Village Farms International's Pure Sunfarms Receives Cannabis Research License for On-Site Sensory Evaluation from Health Canada

Published: November 24, 2020

Village Farms International's Pure Sunfarms Receives Cannabis Research License for On-Site Sensory Evaluation from Health Canada

Village Farms International, Inc. announced two positive developments with respect to its wholly owned Canadian cannabis subsidiary, Pure Sunfarms.

Pure Sunfarms Receives Cannabis Research License for On-Site Sensory Evaluation from Health Canada

Pure Sunfarms has received from Health Canada its Cannabis Research License to conduct human administration trials for sensory evaluation of cannabis, enabling it to engage in on-site assessments of the taste, sight, smell or touch of its products at its Delta 3 cannabis facility in Delta, British Columbia.

“This license provides us with significant new opportunities in the formulation and refinement of our products, and underscores our commitment to innovation and the advancement of the Canadian cannabis consumer experience,” said Mandesh Dosanjh, President and Chief Executive Officer, Pure Sunfarms.  “We look forward to leveraging this new capability to continue to extend Pure Sunfarms’ product leadership and further strengthen what is already one of Canada’s best-selling cannabis brands.”

Pure Sunfarms Brand Debuts Internationally in Hong Kong

Pure Sunfarms will be featured as part of a limited-edition Lane Crawford x Found CBD-infused gift set to be sold in the luxury department store’s holiday pop-up shops in Hong Kong this holiday season.  The luxury gift sets will feature Pure Sunfarms branded CBD gummies created specifically for the Hong Kong consumer, among other CBD-inspired items such as chocolates, bath salts, and tea bags. The co-branded Lane Crawford and Found holiday pop-up shops aim to educate consumers and elevate their awareness of CBD.

The inclusion of Pure Sunfarms-branded CBD products was facilitated through a partnership between Altum International Limited’s (“Altum”) Found, Asia-Pacific’s first CBD retail platform and café, and Lane Crawford, an iconic luxury department store in Greater China.  In August 2020, Village Farms acquired 6.6% of Australia-based Altum, one of the Asia-Pacific’s leading cannabinoid platforms.

“We’re so pleased for the Pure Sunfarms’ brand to make its debut internationally, alongside such prestigious and progressive partners as Altum and Lane Crawford,” said Mr. Dosanjh. “This is just the beginning of what’s to come for Pure Sunfarms as we look to share our love of plants and B.C.-grown cannabis products with the global cannabis market.”

“We are particularly excited to be able to present in Asia-Pacific for the first time, Pure Sunfarms, Canada’s market-leading cannabis brand,” Fiachra Mullen, Chief Marketing Officer for Altum International. “We believe that the leading cannabis brands in the Canadian market will hold a special place in the Hong Kong consumer’s heart. We are incredibly proud to have their trust in helping them access the Asia-Pacific markets for the first time through the most progressive cannabinoid jurisdiction in the region – Hong Kong.”

Altum International is a cannabinoid company born from its founders’ desire to bring the life-changing benefits of cannabis back to the Asia-Pacific. Through its Hong Kong headquarters, Altum is disrupting the status quo of decades past by importing, distributing and marketing a curated range of high-quality cannabinoid products across the region in a compliant and cost-effective manner.

Village Farms is one of the largest and longest-operating greenhouse growers in North America, and is leveraging its decades of experience in large-scale, low-cost intensive agriculture and as a vertically integrated produce supplier to pursue high-value, high-growth plant-based Consumer Packaged Goods opportunities in cannabis and CBD in North America and selected markets internationally.