeing the differences from each new site’s cultivation team.

“We’re going to continue to produce a high-quality, small-batch product. That won’t change as we expand. We’ll still stick to the same small-scale rooms. We have a comprehensive R&D plan so we can stay on top of pheno hunting and developing our own flavours so we always have something unique and small-batch as the years go by and the industry progresses.

“But we also want to be consistent and not constantly changing up cultivars so we always have offerings available for different types of consumers and can meet supply chain demands . We have been very fortunate to have partners in the industry and other long term relationships to collaborate with and get us to this point”

Although they are actively working on the schedule for 2022 he isn’t quite ready to reveal the new offerings, Organnicraft will continue to produce current offerings that consumers have come to love. Plus, a couple new offerings part way through the year. Udala emphasizes that being ready to take it step-by-step is an important and cautionary tale for growers looking to transition into the market.

“Everyone wants that hundred light facility from the get-go, but some people might want to pull back and start small at first before investing a million dollars into a facility. Do a few small rooms, get some cash flow, then build out. It’s a lot different than just putting in a room under an MMPR or ACMPR licence, becoming successful in the legal market is literally starting over.”

And he would know. Udala’s other job over the last several years when not growing cannabis and building Organnicraft was managing his own construction company, Concentric Controls, specializing in cannabis construction for both commercial and personal medical grows. Concentric provides construction, design, and consulting for those looking to build their own grow facility up to federal standards.

“I think it’s totally viable,” says Udala about the 200m2 canopy limit of micros. “But you need to know your genetics, facility and team and know they are going to produce the quantity and quality that is going to give you that return on investment within a reasonable time. Attention to detail is everything.

“Quality sells, and as more micro producers come on-line, or even the people going into standard facilities but still doing small-batch, those are the ones who are going to be able to stay ahead of the game in the long run.

“Consumers don’t want to go out and buy a product that is simply just not enjoyable. Cannabis needs to have a great smell, a great look, and a great flavour not just numbers on bags. Producing football fields of the stuff just doesn’t cut it. So being in that small-batch, high-quality market, I think it’s a sustainable business at that point. And, I think the price per gram should stay stable for those who are able to produce quality”

Kootenays Finest Craft Cannabis brings legacy to legal

Written by Staff on November 8, 2021. Posted in British Columbia, Cultivators, Profiles.

Kootenay towns from Nelson, Cranbrook, Casltegar, and Creston now have a Kootenay brand they can call their own.

Kootenays Finest Craft Cannabis is a micro cultivator located in Crawford Bay, BC, looking to bring the region’s famous BC Bud to consumers across Canada.

The creation of two legacy-era growers from the region, Kevin McBride and Sal Couling, the company itself is a testament to the cooperative nature of the Kootenay cannabis community. McBride says they were the first of many companies to graduate through a local program designed to help local growers transition to the legal market. They also secured a low-interest loan to help find their company.

The organization, Community Futures Central Kootenay, is a not-for-profit community economic development organization that for the past few years has had a program to assist growers looking to get a licence to grow or process cannabis.

“We were one of the first companies involved in the CBTI, the Cannabis Business Transition Initiative from the Nelson Community Futures, a provincially funded pilot project the first of its kind in Canada,” explains McBride.

In addition, Kootenay’s Finest uses a local trimming crew, Nelson’s Green Team Solutions, to help with harvests. The Green Team is a mobile trim crew offering a living wage for expert trimmers from the greater Kootenay region.

“We’re old school legacy guys from the Kootenays,” says McBride. “And the Kootenays is a central hub for cannabis, so we’re just trying to bring that to all of Canada. We’ve been well-known across Canada in the legacy market, so we’re just trying to bring that to the rec market and offer a living soil organic product that can stand out a bit.”

McBride says he’s hopeful about the future of small micro cultivators like Kootenays Finest—if not also a bit cautious—and that he and his partner want to create a new legacy, one that can be passed on to their kids.

“Our team consists of our “Next Gen” crew, our sons, daughters, nephews from our small community to help carry the torch of organic Kootenay craft cannabis.”

“No one’s getting rich, but we’re just getting started. We’re trying to just get everything dialled in, streamlining our processes more, finding the right plants that work for us and we can get a good price for. But we’ve had some good feedback on our cultivars and have some new ones later this winter that are looking really good.”

Kootenays Finest Craft Cannabis (licensed as Sen Pharms) had their first batch of dried flower, Jellysickle, on the market in October—partnering with Shelter Brands to get products on shelves in BC, Saskatchewan and Manitoba, as well as Shelter’s medical platform—and will have two more varieties in the same markets in November, White Chocolate Diamonds and Red Rilla Pie.

Police walk back claim of “suspected edibles” in Halloween candy in Ontario

Written by Staff on November 2, 2021. Posted in Cannabis News, Ontario, Products.

Huron OPP say a warning they issued Monday about “suspected edibles” found in Halloween candy was a false alarm.

After putting out a press release on Monday warning of these suspected cannabis edibles based on a report from a concerned parent, the OPP says the person who distributed the candy reached out to tell them it was actually just regular candy they had packaged themselves.

“As a result of an earlier media release seeking information, the individual that distributed the Halloween treat bag contacted Huron OPP this evening. Police met with the individual and have since learned approximately 25 similar bags were distributed. The treat bags contained only candy.”

An image shared online by Huron OPP showed a picture of what appeared to be normal gummies along with plain black packaging. That image has since been deleted.

Police say the package of gummies involved in this incident was handed out in the Town of Wroxeter sometime Halloween night.

Nova Scotia’s Jazz Cabbage brings their first product to local market

Written by David Brown on October 24, 2021. Posted in Cultivators, Nova Scotia, Processors, Profiles.

Nova Scotia’s first-ever “seed-to-sale” cannabis micro-producer is hitting shelves at retail locations in November.

Jazz Cabbage, a micro cultivator and processor located in Mount Uniacke, expects their first batch of Grandpa’s Stash to be available in 13 of the province’s 33 NSLC cannabis stores in November, packaged in 3.5 gram recyclable tins.

Sam Harrison, one of the five founders behind the company, says the company is taking environmental sustainability in the cannabis industry very seriously, designing their own high-efficiency, heat-capturing LEDs and recovering about 95% of the water they use, and then offsetting their final energy use through a third-party company.

“We know that the cannabis industry as a whole is a large energy consumer,” says Harrison. “So a big part of what we want to do is reduce our environmental impact and the resources we consume. So we’ve done what we can on the technology part. And we’ve also partnered with Bullfrog Power to offset our energy usage. We have a good amount of legacy growing experience on our team. And we’re passionate about the product itself, as well as developing new processes and technologies, like our LEDs.”

“Our custom lights that we designed and manufactured in-house capture around 70% of their heat production, allowing us to use it and move it to other areas of the facility that need heat, or directly dissipate it outside the facility,” he continues. “And our water and condensate recovery system is about 95% efficient, so at most only an additional 100 litres of water gets added to our facility in a day from our on-site water system. We divert about 1,900 litres from waste in a day.”

“We sort of think like ‘farm to fork’ chefs who are just laser-focused on every aspect of the dishes they create. They would never put a dish in front of you that they couldn’t be proud of. We feel that way about our cannabis products.”
Sam Harrison, Jazz Cabbage

Harrison says Jazz Cabbage selected their facility location with eyes on future expansion, but at the moment are pleased to be operating as a micro cultivator and processor. Being the first micro producer in Nova Scotia to get their sales licence gives them a chance to prove out their methods and model before expanding into other provinces and potentially increasing their capacity.

“Our building is pretty perfect for micro cultivation. It’s around 6,000 square feet, which gives us room for the canopy, plus processing and a little more. And we’re located on a couple of acres of land here so there is room for additional buildings if we want.”

Although one of only about a dozen micros with some form of sales licence—which allows a producer to sell directly into a provincial distributor or retailer—Harrison says the process was fairly straightforward. After getting their micro cultivation and processing licence in February, they applied for their sales amendment for dried/fresh cannabis in July and received it in September 2021.

Because they had been engaging with the Nova Scotia government and the Nova Scotia Liquor Corporation (NSLC) since their team first started Jazz Cabbage, they were able to quickly move from production to sales. Being a local Nova Scotia business helped, too, he says.

“(The sales licence) wasn’t too bad. We knew right from the start that we wanted to go for the full seed-to-sale model. So it’s something we knew we had to do and luckily the application process for that wasn’t too bad and there is some good guidance from Health Canada out there now in terms of what you need to apply and the process of getting that submitted.”

“We’ve also been in contact with the NSLC pretty much since the inception of our business with regards to what they need from us, and what their plans have been. We have a good relationship with them. They’re excited to have our product on shelves and we are too.”

“We sort of think like ‘farm to fork’ chefs who are just laser-focused on every aspect of the dishes they create. They would never put a dish in front of you that they couldn’t be proud of. We feel that way about our cannabis products.”

Kootenay cannabis collective hoping to find path to market

Written by David Brown on September 25, 2021. Posted in British Columbia, Cultivators, Processors, Profiles.

A collection of outdoor cannabis growers in BC’s Kootenay region are pooling resources to get their crop to market this fall.

The program, dubbed the Rose Buddies, involves seven licensed outdoor micro cultivators all growing the same cultivar to be purchased by and sold through another outdoor BC grower, Rosebud Cannabis Farms.

The goal, they say, is to address a common problem plaguing small-batch growers in BC and all across Canada, where smaller batch products, especially outdoor, are more difficult to sell into provincial markets.

Che Leblanc, the owner of Rosebuds, says that the intention behind all of these different farms growing the same variety of cannabis is to maintain small-batch, craft integrity, while still benefiting from a larger, combined harvest to contribute to Rosebuds product lines that will be sold into the provincial retail systems.

Micros are limited to 200m2 of production space. Although Leblanc’s Rosebud Cannabis Farms is a standard cultivator with no size limit on their potential production space, Leblanc says they have stayed relatively small themselves to ensure they can maintain quality.

We’ve decided to cap our site at a certain size because beyond that we would start to lose quality and the craft aspects of it. So rather than growing larger on our farm, we want to work with other small farms in the Kootenays to expand our harvest.”
Che Leblanc, Rosebud Cannabis

Rosebud provides the genetics and asks the growers to all utilize similar “regenerative” growing techniques, focusing away from synthetic inputs from off-site, and then buys their harvest from them at the end of the season.

“What we’re doing with this community of micro growers is giving them our genetics and supporting them with production methods,” explains Leblanc. “Then, at the end of the year, we buy the biomass back off of them at a fair price and put them into our product line.

“There are two opportunities that come out of this: one is to support our community—to give them a fair price and help our region—and the second is to add more biomass to our product line. We’ve decided to cap our site at a certain size because beyond that we would start to lose quality and the craft aspects of it. So rather than growing larger on our farm, we want to work with other small farms in the Kootenays to expand our harvest.”

Leblanc says the group takes part in weekly phone calls to check-in, and some members also take the time to visit his farm to better learn about his preferred growing techniques, then taking those practices back to their own farm.

The connections that create the collaborative platform for Rosebuds came from mutual connections with the local Community Futures cannabis program in the Kootenays that has helped many of the members, including Leblanc, to get licensed.

Jimi Holland, owner of Wholeland Enterprises in Kaslo BC, says he started looking at the micro licensing project in 2020, but it wasn’t until he worked with the local Community Futures chapter that he found a relatively even path into the licensing process.

“I discovered that Community Futures had a program to assist people to transition,” he explains. “Once I got hooked up with the Community Futures team, things started rolling really well. It was excellent.”

But once licensed, Holland says one of his major concerns was figuring out how he would sell his product after hearing this was a challenge for other outdoor growers, especially micros.

“The real weak link for me was finding a market. But through Community Futures I found out that Che was starting a bit of an informal working group, so I started talking with them, and Che was able to get me genetics and said he could find buyers. So far it’s going pretty good.”

The expectation is for crops to come down in September and October, and then be processed for extraction for use in topicals and eventually vape carts. The strain they’re all growing is Sarah’s Secret, a creation of Leblanc’s, and one he says grows well in the Kootenay region checking all the boxes.

“Getting an outdoor licence isn’t as difficult as some people think it is,” says Ross. “The difficult part is how you sell it and where it goes and what it goes into. So this is a regional strategy of how we can create a retail pathway for farmers, whether they’re indoor or outdoor.”
Shannon Ross, Kootneay Futures

Although the plan for this year is to work with another processor to get to market, long-term they plan to be processing in a facility just outside Nelson that is being developed by some of those who had been involved in the Kootenay Community Futures program.

Shannon Ross, who played a key role in helping many of the Rose Buddies members, and others, get their micro cultivation licences, is also one of the people behind this processing facility, Antidote, which they hope to have licensed in 2022—in time to process for local growers like Rose Buddies. LeBlanc and Rosebud Cannabis Farms is also a 25% owner of Antidote.

“Getting an outdoor licence isn’t as difficult as some people think it is,” says Ross. “The difficult part is how you sell it and where it goes and what it goes into. So this is a regional strategy of how we can create a retail pathway for farmers, whether they’re indoor or outdoor.”

Kalibri Wetsch and James Wood, Green Wynds Farm

“So part of the challenge that people have been facing is not having huge volumes of cannabis to go into one particular product. So what we have found is if we have several outdoor micro cultivators, if they’re all growing different types and batches and there’s no consistency, those are some challenges that a lot of the outdoor growers have had.”

The intense local focus of the Community Futures Program helped birth the Rose Buddies program, she says.

“There’s a lot of collaboration that just started to happen naturally, and Rose Buddies kind of naturally grew out of that,” she says. “Having a community of people to ask questions and help each other out and recognizing the challenges that a lot of the outdoor growers have in getting to market. Because it’s one thing to grow cannabis, it’s another to get it to market.”

“Somehow we all just started meeting every week and it just made sense to all learn from each other and support each other, and also find a way into the market. It’s pretty tough for an outdoor micro to enter the market.”
Kalibri Wetsch, Green Wynds

Kalibri Wetsch at Green Wynds in Crawford Bay, another outdoor micro taking part in the Rose Buddies program, echoes that feeling of community collaboration. She and her partner James Wood have been gardening on their plot of land for over a decade and met Leblanc last year through mutual friends and the Community Futures program.

“I had been to Che’s farm to help with harvest last year and then I learned about Rose Buddies through the Community Futures program and it all came together,” she says. “Somehow we all just started meeting every week and it just made sense to all learn from each other and support each other, and also find a way into the market. It’s pretty tough for an outdoor micro to enter the market.”

Pineapple Buds head to market

Written by David Brown on September 22, 2021. Posted in British Columbia, Cultivators, Profiles.

Pineapple Buds is a micro cultivator located on Osoyoos Indian Band land near Oliver, BC, with a focus on what the owner Kyra Horvath says is cannabis that tastes like pineapple.

Kyra with the help of her partner Laine Keyes received a micro cultivation license this past April and expect their first crops, Pineapple Party and Hawaiian Pineapple, to hit shelves in the coming weeks in BC, Saskatchewan and Manitoba, and then Ontario in January, through Joint Venture Craft Cannabis.

The 10,000ft2 building, on old wine storage facility she converted into two small grow rooms utilizing deep water culture, a mother room, drying and storage for their cannabis, affords room for future expansion to either a processing licence or perhaps a standard cultivation licence, but for the time being the 200m2 of cultivation space is more than enough, says Horvath, the company’s founder.

“I actually really do like the 200 square meters,” says Keyes. “It is ideal for the two of us to be operating. I think once you begin to have more employees in the facility, I can see why you would want to upgrade and do a different style licence, but for us, right now, it’s absolutely perfect. On some days the 200 square meters seems almost too big for the two of us.”

The Pineapple Buds facility on Osoyoos Indian Band land

Horvath says she and her partner, Keyes, have experience in both the legacy and legal market in Canada and decided to move forward with their own micro cultivation licence late last year. They applied in December 2020, receiving their micro cultivation licence in April. Five months later their first two crops are ready for the consumer market.

Horvath attributes the relative speed with which they received their licence to being able to utilize Health Canada’s Indigenous Navigator service, which provided them with more hands-on assistance through the licensing process.

“I’m really happy that Health Canada did introduce that type of program because it allowed us to use those services where, when you’re dealing with a reviewer that may have specific questions, it’s an outlet you can look to for some answers you might not know.”

Nonetheless, the process wasn’t cheap, she explained, spending around $1 million to secure, renovate, and equip their building.

“It’s not easy, it’s not cheap,” she says. “And being a small company it doesn’t just come your way, you really have to work for it. Any of the labour, I was happy to help with the process if that got us closer to getting to a licence. I was insulating, I was putting up the walls myself. And we do almost all the work ourselves, although we do bring in people to help with things like pruning, harvesting, and trimming.”

The intent initially is to focus on cultivation, while partnering with a processor to handle delivering their products to market. But long term, Horvath says she has set aside space within the 10,000ft2 facility to either develop their own processing area, a farmgate retail space, or perhaps expand to a standard cultivation licence.

“We will be partnering with someone else for our first initial harvests because we want to really focus on cultivation. Come the time when there are available finances, we do have space in our facility that has not been touched yet, so it makes for a great opportunity if we want to look at processing or maybe even a standard licence. And we’re always keeping farmgate in the back of our mind because our location is ideal for tours, or whatever farmgate may look like for cannabis.”

“We want to keep things as simple as possible, so we’ll be starting with dried flower and pre-rolls,” she explains. “When it comes to getting into other products, I never rule anything out but it needs to be one step at a time and be the right relationship and the right product.

With an array of “pineapple” genetics they have developed over the years and brought in with their licence, Pineapple Buds hope to be known for pineapple buds.

“One thing that we really want to work on is once consumers go to a dispensary to buy products there’s such a limited interaction with the product,” she says. “They can’t see it, they can’t smell it, it’s just in a jar. So for us, we really want to nail that we’ll be providing pineapple flavours. If people want a good quality product that’s pineapple flavoured, that’s us.”

Cannabis License Experts

Written by Staff on September 15, 2021. Posted in Ontario, Profiles, Services.

Cannabis License Experts is a compliance solutions provider for the cannabis industry, providing pre and post-licensing support for both the production side and retail side of the industry.

Leveraging over 15 years of collective experience and industry knowledge from a team that includes former QAPs and other employees from Canada’s largest licensed cannabis producers, Health Canada inspectors, and other consulting companies, the firm offers trust, transparency and respect, says Andrew Parshad, the company’s President and Founder.

“What makes Cannabis License Experts unique is the diverse compliance and affiliate business solutions that we offer for cannabis and psychedelics companies, and how we weave business development opportunities into our service offering,” explains Parshad. “Leveraging our history in Health Canada and FDA compliance for the last 20 years in the consumer packaged goods, alcohol and beverage and pharmaceutical industry, we’re able to guide cannabis companies to avoid pitfalls and mistakes and to integrate regulations and compliance in their decision making.”

The explosion in interest in the cannabis space led Parshad to grow Cannabis Licence Experts out of Quality Smart Solutions. In addition to providing assistance in the cannabis industry, Cannabis Licence Experts also assist those navigating the licensing process in the psychedelic space, such as psilocybe mushrooms.

Initially offering consulting in the medical cannabis licensing space pre-legalization under their sister consulting firm, Quality Smart Solutions since 2007, Cannabis License Experts was created as its own cannabis compliance solutions in 2018.

“(In 2018), we felt it was the right time to create a separate company dedicated to cannabis and psychedelics compliance just as legalization was about to start,” Parshad says. “Having been active in regulatory compliance and quality assurance since 2001, and as a consultant serving over 1,100 companies since 2015, in addition to being involved in policy and regulatory framework development with Health Canada, all coupled with my expertise in various Health Canada cannabis regulations, it was a natural extension to expand those offerings.”

With over 250 cannabis license applications under the ACMPR and the Cannabis Act and Regulations, Parshad says he’s seen a lot of different applicants and the challenges that many of them face. One of the biggest challenges is in understanding the cost and timeline of the licensing process, at the federal, provincial, and municipal levels.

“The most common mistake applicants make is understanding the cost and timelines, and lack of business planning,” he says. “For example, many applicants don’t have an in-depth discussion with their municipality to understand how issues like zoning will impact their application and their business. This is particularly the case for federal licenses like cultivation where water and utility usage is significantly higher than with other businesses. In some cases, zoning restrictions are not investigated which could cause issues downstream.”

Ensuring a proper business plan is in place before beginning the application process is incredibly important, he says.

“Doing due diligence and planning upstream before proceeding with licensing is key. After we start on the application, details like HVAC, equipment, even construction plans have sometimes not been thought through, and all of this should be captured in a business plan that covers both financial and operational aspects of a plan. We strongly encourage our clients to have a business plan before embarking on their journey to start a cannabis business.”

Despite these kinds of hurdles, Parshad says he sees a lot of opportunity in the cannabis space for those who do come to the table with a solid business plan and understanding of the industry.

“Overall the industry is heading in a positive direction,” adds Parshad. “The licensing process has become more efficient and streamlined since the inception of legalization. Health Canada has been providing guidance documents, templates, submission methods and revising requirements which ultimately benefits both Health Canada in throughput to licensing and the applicant. When it comes to reviewing a licence application, Health Canada assessment officers are very helpful and flexible. But the intricacies of a license application are still complex and the benefit of a consultant still goes a long way to getting licensed faster.”

With over 250 cannabis license applications under the ACMPR and the Cannabis Act and Regulations, Parshad says he’s seen a lot of different applicants and the challenges that many of them face. One of the biggest challenges is in understanding the cost and timeline of the licensing process, at the federal, provincial, and municipal levels.

“The most common mistake applicants make is understanding the cost and timelines, and lack of business planning,” he says. “For example, many applicants don’t have an in-depth discussion with their municipality to understand how issues like zoning will impact their application and their business. This is particularly the case for federal licenses like cultivation where water and utility usage is significantly higher than with other businesses. In some cases, zoning restrictions are not investigated which could cause issues downstream.”

Ensuring a proper business plan is in place before beginning the application process is incredibly important, he says.

“Doing due diligence and planning upstream before proceeding with licensing is key. After we start on the application, details like HVAC, equipment, even construction plans have sometimes not been thought through, and all of this should be captured in a business plan that covers both financial and operational aspects of a plan. We strongly encourage our clients to have a business plan before embarking on their journey to start a cannabis business.”

Despite these kinds of hurdles, Parshad says he sees a lot of opportunity in the cannabis space for those who do come to the table with a solid business plan and understanding of the industry.

“Overall the industry is heading in a positive direction,” adds Parshad. “The licensing process has become more efficient and streamlined since the inception of legalization. Health Canada has been providing guidance documents, templates, submission methods and revising requirements which ultimately benefits both Health Canada in throughput to licensing and the applicant. When it comes to reviewing a licence application, Health Canada assessment officers are very helpful and flexible. But the intricacies of a license application are still complex and the benefit of a consultant still goes a long way to getting licensed faster.”

Content sponsored by: Cannabis License Experts

Smoker Farms brings legacy experience to the micro market

Written by David Brown on September 8, 2021. Posted in British Columbia, Cultivators, Profiles.

Smoker Farms is an indoor micro cultivator, licensed in June 2020, located just outside Kelowna, BC.

Sheri and Jeff Aubin, the couple behind the company, began looking at the micro cultivation licence soon after legalization, with head grower Jeff looking to transition out of the black market while still continuing his passion for growing cannabis.

With over a half dozen harvests under their belt now, and several crops sold in the provincial markets, including their home of BC, the couple says they are beginning to get a handle on things.

Growing in rock wool on flood tables within their 200m2 of cultivation space, Jeff has focussed on two strains early on, The Ultimate, and a Master Kush Ultra he says he’s been growing for 15 years. But despite being confident in his growing skills, honed over 25 years in the black market, he says getting product into retail stores and then into consumer hands in such a highly saturated market is not easy.

“As craft growers, it’s hard for people to know who we are when they have, you know, so many different choices of 20% weed in the dispensary,” he explains. “So how can they know who we are, and what we’re doing? It’s slow going, but we’re hopeful.

“We need to be heard, we need to be found. And the provinces have only so many SKUs they can buy. So that’s a big challenge”

It’s a new, challenging market and unfortunately, you have all these big multi-million dollar companies out there selling product into the market that isn’t very good and it turns people off. So that’s a challenge for us to convince people to give us a try if they’ve been burned like that.”
Jeff Aubin, Smoker Farms

It’s been a steep learning curve, he says, with advantages and disadvantages. While he was ready to get out of the black market, learning how to run such a highly regulated business has been a big change.

“I had been a black market grower for 25 years now, and I knew I wanted to get out of the game and I didn’t want to deal with all the bullshit anymore, looking over my shoulder waiting on people to knock on your door, that kind of thing,” says Jeff.

“It’s not easy being legal, either. It’s great to be open about what we do and know that we aren’t going to be arrested, but it’s not easy. It’s just work work work. It’s hard to break into the retail space. So hopefully the money comes. I just love growing weed, and I hope the rest of it works out.”

“I wear a lot of hats,” he continues. “I’m facilities management, an electrician, a plumber, head grower, you name it. And if there’s something I don’t know, there’s a lot of people here in the community who can help me. But it’s basically a husband and wife team for the most part, other than help with harvesting or trimming.”

With only their micro cultivation licence, Smoker Farms has to sell their product in bulk to another processor who packages it and deals with selling it to the provinces who then sell it to retailers. Although this means they make a little less on their cannabis, it also means they have fewer expenses associated with it, such as packaging, excise taxes, provincial recall insurance, and the time dealing with provinces and retailers.

“We’re not interested in a processing licence whatsoever,” he says. “For us, we’re pretty good at what we’re doing here, we don’t want to complicate things any more than we need to. So we’re okay with selling to someone else to package and sell it.”

Although he’s hopeful about the legal market and ready to stick it out for the long haul, he cautions anyone else looking to make the move into the market to be prepared to spend a lot and wait a long time to make it back. He estimates he spent around $700,000 retrofitting his facility to expand it and bring it into compliance, transitioning the warehouse he was growing under a medical licence into his indoor micro facility.

“For us, we’re pretty good at what we’re doing here, we don’t want to complicate things any more than we need to. So we’re okay with selling to someone else to package and sell it.”
Jeff Aubin, Smoker Farms

“Whatever you think your budget is going to be, probably triple it. There are so many hidden costs. And not only that, but once you get your licence, you might think you can grow some weed and get some revenue in a few months, but it doesn’t work like that.

“It takes a long time to get into stores and then get paid. It’s complicated. There’s no quick money or instant gratification here, it’s all very long term. It’s a new, challenging market and unfortunately, you have all these big multi-million dollar companies out there selling product into the market that isn’t very good and it turns people off. So that’s a challenge for us to convince people to give us a try if they’ve been burned like that.”

New Brunswick’s Wildwood Flowr focussing on regenerative cannabis production

Written by David Brown on August 16, 2021. Posted in Cultivators, New Brunswick, Profiles.

Wildwood Flowr Inc. is an outdoor micro cultivation in Westcock, New Brunswick, with a focus on regenerative, organic agriculture.

Tucked away on the back end of a three-acre property, and surrounded by shipping containers—camouflage to blend in with the landscape—head grower Randy Flemming is tinkering away with different varieties, trying to find the right ones that are ideal for his small piece of New Brunswick.

The outdoor grow is in a courtyard formed by the shipping containers, creating what Flemming says is a secure boundary, as well as helpful production space for drying, trimming, office space, and in the future small scale processing.

The shipping containers, in addition to creating indoor working space, create a 6,400 sq ft courtyard that allows for their allotted 200 m of cultivation space (~2,153 sq ft), plus enough room to move around.

“It allows us a lot of space to plant out and gives us room to work” he explains. In the meanwhile we have these nine and a half foot shipping containers around it so you’ve got this incredible security and fantastic wind block, so we went with that. And then we covered the outside to blend in better with the surroundings, which it does really well.”

He says at first some neighbours were skeptical, but now that they see what they’ve done, the response has been supportive.

“They weren’t sure in the beginning what it would look like and now they keep giving us compliments, so it’s going well.”

Licensed this past April, Flemming and his daughter Jenna Miller had 80 plants in the ground by the end of June, a handful of different phenotypes Flemming wants to continue to experiment with, while also producing what he expects will be several pounds of cannabis per plant, to be processed into cannabis oil for use in other products.

While his partner Av Singh focuses more on the processing—submitting their own processing licence this year and working with other processors in the meantime—Flemming is focused on selecting the right varieties.

“It’s really important to understand what your cost of production is going to be, so that you’ll have realistic expectations on what your return will be.”
Av Singh, Flemming & Singh Cannabis Inc and QAP advisor at Wildwood Flowr

He says he’s spent many years growing under a medical licence or as a hobby, although often more for research purposes than for large yields.

“I wasn’t growing as much cannabis as I could, I was growing to figure out what causes each deficiency, how do I feed these deficiencies or problems, how do I find the most stable genetics,” says Flemming.

This allows him to better learn exactly how to deal with any problems that might arise, but doesn’t prevent him from feeling confident that he can get several pounds per plant, based on past yields.

Ideally, he also wants to get a nursery licence, so he can have more space available to experiment with different varieties, trying to find some more stable and more appropriate for outdoor growing in New Brunswick.

“I believe that the more people who are willing to put the effort into doing things like that, the more stable a variety that gets put into the marketplace. In the future, I’d like to own a nursery, to back crop these seeds to give something to farmers so that they can drop ten thousand of these seeds and it is extremely close in terms of the COAs of the plant beside it.”

“If no one is truly back cropping their genetics, eight maybe ten times, there’s something missing,” continues Flemming. “So I want to champion that and be a steward of that, and not just hybridize everything that comes along that we can get in our hands for a profit.”

By focusing on a low-cost, organic production method, growing directly in the soil and using things like fermented teas to fertilize the plants, Singh says they can keep their overall costs of production very low.

Singh, who also helped Flemming with the federal licensing process, says keeping this low cost of production is incredibly important, especially for small-scale outdoor growers, with current outdoor prices often well under a dollar a gram.

“It’s really important to understand what your cost of production is going to be,“ says Singh, “so that you’ll have realistic expectations on what your return will be. If you can produce your product for twenty cents a gram that’s great, make sure you’re formulating relationships with processing companies, and then hopefully, as outdoor, you’ll get forty or fifty cents a gram.”

“Our goal is extraction, whether we produce the extract ourselves, or work with someone else until then.”
Randy Flemming, Head grower at Wildwood Flowr Inc

Flemming says one option that many micro cultivators put their hopes on to get a better price produce for their product, cannabis farmgate, isn’t for him. Although he’s open to operating a small store in another location if New Brunswick allowed it.

“In our particular circumstance, I wouldn’t want it. But if I could have a secondary location in town or something like that I would probably do that. The trouble with putting it here is it puts a lot of pressure on the neighbours for traffic that didn’t exist before.”

He says that those who are pinning their hopes on it, to be cautious in terms of expectations, should it ever become a reality. Rather than a small farm stand, he says he expects there will be a need for the same types of rules already in place for cannabis stores.

“I think a lot of people may not be prepared for that, so I hope they are looking into it,” he says.

Instead, he says he wants to just produce low-cost outdoor flower for extraction.

“Our goal is extraction, whether we produce the extract ourselves, or work with someone else until then.”

KRFT

Written by Staff on August 2, 2021. Posted in Cultivators, Newfoundland and Labrador, Processors, Profiles.

KRFT is a micro cultivator and processor in Newfoundland and Labrador, started by Newfoundlander Nicholas Langor.

Licensed in August 2020, Langor says he is starting as a micro but has plans of scaling up in the future, potentially to become a standard cultivator and processor once they can prove out their model at this small scale.

After already completing several harvests from their two flowering rooms and having products on shelves in Newfoundland as well as through Shelter Market’s online medical platform, he says he’s excited to begin to see how consumers respond to their products.

Currently growing strains like Unicorn Sherbert, Mac 1, Apple Fritter, Jelly Breath, Peanut Butter Breath, Cereal Milk, Runtz, Mimosa, and Ice Cream Cake, the partnerships to get to market have been key, he explains. Although some micros say they want to be able to control all aspects of production, KRFT is happy to find partners to help them reach consumers.

“Relationships and partnerships in this industry are crucial for creating opportunities for micros and although we do plan to obtain our own processing licence, it’s not our goal to be processing and packaging our own flower and distributing our own flower,” says Langor. “There are many organizations who currently have great control over supply chain distribution and I think that if we leverage those who are doing it well, then we all benefit. So it’s a mutually beneficial arrangement for us to align ourselves with like-minded organizations who recognize quality products that micro cultivation facilities are producing.”

“It all comes down to quality product. If you’re producing a quality product there’s definitely a solid market for micros to participate in with buyers who are paying good money, as well.”

Finding partners who understand how to navigate the provincial markets is key, he says, and it allows him and his team to focus on growing rather than marketing and networking with provincial buyers.

“Depending on who you align yourself with, these are organizations that have invested a lot of time, money and resources solidifying relationships with the different provinces,” continues Langor. “There’s a value to those relationships and it’s virtually impossible for micros to be able to participate in the various different supply chains. It’s just not feasible when you look at a single micros output to reasonably expect to be able to participate in multiple supply chains.”

These relationships are a two-way street, he says, because many of the companies who have developed these relationships don’t necessarily have the quality or unique cultivators that many micros have.

“As a micro we’ve been fortunate to align ourselves with some great producers who can help us get into different markets,” he explains. “The industry right now is competitive, the provinces are more aware, and they recognize that the SKUs put on their shelves need to be desirable to the consumer. I don’t think it would be in our best interest to try to create those relationships ourselves. It’s better to align ourselves with partners who will benefit from the production of craft cannabis because there is a pivotal shift in the industry right now. A lot of producers are recognizing that they simply aren’t able to produce quality products and there’s a growing supply of quality produced craft cannabis from micro cultivators.”

One of these producers KRFT is working with is Indiva, an Ontario-based LP that has a distribution channel open with CannabisNL.

“This is a value that a lot of larger organizations are looking for in their business models, and this is the value that micros bring to the market. We like to see our products carried across the nation, but it would be virtually impossible for us to manage that supply chain ourselves. So it’s integral to the success of our business to be aligned with companies like Indiva. Shelter is another company that has built up their reputation on providing quality service and we’re honoured to be doing business with those guys, as well.”

KRFT’s plan is to slowly scale up in the coming years, potentially to having multiple micros on their three-acre property in Georges Brook, about two hours outside Saint John’s.

“The parcel of land we have has the ability to quickly scale our business if the circumstances permit,” he says. “With a micro, all we’ll have to do is segregate those buildings with a unique address. But as we move further into this industry and refine our processes, I believe, for us, it would make sense to maintain the same style of growing, the same attention to detail, but under a larger roof as a standard cultivator and processor. As opposed to having three additional micros it would make sense to step up to a standard licence with the same sort of scale in mind.”

The micro landscape will be challenging, says Langor, but he sees a bright future for those companies who can both manage to consistently put out a quality product, while also understanding the complexities of a regulated industry like cannabis.

“There’re certainly challenges. Unless you’re well-capitalized and have experience in the industry and you have the capabilities, it’s very difficult to get to market. I can definitely see a lot of micros facing challenges, but for us this was the right move to make with a new industry and a lot of uncertainties and a lot of unknowns. This was a way for us to enter the market, create a brand, create awareness, and then if we’re fortunate enough to be successful, then we will look at scaling our business appropriately.”

“There’s no doubt about it that the micro has some limitations,” he continues. “There are a lot of barriers, especially for those coming from the legacy market where there are a lot of things that are cut out of the equation where a lot of regulations and quality standards are not applicable.

“Growing good weed is just one component. Having a solid business acumen and understanding the regulatory framework, these are equally important to the success of a micro. I think a lot of micros underestimate the importance of regulation and quality assurance. They can find themselves growing great products but if you’re unable to run a business successfully or unable to create relationships and solve problems to get your product to market, then there’s a lot of challenges.

“I think balancing those things is where we can really shine, and I think our track record is already speaking for itself.”

Alicanto Gardens

Written by David Brown on July 27, 2021. Posted in Cultivators, Manitoba, Profiles.

Alicanto Gardens is a new, family-run micro cultivator in Manitoba that hopes to have its first products on the shelves in Manitoba later this summer.

Run by Waldemar Heidebrecht, his wife Larissa, daughter Jennifer and son Justin, the company received their micro cultivation licence last December through a partnership with Manitoba producer and retailer Delta9 BioTech.

They started down the path of getting a cannabis licence more than two years ago, explains Jennifer, when the family was looking at building a small, hydroponic “microgreens” facility to supply local markets. After running into some challenges with that model, she says it didn’t take long for them to realize they could do something similar except with cannabis instead of salad greens.

“We’re all new to cannabis, but we wanted to find something that we could run as a family, and when we learned about the micro cannabis licence that seemed to make the most sense,” she says. “We were first thinking about growing microgreens and salad greens hydroponically, as well as other food products, but because of some challenges in working with buyers and the middlemen, we eventually landed on doing cannabis instead.”

Waldemar, who wears most of the official “hats” at the company—serving as the RPIC, Head of Security, and Master Grower—says they soon learned about fellow Manitoba cannabis company Delta9—who has a program to help micro cultivators get licensed and into the market— they quickly jumped on board.

Using a farm property about an hour south of Winnipeg that the family already owned, they began retrofitting an existing machine shop and filled it with 12 pre-built SeaCan “grow pods” supplied by Delta9. They were ready to apply by August of 2020 and received their licence in December.

Waldermar attributes the relatively short timeline from licence submission to issuance to their partnership with Delta9.

“It was pretty smooth because Delta9 gave us all the info we needed on how to do it,” Waldermar explains. “We had everything completed so we didn’t have to change anything and Health Canada seemed pretty happy with that. They were familiar with Delta9’s grow pods, SOPs, and paperwork and I think that really helped.”

Now that they are licensed, the partnership also means they have a buyer for their product already lined up. Once it’s ready, their product will be sold through Delta9’s several retail locations in the province. This will allow them to focus on growing, leaving packaging, marketing, and sales to their partner.

“Right now we’re happy to stay with Delta9, for as long as it works out,” he continues. We’re not interested in changing around. If something changes we might try to find another partner, but either way I think we will stay with cultivation and work with a partner of some kind. We’re not interested in getting our processing licence at this time. This way we can perfect our growing techniques and have help getting it to the market.”

Currently, Alicanto Gardens is focussing on two strains for market, Blue Iguana and Layer Cake, which he says he’s chosen because they are known as higher-THC cultivars.

“We have other things we’d like to grow, but that’s what the market wants right now so that’s what we’re focussing on”, he says. “We have a fair amount of seeds we brought in so if we need to change it up we can do that, too.”

“We’re excited to get our first flower out there and see what people say. We’re a small, local, family-run Manitoba business. There’s a lot to learn in this new industry and we’re going to keep growing with it.”

CannDelta Regulatory Consulting

Written by Staff on June 3, 2021. Posted in Ontario, Profiles, Services.

CannDelta is a regulatory and scientific consulting firm specializing in cannabis licensing in Canada. Founded by Dr. Sherry Boodram and Dr. Lucas McCann in 2018, CannDelta has helped numerous producers, retailers, and others seeking to navigate the highly regulated cannabis industry.

The company got its start from the two founders’ background of working with Health Canada, explains McCann. He had been working as a Chemist at the Health Products branch within Health Canada, and Boodram had worked first as a Drug Forensic Chemist with the federal regulator, analyzing controlled substances seized by law enforcement, and then as a Senior Compliance and Enforcement Officer for the Medical Cannabis program run by Health Canada.

When the two left their respective jobs at Health Canada, they quickly began hearing from people operating in or planning to operate in the cannabis industry who were looking for guidance.

A consultant (or consulting firm) should be able to do more than just state the rules or regulations, they should also be able to guide you through launching a successful business.

“We both often found ourselves having to interpret the regulations to lay-persons, acting as the interpreter for Health Canada and the proponent, effectively becoming a liaison,” explains McCann. “This is a special skill that CannDelta brings to the table compared to other consulting companies in the space. It was easy for us to see the disconnect between what Health Canada, an organization that thinks in black and white, expects versus how business-minded people actually think.”

This happened mostly through word of mouth, continues McCann. Many who were interested in gaining a better understanding of Health Canada’s way of operating, the expectations of regulators, and how to best work within regulatory frameworks reached out to the duo directly.

What started as just the two of them offering their services as freelancers quickly blossomed into a full-fledged consulting firm, now with 20 employees across Canada.

“The main reason that CannDelta has seen such growth was because of people’s need for someone who understands the regulations from the regulators’ perspective as well as the science of cannabis, operating in a quality system, and writing and understanding technical documents, such as standard operating procedures,” says Boodram. “Lucas and I bring our PhD’s in chemistry, with an academic style of writing and thinking, along with our Health Canada experience.”

Many of CannDelta’s current team members have worked for licensed cannabis producers in their quality, operations, and regulatory departments. Others worked in compliance departments within the government or in other regulated industries, such as pharma.

This array of experience helps ensure that CannDelta’s clients get some of the best assistance possible, says McCann.

“There are a few different aspects that can make a great consultant,” he says. “These typically boil down to education/certifications, industry experience, and their track record of success.

“There is no particular degree required to call yourself a ‘certified consultant’; in fact, there is no such thing as certified in the consulting world. When evaluating if a consultant is right for you, it’s important that they bring a balance of understanding of the regulations in which they work within and an open-mindedness to your business model. A consultant (or consulting firm) should be able to do more than just state the rules or regulations, they should also be able to guide you through launching a successful business. A consultant should be personable and honest; there’s a lot of trust required and with some of the very large leaps of faith that must be made in the industry, trust is paramount. A great consultant is one that is able to stay on top of the changing industry so that they can provide their clients with the best service possible in a shifting regulatory landscape.”

Although the regulatory landscape can be difficult, Boodram says she does see improvements, even if slow.

“Since legalization, and more recently with COVID-19, Health Canada has made huge leaps to reduce contact and potential exposure by solving important logistical challenges pertaining to licensing, such as conducting virtual inspections, allowing digital media for the submission of large files, and to even allow temporary security clearance to ensure operations continue to run smoothly. From a business perspective, the cannabis industry is not showing any signs of slowing down despite the increased restrictions to how we live and work, and COVID has dragged Health Canada (kicking and screaming) into the digital age.”

Content sponsored by: CannDelta

Alberta’s UpRyze Cannabis

Written by Staff on June 1, 2021. Posted in Alberta, Cultivators, Processors, Profiles.

UpRyze Cannabis is a micro cultivator and micro processor located just outside Edmonton, Alberta, licensed in October 2020.

Housed inside a 10,000sq ft facility in Acheson, UpRyze has spent the last several months growing out crops, dialing in their flowering rooms, and building partnerships to get their products to market.

These partnerships are important, but are only for the short term, explains Ron Gauthier, the company’s founder and CEO. He and his team are also in the process of getting their sales licence to allow them to sell dried flower and other products more directly, something they hope to have in hand later this year.

Gauthier says he and his partners began looking at the micro licence category in mid-2019 and found a property just down the street from another licenced cannabis producer. They began building in early February of 2020, and applied for their licence in September 2020.

Because the building they selected is a large warehouse space, Gauthier says their plans are to potentially expand over time with additional micro locations in the same building or close to their current location. The process of scaling out will take some time, he explained.

“We first looked at becoming a standard LP, but that project facility size, financial obligation, and duration for construction would be too strenuous. The micro cultivation facility size was a comfortable zone for us to construct, and we knew we could build it out in a timely fashion. Also, another upside to micros is since we can expand with each new facility, growing with the demand, it brings an opportunity to stay strain current in the market, over time by being able to bring in more genetics with each new facility, which is very appealing.”

“The beauty about micros compared to (larger) LPs is the LPs basically have to sell into their demand,” he continues. “We are reverse-engineering that approach, where we’re going to build micros when our demand calls for it. So we’ll see how this goes over the next six months based on the feedback we get and opportunities available before we make those expansion decisions.”

With one facility licenced, Gauthier says he and his team have learned a lot and hopes anyone else looking into becoming a cannabis producer is aware of all the challenges that come with it. Although UpRyze has had to partner with another Licensed producer to get their products in the market, the next hurdle to overcome is to be able to have direct supply chain access, meaning obtaining the sales licence for the sale of dried cannabis, then expanding further licenses to include extracts and topicals.

“When you get your licence, and feel you’re at the finish line, you’re not. You’re maybe halfway. You have so much more in front of you at that stage, and then you’re dealing with a lot of regulatory reporting as a licence holder.”
Ron Gauthier, Upryze cannabis

“When you get your licence, and feel you’re at the finish line, you’re not. You’re maybe halfway. You have so much more in front of you at that stage, and then you’re dealing with a lot of regulatory reporting as a licence holder. So there are definitely some challenges, and a lot of hidden surprises along the way. But it’s very rewarding once you overcome each one, to that eventual finish line.”

In addition to their micro cultivation and processing licences, Upryze also has its own medical sales licence and has plans to sell directly to those authorized to use the medical program.

One advantage Gauthier says UpRyze had was able to access Health Canada’s Cannabis Navigator program. The program is available to any applicant who identifies as Indigenous and Gauthier says being able to access the Navigator gave them a more direct line of communication, especially when it came to dealing with Requests for More Information (RMIs), specifically the duration of construction, and licensing.

“Health Canada is bombarded with thousands of requests, so getting a response back on answering RMIs (Request for More Information) can take a lot longer than expected.”

UpRyze currently has a Punch Breath for sale in Alberta, and expects to have several others valuable later this year, including Apple Fritter, Crumbled Lime, Ice Cream Cake, Runtz, Sunset Sherbet, etc.

Although he sees a lot of opportunity in the micro category, Gauthier says anyone looking to enter into the space will need to temper their expectations. He figures it will take two to three years from the start date of construction before they are seeing a profit, while still incurring plenty of expenses.

“Anybody who wants to get into this, if you give yourself a budget, you better double it or even triple it before you actually see any real revenue.”

“And getting licensed isn’t the end, it’s the beginning. Initially we thought you build the facility, get your licence, and you’re good to go. It’s a very long game, and you better have the money if you’re going to do this. If you don’t, you’re not going to make it.”

“Our main focus now is getting our sales licence so we can operate more directly with the provincial entities.”

Black Kettle Farms in Langley, BC

Written by David Brown on May 15, 2021. Posted in British Columbia, Cultivators, Profiles.

Larry Cantor runs Black Kettle Farms, an indoor micro cultivator in Langley, BC, with his father, his master grower Mike Holub, and his best friend since grade school, Tim Carter.

Licensed in December 2020, Black Kettle has already sold out of their first batch of flower, Rainbow Driver, in Alberta. They also have their cannabis on shelves in British Columbia, and will be in Manitoba and Ontario soon through BC processor Joint Ventures Craft Cannabis.

Their next strain will be a Triangle Kush, just one of hundreds of genetics their master grower brought in with him that they hope to release to the market in the coming years.

Path to Market

The path to get to market has been a long one, Cantor emphasizes, taking considerable startup investment of more than one million dollars, plus months of building their facility, waiting on local and federal governments to issue licensing, growing out their first crops, and then several more months of work before getting their product ready to be accepted into provincial markets.

And although they are now selling products into the market and hope to be drawing a salary for him and his crew, he says he expects it will be several years before the business has fully recouped their startup costs.

“Consumers may ask why [an eighth] is $45 plus tax, but they might not understand the grower is getting a fraction of that,” says Cantor.

He says he hopes part of that streamlining will be BC’s expected farmgate and direct sales program for 2022. Farmgate will allow cannabis companies with the appropriate licensing to operate a retail store on-site, while direct sales will potentially allow some producers to ship small batches of products directly to retailers, rather than going through the BC LDB’s distribution warehouse.

In addition to the normal buildout time for his federal licence, plus about five months from submitting their licence to receiving it, Cantor says he had to also wait six to seven months for a licence from his local municipality before he could even build. Such delays are relatively common in BC.

Cannabis Community Support

Cantor, a builder by trade who says he has “dabbled” in cannabis growing over the years, credits getting through these long waits and navigating the licensing process to the help they received from others in the BC cannabis community.

Brian Schindel, a local consultant, helped them understand Health Canada’s process, while he says local micro cultivator Logan Dunn and Dunn Cannabis helped answer numerous questions about their facility, as well as an understanding of navigating the provincial market.

“I’d like to acknowledge how helpful Logan Dunn has been,” says Cantor, who says he called Dunn late last year after reading about him online. “He came out to our facility, pointed out what we could fix and the challenges to come. He’s just been a really solid guy who didn’t even know me but will answer my calls and help me with anything.”

Getting this kind of assistance, he says, has been crucial.

“There’s a lot you need to know. I don’t care if you’ve been growing your whole life, if you’re a lawyer, any of it, this is all uncharted. You essentially need to tell [Health Canada] how you do things, but you need to do it in a framework that they deem as acceptable. With your SOPs and GPPs, everything has to be acceptable with Health Canada. So it’s nice to have somebody who knows what they’re looking for.”

“I think if micros are going to make it, we really all need to work together as much as we can.”
Larry Cantor, Black Ketle Farms

Self-funding their own facility since banks in Canada are still reluctant, Cantor says he and his father renovated an existing barn on farmland near central Langley, with room to expand into a processing centre and potentially a larger growing facility.

He’s in no rush to expand though and says he wants to ensure Black Kettle Farms can maintain a focus on a high-quality craft cannabis product. Currently they have four 450ft2 flowering rooms, plus a veg room and small nursery, keeping all their genetics in-house.

“I do intend to be a much larger farm, but I want to stay with the small room, craft growing at all times,” Cantor says, “as opposed to a warehouse and a large, automated system. But I do want to expand on what we’re doing now.”

One more immediate part of that expansion, he says, will also be a space to process their own cannabis in-house, something they currently rely on an outside processor for.

Cantor says he’s happy to work with outside processors, especially for markets outside of BC, but his intention long-term is to get his own processing and sales licence so that he can take part in farmgate sales in BC, once allowed.

“Right now as a micro I’m going to maximize this square foot per dollar without having to spend that extra money and be under the microscope of a standard, but when I want to build this out, that’s when I might look at that and just do a licence amendment.”

One aspect of this he says he was unprepared for was what it takes to register their products beforehand, and how to deal with provinces, which others in the BC community have helped with.

“We got our licence, we got our first crop down, and even at that point there were things I didn’t know yet,” says Cantor. “Like knowing you need to register to get a product SKU so you can get your product to market, fresh. There’s so much in your way just do that. That’s something people should know upfront.” “Getting to sales is another journey,” he explains. “Getting licensed and growing is one thing, but then you’ve got to get your SKUs, your testing, your barcodes registered, it seems endless. So that’s where it’s been important to build these relationships with Brian, with Logan, with Ben, as well as Jeff Seabrook. I think if micros are going to make it, we really all need to work together as much as we can.”

A&L Canada Laboratories

Written by Staff on May 13, 2021. Posted in Lab Profiles, Ontario, Profiles.

Founded 35 years ago as a soil testing and agronomy research laboratory for all kinds of agricultural applications, A&L Canada Laboratories is one of the oldest cannabis analytical testing labs in Canada.

In addition to their testing with various agricultural industries, A&L also provides services across multiple sectors including Food, Environmental and Life Sciences.

For the cannabis industry specifically, A&L provides full analytical services for plant tissue, water, media and finished products. A&L’s services also include disease diagnostics, genetic analysis, production recommendations, and a Plant Monitoring Program.

When it comes to choosing an analytical testing partner, Nevin McDougall, the President and Chief Commercial Officer for A&L, says one often overlooked issue is not just testing of finished product, but testing of soil and water before even deciding on a location.

But what really makes A&L unique is our perspective around the production side of cannabis, all the way from our expertise in greenhouse testing and agronomy and outdoor field crop production agronomy.
Nevin McDougall, COO

Using a broad range of analytical services such as soil, media, water, nutrient and plant tissue testing; A&L can help a cannabis producer, be they indoor, outdoor, or greenhouse, to optimize product quality, resulting in a better customer experience and brand loyalty for the licensed producer.

As the interest in outdoor cannabis crops grows, says McDougall, many growers don’t consider such issues, sometimes jumping at the first land they can find and afford. Without considering what was grown or sprayed on that land prior, or the soil type and quality, growers can create numerous headaches for themselves down the road, from crops failing a pesticide or heavy metal analysis, to outright crop failure from poor soil quality and drainage.

“We provide Health Canada licenced, batch-released testing and a lot of the other standard testing protocols,” explains McDougall. “But what really makes A&L unique is our perspective around the production side of cannabis, all the way from our expertise in greenhouse testing and agronomy and outdoor field crop production agronomy, as well.”

“For outdoor production, for example, we’ve got decades of experience in soil analysis and accompanying with that is testing for pesticide residue, heavy metal analysis in soils, providing basic fertility recommendations based on past experiences and our in house Research and Development, and that goes right through to in-season production with tissue analysis. Plus final product testing.”

A&L provides hands-on assistance and decades of experience that can help any scale of cannabis grower, from micros to large-scale LPs, and everything in between. Outdoor producers or anyone growing directly in the soil need to look at several factors, such as soil drainage, past crop use, the level of the land, and the structure and type of soil.

“A basic soil test is step number one,” says McDougall. “What’s the basic fertility level of that field, organic matter, soil texture, all the most critical aspects around understanding nutrient analysis and what the fertility program will require.

He says he’s seen more than one outdoor production site lose some or even all of their crop simply because the operator didn’t take an issue like drainage into consideration beforehand.

“Unlike other providers who provide their service from a purely analytical perspective, A&L Canada Laboratories provides a holistic production perspective,” he says. “What this means is that we provide the services that encompass the entire production cycle of the crop, not simply final batch release testing. We believe this type of service will be critical for our clients to develop high-quality products resulting in a positive consumer experience. Our highly trained staff from PhD scientists to Certified Crop advisors are here to assist you.”

When choosing an analytical partner, cannabis producers would be wise to look for more than positive THC results.

“Ask lots of questions, ask about turnaround times, service levels, additional services they can provide, any value-added insights,” he continues. “There are a lot of areas where companies can provide insights for anyone getting into the industry, do they provide value add services, education, that can be important for people who are just learning.”

Typically, A&L provides a 3-5 day turnaround for most tests, along with what McDougall calls their “high touch” customer service, with technical representatives located at their main lab facility and across the country who are trained to provide support to our clients to ensure they are producing the highest quality crop possible. In addition, their online submission and data portals make it easy for you to submit and receive your COA.

“We’ve been in this business for 35 years,” says McDougall. “For anyone in the industry that wants a partner that has a high degree of credibility and has high-level integrity in what they are providing for their clients, we are an excellent choice.”

Sponsored Content by: A&L Canada Laboratories

BC Cannabis Inc on the micro model serving First Nations in BC

Written by David Brown on May 8, 2021. Posted in British Columbia, Cultivators, Profiles.

BC Cannabis Inc. is an Indigenous owned micro cultivator based in Sooke, BC.

Led by owner Albert Eppinga, the first of three micro cultivation facilities in Sooke under the BC Cannabis brand was licensed on April 9. Eppinga says he expects the next two licences, all located in the same building, to be licensed later this year.

He also has plans for a nursery and processing facility on First Nations land near Chilliwack, BC, that he hopes to be licensed later this year or in early 2022.

The first micro cultivation facility in Sooke is serving as a template to secure future funding, and allowing him to build the company up slowly, rather than needing a large investment upfront, he explains. Ultimately, once all five facilities are licensed, his goal is to create a closed-loop system from nursery through to processing and packaging, all benefitting First Nations communities.

“We want to provide jobs in our communities, jobs that can help First Nations in BC find a foothold in this industry,” Eppinga says, who will serve as the RPIC and master grower for all three micro facilities. “I just feel very proud to be an Indigenous person in this day and age. When I was younger it was very different, you know? We’re really excited to be a First Nations company. I feel very proud. It took so many years and sacrifice and money.”

Ideally, cannabis companies like his can provide not only jobs but also a template for other Indigenous communities across Canada.

“We want to fix those potholes in the soccer fields and the mould in the longhouses. We’re not here just to make money, we’re here to help our people as well. We want to help pave the roads. And that’s what really gets you success in life is when you give back to others, especially your own people.”

“There are very few opportunities where a small facility can be placed on First Nation land and actually generate real income. And I think a micro facility is one of those opportunities,” he continues.

Although some Indigenous communities in BC, and across Canada, have taken the path of pushing back against the federal and provincial regulations around cannabis production and retail, Eppinga says his goal is to help people see that they can work with these levels of government to find a viable place in the legal, regulated market.

They have no money!” he says, as an explanation for why some communities are allowing unlicensed retailers or growers to operate. “They have their longhouses with mould, the soccer fields have holes in them, the busses to take the kids to school have no gas in them.”

“So some are doing it out of desperation, some do it just to rebel against the government, and some want to do it by working with the law and those seem to be the larger and more sophisticated bands… they have more businesses, more land, more economic opportunities.”

Because of this, Eppinga says he’s heartened to see movement from the BC government recently to help businesses like his and many others. In addition to grant money that has been allocated to at least one First Nations community in Williams Lake, he says the government has also been helping First Nations retailers to get licensed and is laying the groundwork to help producers like himself position themselves to take part in a future “farmgate” retail model that would allow sales on the same site as the production facility.

This is where his plans for a processing facility near Chilliwack come in, he explains. In the future, he’d like to be able to grow his starting material in his nursery in Chilliwack, grow out his flower in his micro facilities in Sooke, then process and package and sell on reserve in Chilliwack.

In the meantime, he’ll be partnering with Sitka Weed Works, a cannabis cultivator and processor in BC, to package and sell their products into the retail system, while he waits for BC Cannabis Inc. to get all their appropriate licensing in place.

“We want to hire First Nations people where we can, employ, educate, and empower them in the cannabis sector and then change what people in these communities think of cannabis, to show them we can do it safely and fully secure and allow the FN people to capitalize on it as well, and can put gas in their busses to take their kids to school.”

The process is not easy or cheap, he adds. Although BC Cannabis Inc enjoyed some benefits of First Nations identity by working with Health Canada’s Indigenous Navigator service, he says the process still took a lot of time and money. Even finding a suitable location in BC that would allow cannabis cultivation was a chore. Although he had initially hoped to locate his micro facilities on First Nations land, the location he settled on in Sooke was the only one that ended up being receptive to his proposal.

“It takes a lot of money, it takes a lot of energy and time and regulations, security clearances, all of that,” says Eppinga. “And a lot of First Nations people, they don’t really have good security clearances, the guys who want to do it.”

“Many of us come from the black, or grey, or legacy market or whatever you want to call it. It’s changed so much over time. But a lot of my colleagues and friends, we’ve been growing for decades so we know what we are doing. We have over a hundred years of experience on our team. But getting the money, and being able to pass a security clearance, or having the confidence to navigate the regulations, it’s hard for many.”

“We want to fix those potholes in the soccer fields and the mould in the longhouses. We’re not here just to make money, we’re here to help our people as well. We want to help pave the roads. And that’s what really gets you success in life is when you give back to others, especially your own people.”

“We want to hire First Nations people where we can, employ, educate, and empower them in the cannabis sector and then change what people in these communities think of cannabis, to show them we can do it safely and fully secure and allow the FN people to capitalize on it as well, and can put gas in their busses to take their kids to school.”

This BC company wants to bring more clarity to cannabis strain names and genetics

Written by David Brown on May 4, 2021. Posted in British Columbia, Profiles, Services.

Tim Harvey wants to change how consumers choose and buy cannabis and give cannabis growers and breeders a better understanding of what they are actually growing.

The founder and CEO of Lighthouse Genomics, Harvey has been working with a handful of researchers since 2016, taking samples of cannabis plants from partners in Canada and around the world, in order to build a genetic database of cultivars.

Using this database to help growers and breeders better understand and identify the genetics of the plants they are growing, Harvey says the ultimate plan is to build a certification system that is geared towards consumers to assist them in knowing what they are smoking or vaping and make more informed choices.

This certification system would draw from their database of thousands of cannabis varieties, each measured by 40,000 genetic data points. Optional reports will allow cannabis growers to check for consensus around the conventional “strain name”, which specific family the cultivar belongs to and how close to other similar varieties it is.

As an example, Lighthouse just spent the last six months testing several varieties of cannabis in the Canadian market, from plant samples from growers to products on shelves, and comparing their “genetic fingerprint” with each other to map similarities and differences.

Two of those strains they identified for this research, Pink Kush and Blue Dream, gave them two different examples of strain name accuracy and genetic variation within strain names. While samples of Pink Kush from all parts of Canada showed an extremely narrow range of genetic differences between them, Blue Dream showed not only a wider diversity of genetic traits but also had more outliers.

The reason for this, explains Harvey, is likely in the origin of those two strains and how strain names have historically operated in the illicit market. While Pink Kush is alleged to have begun as a single superior cutting in BC that was passed from grower to grower, Blue Dream is a strain that originated and became popular in California.

This means Blue Dream was likely to have found its way into Canada in the form of different seeds, which provides exponentially greater genetic variation than a population of clones. In addition, because these may have been harder to get and even harder to authenticate, the few extreme outliers—plants that may have been labelled Blue Dream but were possibly an entirely different variety—could have been a mistake when labelling a plant, or renamed of a desire to hop on a fad name.

“The results are highly informative,” explains Harvey. “In the case of Pink Kush, there is great uniformity of genetics – eight of the nine samples tested from across the nation were in fact clones of one another. But this was not so with Blue Dream. Perhaps because this variety originated in California, there is a cluster that appears to be siblings, and yet some outliers which may be Blue Dream in name only.”

“It’s the same underlying technology that 23andMe uses to provide a genomic profile for humans, and the same platform a lot of agricultural crops use. We’re doing the same thing for cannabis.
Anders Goncalves da Silva, Lighthouse Genomics

Rather than contradicting many legacy strain names, he says the research actually supports the common understanding of the origin of these two varieties. While their Pink Kush examples were all very similar, even the Blue Dream still showed a similar ancestry in many cases, if not as tightly related.

“It’s encouraging to see that the industry has remained true to that tradition when it comes to Pink Kush,” he says. ”And there is a lack of consensus when it comes to Blue Dream, and if there is an authentic cut, but certainly there does seem to be consensus towards a zone.”

“It’s encouraging to see that the industry has remained true to tradition in the case of Pink Kush being associated with a very specific genetic identity. Even with Blue Dream, we also see consensus, with the Blue Dream name assigned to cuts that are clustered in what appears to be a ‘zone of authenticity’ within the cannabis population.”

Looking at these traditional varieties in terms of families is a useful analogy, says Anders Goncalves da Silva, the Chief Bioinformatics Officer at Lighthouse. He likens their genetic mapping to that of a popular DNA testing company for people.

“Essentially what we’re doing is similar to what 23andMe does,” says da Silva. “It’s the same underlying technology that 23andMe uses to provide a genomic profile for humans, and the same platform a lot of agricultural crops use. We’re doing the same thing for cannabis.

“So we used the same technological platform to develop an assay specifically for cannabis. We get samples from different cannabis products, extract the DNA, isolate the DNA from the tissue and then it goes through our platform for genotyping.”

Philippe Henry is a biodiversity researcher and adjunct professor at the University of Northern British Columbia who through his own company, Egret Bioscience lab in Kelowna, teamed up with Lighthouse on their DNA analysis of Pink Kush and Blue Dream.

“This is the way other major crops are tested and sold, and now cannabis is going in this same direction,” says Henry.

“Cannabis is catching up to all these other crops. It was the last of the billion-dollar commercial crops to have its genome sequenced, it’s got a lot of runway ahead of it in terms of the scientific standards compared to where these other crops are at.”
Tim Harvey, Lighthouse Genomics

This helps consumers, he says, especially medical users, because they can more accurately identify the specific variety they are looking for with a specific, replicable effect. For breeders and growers, it can both help them know with certainty what they are growing and help them better identify new or unique varieties that can help them distinguish themselves on the market.

Another advantage, especially for new breeders just entering the market—often through a nursery or micro cultivation licence—is to hold on to and protect their own unique genetics they bring in with them through a new licence.

“The small-time breeder who wants to outsource some of the cultivation to other groups and still have the ability to know they can audit and take samples from a grow room or the shelf and verify that another company they worked with aren’t selling particular genetics under a different brand,” says Henry. “Now we’re really getting to a place where people can do this, and it’s really affordable with this platform.”

Harvey agrees.

“Breeders today have so many more tools,” Harvey says. “Back in the day, it was their nose and experience, and maybe a few metrics like THC potency. Today it’s gone a step farther because of the tools that companies like Lighthouse and Egret are presenting to the breeders.”

“This will also level the playing field, providing smaller, more craft-scale businesses with a chance to really showcase their unique, valuable assets and draw attention to this. One huge thing we’re seeing since legalization is either the nurseries or the breeders that want to transition now into an LP, or be the genetic provider for the LP, now that they can migrate new genetics in.”

“This is the way other major crops are tested and sold, and now cannabis is going in this same direction.”
Philppe Henry, Egret Bioscience

“With the Cannabis Authenticity and Purity Standard, it’s about being able to verify for consumers that not only is the product they are buying chemically stable between batches, but the genetics are the same batch after batch,” continues Harvey. “Cannabis is catching up to all these other crops. It was the last of the billion-dollar commercial crops to have its genome sequenced, it’s got a lot of runway ahead of it in terms of the scientific standards compared to where these other crops are at.”

“I would like to see genetic testing implemented as an industry standard. I’d like there to be transparency over the identity of the products on the shelf. Because ultimately, it’s all about giving the consumer a consistent experience. All parts of the supply chain deserve transparency and authenticity, but above all, these tools provide a powerful opportunity for producers to build trust with the cannabis consumer, just by doing the right thing.”

You can watch our recent presentation with Tim and Philippe here on YouTube

Left to right: Timothy Harvey, Lighthouse Genomics, McKinley Hlady, CanTec Global Dr. Steven Newmaster, NHP Research Alliance, Dr. Philippe Henry, Egret Bioscience.

Salt Spring Island’s Magi Cannabis

Written by David Brown on May 1, 2021. Posted in British Columbia, Cultivators, Profiles.

Magi Cannabis is a small, family-run micro-cultivator on Salt Spring Island, in British Columbia. Josh Beckett and his partner Nadine are long-time islanders, with deep roots in the community.

Beckett is a second-generation cannabis grower who grew up with a love of the plants. Since 2009 Beckett worked with medical patients and developed a deeper understanding and appreciation of cannabis’s use in pain management and palliative care.

The process of transitioning from supporting medical patients to creating a business within the recreation framework has been a challenge at times, explains Beckett.

Banking is one obstacle he says he ran into early on. Initially, his local credit union reached out to him to see if he needed a business account only to call him back a few months later to say they were told by company leadership not to work with a cannabis business.

The regional application was just as difficult as the federal application. And more expensive because of all the professionals that were needed.
Josh Beckett, Magi Cannabis

Another challenge was just getting through the regional licensing and approvals. The Capital Regional District (CRD), the administrative body that manages all the southern Gulf Islands including Salt Spring, took six months just to reword their cannabis covenant, he says. There was also a requirement for registered professionals such as engineers and architects to be connected to his application, and limitations on where he could build.

“The regional application was just as difficult as the federal application. And more expensive because of all the professionals that were needed.”

“If you have a lot of capital, great. But if you don’t have a lot of capital, you really need to be careful with how you spend the money. There are a lot of experts out there that will use up your project financing pretty quickly.”

While he has faced a lot of hurdles, and continues to do so, Beckett is committed to making the business a success.

“My business plan is fairly simple: pay good living wages to the gardeners and trimmers, and produce an amazing product.”

Beckett works seven days a week, operating as the head of security, master grower, and license holder, with help from family and friends. He also did the entire application himself, which took hundreds of hours, with help from his sister Nova Kodaly.

“I’m overburdened and overworked. Honestly, I’ve gone through some periods of just wondering why I bothered doing this. It’s been challenging. It’s hard on the property, and it’s hard on me. It’s not like the old days.”

“This is a true craft, family, ma & pa legacy grow, and I’m a second-generation grower on Salt Spring Island. We love what we do and despite all the challenges, we want to make it work.”
Josh Beckett, Magi Cannabis

Another difference from the old days, continues Beckett, is that he needs to grow just one or two strains, not a handful. While he used to do lots of varieties for patients as a designated grower, but now realizes he needs to focus on just one or two to ensure he has large enough batches for market.

“I’m used to growing lots of different varieties to support different patient’s needs,” he says. “But what I’m realizing is with the compliance costs, I have to really rethink that.”

The custom-built shop that houses Magi Cannabis is only 2,000ft², just under the allowable canopy for a micro cultivator. His actual canopy, he says, is around 1,300ft² – a little over half of the allowed 2152ft² (200m2). This was largely due to the logistics of his property, including suitable construction space and power needs.

Although he wouldn’t mind having a little bit more space, he says the small size makes it more manageable and helps him focus on high-quality products.

“We’re the craft of craft,” says Beckett.

Despite this small size, he says it cost upwards of $600,000 to build out and equip the facility with lights, HVAC and more – a price he says would be close to double for someone building something slightly larger and with the current increases in building and materials costs. He’s had to take out personal loans and investments from friends and family since he couldn’t secure a line of credit for his business.

These costs and challenges, he says, might work for growers in other parts of the country with more capital and lower overhead, but for legacy growers in the Gulf Islands, he thinks it might be difficult to convince people to transition to the legal market.

“The regional requirements are difficult enough that I don’t think we are going to see a ton of people transitioning,” says Beckett. “Legal cannabis cultivation is less profitable than the black market, so I just don’t see a lot of people doing it, not here.”

Beckett is hoping all the hard work is going to start to pay off soon, and make the workload and debt load worthwhile. Magi Cannabis has just entered into a supply agreement with Bud Coast (Joint Venture Craft Cannabis) to get their first crop of Hippie Headbanger and Salt Spring Sugar Star on the market, and into the hands of discerning consumers.

“This is a true craft, family, ma & pa legacy grow, and I’m a second-generation grower on Salt Spring Island. We love what we do and despite all the challenges, we want to make it work.”

Covert Valley Reserve

Written by David Brown on April 22, 2021. Posted in British Columbia, Cultivators, Profiles.

Covert Valley is a husband and wife team who began making the transition from an ACMPR personal production licence to a micro cultivation licence in 2018.

With their facility located in Langley, BC, Kim and Mark Qvist’s small, indoor facility holds about 1,800ft² of cultivation space. Covert Valley has produced several crops since receiving its licence in May of 2020, initially selling through a third-party partner. They are excited to now have two different varieties, a GSP and a Sour Chem, available under their brand name coming to BC stores in April.

The Qvist’s also have a nursery application in process at the moment, for a location in Nanoose Bay, and in the meantime have been using their small micro cultivation space to produce starting material for other commercial growers.

Kim Qvist, who, among many other roles, serves as the company’s RPIC, says they began using their current micro space to grow clones for other cultivators as a way to bring in revenue as they navigate the sometimes fickle provincial market for dried flower. Plus, she says this gives them a head start on establishing sales channels for when they get their nursery licence.

“It’s definitely decreased our volume for flower, but it’s a trade-off” explains Kim. “What we’re doing is, while we’re building for our nursery, we’re using our micro licence to really prelaunch sales and get our name out there. Then once we licence the nursery we can pivot to that quickly.”

“There’s a lot more labour and paperwork to do clones than flower,” she says. “But from the production side, it’s something that we knew we had to do to bring in revenue. Especially with where the market is right now for more unique strains, processors wanting COAs, the 20% THC issue, all of that. To grow a whole crop and not know what you’re going to get can be a little nerve-racking. So selling genetics can help balance that out.”

“We’re focussed on bringing in some very unique, high-end flower,” says Mark. “That’s our main focus. Small batch, hand watered. Nothing is automated, it’s a very truly hands-on produced product. We’re excited to have products in BC because that’s home base for us.”

Getting to the stage of licensing wasn’t easy, explains Mark, but what they have learned with their micro licence has already helped them take better approaches with their nursery licence. For others entering the market, they both say that keeping your burn rate low and preparing for the unexpected is key.

“Be cautious with your overhead, your facility cost, leases, things like that,” says Mark. “Be prepared for longer timelines for licensing than you might have anticipated.”

“I think they should be prepared for at least two years,” he continues. “There’s a lot of things that need to fall into place, from having the right genetics to having your rooms running to their maximum efficiency and that takes time, that sometimes takes several crops to adapt and adjust the rooms. Things don’t just work perfectly on your first crops. It takes several crops and constantly adjusting your parameters to get that quality of product that you need.

“That’s just one hurdle. Then you have the sales hurdle, the branding, and the marketing, that’s another issue. There are quite a few steps along the way from construction to your first sale. A lot of stages to be ready for.”

With all those hurdles and challenges, though, The Qvists are hopeful for the future of the market for small-batch, craft cannabis.

“One of the things we’ve been quite excited to see is if there is a market for craft,” says Kim. “Being small business owners, we really like to promote the small craft product, especially from BC. There’s definitely some struggles but we’re seeing more craft coming to the market and I think it’s a positive sign.”

Alberta’s iNaturally Organic on their path to market

Written by Staff on April 9, 2021. Posted in Alberta, Processors, Profiles.

iNaturally Organic Inc. is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Emprise Canada Inc, and a holder of multiple micro-processing licenses, operating in Alberta. The company manufactures cannabis soft gels, topicals, nano-emulsions, and cannabis oils. Their facilities are located in Olds and Calgary, Alberta.

The brainchild of Mukhdeep Mangat and Dr. Anil Jain, iNaturally is one of the first micro processing licenses given by Health Canada and one of the first to get the sales licenses. The Company is already selling cannabis products in more than 1,000 stores in BC, Alberta and Ontario.

iNaturally’s first micro processing license in the city of Olds was issued in July 2019, while its second facility in Calgary received its processing license in August 2020. Sales license for extracts, edibles, and topicals was received in June 2020.

Dr. Jain says the Company chose the micro category because, “we felt that it was the best starting point to grow their business, and it would allow us to determine where consumers’ demands were and respond to them effectively, rather than investing tens of millions of dollars into a large production facility”.

“We knew we needed a low-cost structure,” says Jain. “We didn’t want to build big and hope for the demand. We built small and planned to grow organically with demand. And what this does is make the company financially sustainable. You don’t have to chase money, you can let money chase you”.

“Micro has allowed us to maintain a low-cost structure,” he continues. “The strategy has proven out because had we gone for a standard license and a large facility, maybe 20,000 sq ft building, we might be facing a challenging time financially right now since much of the capital dried up in 2020.”

Mangat, iNaturally’s Director of Manufacturing, agrees.

“The micro license has played a big role and it is part of our key strategy,” he adds. “Companies are building these large facilities but there is not enough demand for their products. I think a lot of the demand expectation was set by investors or bankers who really didn’t understand how the industry would evolve. So the micro category seemed like the best avenue to enter this industry and then grow as needed. It’s really worked out for us and has allowed us to be nimble in execution.”

““We didn’t want to build big and hope for the demand. We built small and planned to grow organically with demand. And what this does is make the company financially sustainable. You don’t have to chase money, you can let money chase you”.
Dr. Anil Jain, iNaturally Organic

Part of being nimble for their company has been their ability to get their second facility licensed and working on new, innovative products they hope will be in the market later this year, a powdered nano-emulsion that will be mixed with coffee, a partnership with Paradise Mountain Organic Coffee.

“You may have had other infused coffee products before,” says Mangat, but what we’re doing with nano-emulsion is something very unique, and a much better infusion. We’re excited by it.”

Being small, explains Mangat, also allows us to focus on innovation without too much corporate bureaucracy.

“We have just five employees, plus Dr. Jain and I”, explains Mangat. “We all work very hard, but this is our passion and we’re excited about what we’re doing, and I think that helps us innovate quickly and effectively. We’re focused on products that consumers want, but also on how we can differentiate ourselves so we can compete with the bigger players.”

“That’s why we can compete with the big boys,” adds Jain. “Because we can innovate and manufacture just as well as them, with a micro processing license.”

Part of that innovation includes research they are doing right now that can help consumers, especially medical patients, formulate the exact cannabinoid and terpene ratio for their specific DNA. You can find more information on their website www.emprise.ca.

Although iNaturally Organic says they are not opposed to eventually expanding into a standard license if demand increases enough, Dr. Jain says they are in no rush.

“We are excited that we have built a sustainable business with cool products. We expect $50 million in sales with our current facilities and licenses”.

Origin Coast on micro cultivation and starting small

Written by David Brown on March 29, 2021. Posted in Cultivators, Nova Scotia, Processors, Profiles.

Origin Coast is a micro cultivator and processor in Sydney, Nova Scotia, recently licensed in February 2021.

Born and raised in Cape Breton the company’s Founder and CEO, Michael Fong, spent close to two decades in the video game industry while living in Hong Kong, before he says the opportunity to grow cannabis called him back home to Nova Scotia.

He wrote out a business plan, found a piece of land outside Sydney, and built a facility large enough to hold 20 different rooms, from flowering to mother and veg rooms, processing, drying, etc. He brought in two other Nova Scotians with a passion for and a background in cannabis and also hired on a QA. Between the four of them, they run the bulk of the operation on a day-to-day basis.

Although the company has its micro cultivation, micro processing and medical sales licences, Fong says the immediate focus is entirely on growing flower and selling to third-party processors. Long term he may undertake processing on his own and work towards a sales licence, but right now it’s about drawing on their extensive library of unique cultivators and growing great flower.

“Even though we have a processing licence, we’re in no hurry to use it,” explains Fong. “I’m a strong believer in fostering long-term, mutually-beneficial partnerships. If someone can do something better than I can at the same price or cheaper, then why not? This will allow us to concentrate on happy plants and the quality of the flower instead of being distracted by also trying to juggle processing, packaging and distribution, at least in the beginning.”

Once they have built their own brand and can control more of the supply chain, he says he would love to see Origin Coast as a Nova Scotia brand sold in Nova Scotia, and thinks the position on Cape Breton Island can be an advantage for an LP partnering with them who may want to enter the provincial market there.

Although the facility itself has a fairly large footprint at 8,000 sq ft, with only 200m2 of cannabis being grown, and their use of automation and centrally controlled environmental systems, Fong says he and his other three team members can manage the entire operation. This allows them to keep a low overhead, he says, which he argues will be needed as they manage the first six months or more with no immediate revenue.

Fong brings extensive business management experience to Origin Coast, while relying on his master growers to manage the plant itself. Helping build and manage the China/Asia division as the Managing Director and Vice President of the Asia Pacific region for Blizzard Entertainment, a large US video game company, gave him a wealth of experience he says helped him build out the strategy and plan for his new cannabis company.

“This is from my corporate training I suppose,” he says. “I strongly believe that if it can’t be measured, it can’t be managed. So we are very data-driven in our operations. We measure and track everything we possibly can. Not just to make sure we are where we need to be and dialed in, but also so we can trace back to why certain results may have turned out different than we were expecting and determine whether we want to replicate those results. Especially as we are constantly testing new growing techniques, mediums, and products, and also in our pheno hunting. Traceability is important in our bid to provide a consistent premium quality product.”

Once he and his team have dialed in the cultivation side of the operation and the business model has proven itself, he says they have plans for further expansion beyond a micro licence on their three-acre lot. For the most part, this expansion will include additional indoor cultivation but may also include capabilities in processing and packaging. Taking these small steps and a phased approach will help him focus on the fundamentals, he explains.

Although there are and continue to be challenges, from licensing to financing and banking to finding a place and demand for your product in the market, Fong is encouraging to others but also cautions discipline and patience.

“It can be a great opportunity for some people, but not necessarily for all. I think you have to have realistic expectations. To get into this industry, there are high barriers to entry, particularly from a financial perspective; from the fact that banks won’t give you financing, you’re not able to apply for many government programs, and even just opening a bank account for your business is a challenge.”

“But if you can get over those barriers and you’re able to hold the line, be patient and work through the processes you have to go through, and of course produce a good quality product, then I think it’s a great business to be in.”

“Set yourself up so you can withstand the many storms you are going to be faced with. And a lot of the time that means you have to work hard, be very prudent in spending, and be smart about how you work. Make sure you are setting yourself up for the long term.”

Okanna Craft on their long transition into the legal rec market

Written by David Brown on March 21, 2021. Posted in British Columbia, Cultivators, Profiles.

COMPANY:	Okanna Craft
LICENCE TYPE:	Micro Cultivation, Nursery
APPROACH:	Indoor
TIMELINE:	~1 year (late 2019 to December 2020)
COST:	~$2m
FACILITY:	Retrofit indoor space

The family behind Okanna Craft is another success story of a legacy BC grower transitioning into the legal recreational market, but the process wasn’t easy, they say.

Now that they have their first harvest ready for sale soon, they’re eager to share their story of the long road it took to get to this point.

Growing inside a facility they bought several years ago operating under their ACMPR licence, Travis Tully, along with his mother Nanette Tully and stepfather began retrofitting the four unit building to hold up to four licenses, micro and nursery, in 2018.

Although already using the space for cannabis, the trio says they spent several hundred thousand dollars retrofitting the interior to bring it up to the regulations, often stretching themselves financially thin, with the hope they would soon get a licence and could begin seeing the rewards. The retrofits, they estimate, were around $750,000 for the licence.

Travis, the family’s grower, has spent years cultivating this craft in BC, having taken an interest in cannabis plant science in his teens and with an entrepreneurial spirit, he found his hands in the dirt and a connection to the plant. When Travis saw a way to grow legally on the horizon, his desire to share his craft cannabis became his goal. He approached his mother and stepfather for support and they didn’t hesitate to put the plan in motion and apply for their Micro-cultivation license as well as a nursery license for their Kelowna facility.

“We still don’t know what it will look like, but we have some creative ideas and will be working with the right team to support our farmgate vision. We see a lot of tourist traffic, especially in the summer.” Travis says. “And it will be a great opportunity to showcase BC Bud in its natural habitat.”
Travis Tully, Okanna craft

Although they initially planned for an additional micro cultivation and nursery licence, Travis’ mother Nanette, who manages Okanna’s sales and marketing, along with several other responsibilities, says they are currently reevaluating and diversifying potentially looking at a processing licence.

“We’re looking at getting our own processing and sales licence, absolutely,” says Nanette. “But we’re going to start slow because we’re farmers really. But we’re looking at starting processing with a pre-roll solution, as pre-rolls seem to be contracting out and we need to evaluate what is best for our flower, our bottom line and supporting the craft community.”

The family also intends to get their own processing and sales licence, says Travis, because they hope to be able to open their own retail farmgate store once BC allows it. Located right along Kelowna’s rail trail, and in close proximity to the Okanagan UBC campus, their property is perfectly suited to cater to consumers living in and visiting the Okanagan Valley.

“We still don’t know what it will look like, but we have some creative ideas and will be working with the right team to support our farmgate vision. We see a lot of tourist traffic, especially in the summer.” Travis says. “And it will be a great opportunity to showcase BC Bud in its natural habitat.”

New Cultivars

Although the process of licensing took longer than they anticipated, the extra time has given them a chance to observe the market and make important changes, says Nanette. For one, they have had to reprioritize which cultivars they first bring to market, she says.

“If we would have come into the market a year ago, the market wouldn’t have been ready for us,” explains Nanette. “And we wouldn’t have been ready for the market. What we’ve learned in the last year with all the pitfalls we’ve gone through has staged us for where we are now.”

Originally, they had hoped to bring a cultivar they have a lot of experience growing, Tora Bora, but because it has less than 20% THC they decided to wait until the market is more receptive to that kind of cannabis. Even the strain they decided on for their first entrance into the market, Blue Coma, she says is not as high in THC as others, but says the high terpene count more than makes up for this.

“We have decided to go with God’s Berry, a cross between Kish and Gods Bud, a great smoke with a strong berry fruit smell and taste, a great chunky frosty bud that will not disappoint. We are growing for the legacy and new consumer to enjoy true BC Bud again”.

Securing unique genetics that have yet to be seen on the legal market is a big part of what they hope can distinguish themselves in the market, says Travis. Okanna brought in around 100 different cultivars, and he expects to choose the best of the bunch, narrowing his picks to about thirty in the next year or so as they use their nursery space to pheno hunt the best varieties.

Working with another BC-based micro*, Joint Ventures in Salmon Arm, they expect to have Blue Coma on shelves in BC, Alberta and Saskatchewan in the coming months. They also hope to release pre rolls in partnership with another micro cultivator under their proprietary pre-roll brand tOKANNAgan.

*Note: Joint Ventures recently amended their licence from micro to standard.

Challenges for growers transitioning to the legal market

Working with A like-minded processor like Joint Ventures, says Nanette, has been a positive experience.

“What Joint Ventures does for us, for example, is great. Their sole purpose is to package and to distribute products for their cultivators. Their mission is to transition and this aligns with our values.”

These kinds of partnerships are important, she says, because a lot of the micros getting licenced might be good at growing cannabis, but they don’t necessarily know how to run a business or market and network their products and brand.

“This has been the hardest thing we’ve ever done in our whole life,” she says. “It’s been the scariest thing we’ve ever done in our whole life. Just in terms of financially, legally. We’re just seeing the light at the end of the tunnel right now.”
Nanett Tully, Okanna Craft

Working with the BC Craft Farmers Co-op, Nanette says she sees this as one of the biggest challenges for the success of many micros.

“I see (business acumen) as a big hurdle for the micro cultivators,” says Nanette. “Just as an example, there are farmers sitting on their product right now who can’t sell it. They call processors who don’t call them back. At the co-op, we’re addressing this. We’re educating people on this right now, every day.”

“This is often missed,” she continues. “They’re farmers, they’re not business people. You can have the best product and not know how to market it. Or you can have a mid-grade product and do great marketing and make more than the guy who doesn’t know how to market.”

She points to other successful micro brands like North 40 and Dunn Cannabis, who have built the right partnerships and been active and engaging online to help build brand awareness.

“This has been the hardest thing we’ve ever done in our whole life,” she says. “It’s been the scariest thing we’ve ever done in our whole life. Just in terms of financially, legally. We’re just seeing the light at the end of the tunnel right now. But have we stretched ourselves and put our entire savings into this, believing in this vision? Now is when we need to make money to make this work.”

Are you of legal age in your jurisdiction?

The Manitoba government is looking to repeal its 6% social responsibility fee to help the legal market better compete with the illicit market.