Highlights:
ICC International Cannabis Corporation (“
ICC” or
the “
Company”) (TSX-V:ICC), a fully licensed
producer and distributor of recreational cannabis and cannabinoid
extracts used for medicinal purposes, is pleased to provide an
update on its cannabinoid business segment.
“ICC continues to hit its strategic milestones
both within its medicinal and nutraceutical cannabinoid business
segment. We are delighted with our progress to date and are
happy to report that ICC is expected to begin planting over 400
acres of its first outdoor hemp crop in October 2017,” stated
Alejandro Antalich, Chief Executive Officer of ICC.
REGULATORY APPROVAL – HIGH CBD HEMP
STRAINS:ICC is uniquely positioned as a low cost global
producer of cannabinoid extracts, including cannabidiol
(“CBD”), as a result of its operations being based
in Uruguay. Uruguay provides ICC with material production cost
advantages, as it is a jurisdiction with ample sunlight, low cost
skilled agricultural labour, and a regulatory framework that allows
for cultivation of hemp with flowers containing CBD concentrations
exceeding 10%.
ICC recently received regulatory approval from
the Ministry of Livestock, Agriculture and Fishery to import two
strains of hemp with CBD flower content exceeding 10%. The
authorization also permits the Company to sow, harvest and export
the CBD oils, CBD extracts, and pure CBD crystals produced from
these two strains. The Company intends to produce and export high
quality CBD extracts and crystal compounds to the growing medicinal
and nutraceutical markets globally where lawful.
“The Company’s recently reported a target CBD
dried flower annual production capacity of 160 tonnes using the
Helena hemp strain. With the introduction of
two new high CBD strains, the Company is optimistic that it can now
significantly increase its CBD extracts yield,” commented Alejandro
Antalich, Chief Executive Officer of ICC.
LAND PACKAGE FOR HEMP
PRODUCTION:ICC currently has three growing areas dedicated
to medicinal hemp production. The Canelones Site situated 41km
northeast of Montevideo, Uruguay, hosts both a 21,528 square foot
indoor hemp greenhouse facility and an outdoor land package of 67
acres, which is intended to be exclusively dedicated to hemp crop
cultivation. The Company’s Flores Site is located 236km northwest
of Montevideo, Uruguay, and, at approximately 500 acres, is the
largest government approved outdoor growing land package for hemp
cultivation in South America.
The hemp growing season in Uruguay generally
commences in October and ends in April of the following year. The
Company’s hemp growing strategy is split into three phases.
Firstly, indoor planting commenced in July 2017 at the 21,528
square foot greenhouse on the Canelones Site and is expected to
yield 150kg of dried CBD flowers, which will be harvested in late
November 2017.
A file accompanying this release is available
at: http://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/717bc540-6a35-450a-82ee-9e6d5f46556e
The second phase of hemp planting will occur on
the 67 acre outdoor portion of the Canelones Site. Planting is
expected to commence in October 2017 and is expected to yield 27
tonnes of dried CBD flowers once harvesting commences in April
2018.
A file accompanying this release is available
at: http://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/51965868-065d-47bf-8faf-bd0cdb18eb51
The third phase of hemp planting will occur at
ICC’s new 500 acre outdoor location at the Flores Site. Planting is
expected to commence in October 2017 over approximately 333 acres,
and is expected to yield 130 tonnes of dried CBD flowers once
harvesting commences in April 2018.
A file accompanying this release is available
at: http://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/63ecdbc0-7ad8-48c0-b7a9-7a5f14f1cc39
CBD EXTRACTION LABORATORY
CONSTRUCTION:ICC is continuing construction of the first
CBD extraction laboratory in South America using the supercritical
fluid CO2 extraction technique with state-of-the-art equipment. The
facility is expected to be completed in April 2018, and to have
annual capacity to process 50 tonnes of hemp flower into CBD
extract. The extraction laboratory is being built in Uruguay’s
“Science Park Free Trade Zone”, which is situated in an area over
16,146 square feet. The extraction and laboratory facility is
expected to be operative concurrently with the hemp harvests
expected in April 2018.
A file accompanying this release is available
at: http://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/d431cb16-7495-45d1-9fec-258cef29ed33
QUALITY ASSURANCE – GMP AND GAP
STANDARDS:ICC is committed to complying with international
Good Manufacturing Practices (“GMP”), and the CBD
extraction laboratory has been planned (architecture, blue prints
and schematics) to meet these high requirement standards. GMP is a
standards system for ensuring that products are consistently
produced and controlled according to strict and high quality
standards. It is designed to minimize the risks involved in any
pharmaceutical production that cannot be eliminated through testing
the final product. GMP covers all aspects of production from the
starting materials, premises, and equipment to the training and
personal hygiene of staff. Detailed, written procedures are
essential for each process that could affect the quality of the
finished product. There must be systems to provide documented proof
that correct procedures are consistently followed at each step in
the manufacturing process - every time a product is made.
ICC is also committed to complying with Good
Agricultural Practices (“GAP”) requirements.
All recreational products from ICC’s greenhouses are grown under
GAP standards and under strict regulatory and technical
supervision, where site conditions, production methods, product
traceability and quality control standards have been approved by
IRCCA and authorized by the Ministry of Health. Product
tracking and supply chain traceability systems are completed and in
use.
ABOUT ICC INTERNATIONAL CANNABIS
CORPORATION
The Company has operations in Uruguay, and is
focused on the licensed production, development and sale of
recreational cannabis, cannabinoid extracts and other derivatives
used for medicinal purposes and industrial hemp. For more
information, please see the Company’s filings on
www.sedar.com and www.intcannabiscorp.com.
Neither the TSX Venture Exchange
(“TSXV”) nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is
defined in the policies of the TSXV) accepts responsibility for the
adequacy or accuracy of this release.
Certain information in this press release may
constitute forward-looking information. This information is based
on current expectations that are subject to significant risks and
uncertainties that are difficult to predict, including the
Company’s ability to obtain any requisite regulatory approvals, to
meet GMP or GAP requirements and risks inherent in an agricultural
business. Actual results might differ materially from results
suggested in any forward-looking statements. The Company assumes no
obligation to update the forward-looking statements, or to update
the reasons why actual results could differ from those reflected in
the forward looking-statements unless and until required by
securities laws applicable to the Company. Additional information
identifying risks and uncertainties is contained in the Company’s
filings with Canadian securities regulators, and are available at
www.sedar.com.
For more information, please contact:
ICC International Cannabis Corporation Alejandro Antalich, Chief
Executive Officert: 598-2900-0000e: ir@intcannabiscorp.com
Bill Mitoulas, Investor Relationst: 416-479-9547e:
billm@intcannabiscorp.com