SAINT-EUSTACHE, Québec, Feb. 20, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Emerald Health Therapeutics, Inc. (“Emerald”) (TSXV: EMH; OTCQX: EMHTF) today announced the launch of Verdélite Sciences Inc. ("Verdélite"), a wholly-owned, Québec-based production subsidiary licensed by Health Canada. Formerly known as Agro-Biotech, Verdélite currently produces high-grade dried cannabis for medical and adult-use purposes.
Emerald is nearing completion of its over $100 million investment to secure and expand its multi-purpose facility to 88,000 square feet and enable the complete cycle of indoor cultivation, product development and automated packaging of cannabis products. Upon reaching full production levels in mid-2019, Verdélite projects it will have created approximately 140 jobs.
"This investment will enable us to produce quality cannabis products adhering to our high growing and processing standards,” said Thierry Schmidt, President of Verdélite Sciences. “Verdélite will be synonymous with differentiated and value-added cannabis products, and we are pleased to see the level of industry skill and enthusiasm coming from the Saint-Eustache community and the local interest and support to help contribute to our success.”
In addition to 23 state-of-the-art growing rooms, the facility will include an analytical testing laboratory as well as a research centre for product innovation and extraction technology. These capabilities will also position Verdélite to competitively participate in the development and production of edible cannabis products, which are expected to be sanctioned by Health Canada by October 17, 2019.
"We’re delighted to see our Québec-based Saint-Eustache facility coming online and adding to our capability to deliver high quality adult-use and medical cannabis products,” said Dr. Avtar Dhillon, President and Executive Chairman of Emerald. “The Verdélite team has been working tirelessly to bring to fruition one of the core assets in Emerald’s national and international development strategy.”
Emerald acquired Verdélite in May 2018 with an operating footprint of 25,000 square feet. The full 88,000 square foot facility is expected to be operational in Q2 2019, with approximately 50,000 square feet of cannabis flowering capacity in precision-controlled environments. Verdélite possesses approximately 200 strains of cannabis.
By the Numbers
- 140 estimated full-time jobs in Saint-Eustache once fully operational
- 88,000 square foot purpose-built cannabis production facility
- 23 independent growing rooms
- 200 cannabis strains
- 12 processing and packaging rooms.
About Verdélite Sciences Inc.
Verdélite, a wholly owned subsidiary of Emerald Health Therapeutics, Inc., is a Health Canada- licensed cannabis cultivation facility located in Saint-Eustache, 30 km north of Montréal, Québec. This facility, purpose-built to produce, process and package cannabis products, is nearing completion of an expansion to 88,000 square feet. The facility has abundant access to high-quality low-cost water and electricity.
About Emerald Health Therapeutics, Inc.
Emerald Health Therapeutics, Inc. is a Canadian licensed producer of cannabis. Its 50%-owned Pure Sunfarms joint venture in BC is completing the conversion of its 1.1 million square foot (25 acres) greenhouse for cannabis cultivation in the Lower Mainland and its Verdélite operation in Québec is completing the build-out of its 88,000-square-foot indoor cultivation facility. Commercial production is expanding in both facilities. Emerald secured over 500 acres of hemp harvest in 2018 and has contracted for approximately 1000 acres from 2019 to 2022 with the objective of extracting low-cost cannabidiol (CBD). Emerald’s team is highly experienced in life sciences, product development, large-scale agribusiness, and marketing, and is focused on developing proprietary, value-added cannabis products for medical and adult-use customers. Emerald is part of the Emerald Health group, which represents a broad array of companies focused on developing pharmaceuticals, botanical, and nutraceutical products developed to provide wellness and medical benefits by interacting with the human body’s endocannabinoid system.
Please visit www.emeraldhealth.ca for more information or contact:
Rob Hill, Chief Financial Officer
(800) 757 3536 Ext. #5
Verdélite/Emerald Investor and Public Relations
Marie-Eve Chaume
+1 514 951-5498
mechaume@Verdélite.ca
Emerald Investor Relations
(800) 757 3536 Ext. #5
invest@emeraldhealth.ca
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Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements: Certain statements made in this press release that are not historical facts are forward-looking statements and are subject to important risks, uncertainties and assumptions, both general and specific, which give rise to the possibility that actual results or events could differ materially from our expectations expressed in or implied by such forward-looking statements. Such statements include projected job creation figures at our operating facilities; production and processing capacity of various facilities; expansion of facilities; and anticipated production costs.
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