-- Village Farms Building on its Cannabis
Success in Canada
with its First International Opportunity --
VANCOUVER, BC, July 8, 2020 /CNW/ - Village Farms International,
Inc. ("Village Farms" or the "Company") (NASDAQ: VFF) (TSX: VFF)
today announced that it has executed a definitive agreement with
DutchCanGrow Inc. ("DCG"), a Netherlands-based cannabis enterprise, to
become one of six equal shareholders in DCG owning just under 16%
each, with a seventh shareholder owning 5%. DCG is pursuing
the opportunity to become one of a limited number of licensed
cannabis growers (up to a maximum of 10) when the Dutch government
permits the first legal recreational cannabis market in
Europe under its 10-city
Experiment to Investigate Closed Cannabis Supply Chains (the
"WECG").
If successful in receiving a license from the Dutch government
when awarded later this year, DCG plans to construct and operate a
specialized cannabis greenhouse facility in the Netherlands and develop, produce and
market a variety of safe, high-quality cannabis products to supply
this new legalized market. Since 1976 in the Netherlands, a cannabis policy has been in
effect regarding cannabis, under which the sale of cannabis at
"coffee shops" is tolerated but the cultivation of cannabis is
illegal. In 2019, in response to concerns around product safety
(ingredients, additives, contaminants) and increasing criminal
involvement related to cannabis cultivation, the Netherlands' House of Representatives
approved the WECG as an intermediary step to address the lack of
quality standards and societal impact of crime related to
cannabis.
Under the WECG, which will be in effect for a minimum of four
years following a one-year preparation period, all coffee shops in
the 10 selected cities (currently 78 coffee shops in total) will be
legally required to purchase all of their cannabis exclusively from
the approved, federally licensed producers ("LPs"). The
supply requirement for the current scope of the WECG is estimated
to be approximately 65,000 kilograms of dried cannabis annually.
The WECG will be formally evaluated by the Dutch government during
the third year of the program, with the potential to expand it from
the initial 10 cities to a national program, encompassing all
coffee shops in the Netherlands
(currently totalling 580).
"Our investment in DutchCanGrow is a momentous first step in
leveraging all that Village Farms has accomplished in Canada to become a leader in the burgeoning
international cannabis industry," said Michael DeGiglio, CEO, Village Farms
International. "DCG is an outstanding opportunity for Village
Farms, not only providing potential access to the very first legal
recreational cannabis market in Europe with the possibility of significant
expansion within the Netherlands
itself, but also to springboard to future legal cannabis
opportunities in other markets in Europe, and around the world."
Mr. DeGiglio added, "We are very proud to have been selected by
DCG from amongst a number of well-known Canadian LPs that were
vying for this unique and exciting opportunity. Village Farms' very
own roots as one of North
America's largest and most successful greenhouse produce
growers go back to Holland. A number of our most experienced
people are multi-generational Dutch growers who brought with them
to Village Farms the deep cultural know-how of The Netherlands. To this day, we have strong,
enduring relationships with the Dutch growing community, and we are
proud to now share the specific expertise we have gained through
building Pure Sunfarms into Canada's premiere cannabis supplier. We
look forward to working with this incredible group of partners at
DCG, which brings together formidable expertise across a range of
disciplines critical to the success of this venture."
"DutchCanGrow has a vision to become the premier cultivator,
developer and producer of premium-quality, legally-grown cannabis
in the Netherlands," said Peter
Tas, Director, DutchCanGrow. "It was our goal in approaching
this opportunity to partner with an outstanding company with
specific experience and success in the Canadian legal recreational
cannabis market. We have spoken to a number of potential partners,
including several large Canadian LPs, regarding this
opportunity. Village Farms emerged as the clear choice,
having already built Pure Sunfarms into what, in our opinion, is
one of the best all-around cannabis growers and suppliers in
Canada. Village Farms' expertise in facilities planning and
development, low-cost greenhouse cannabis cultivation and
operational efficiency will be invaluable to our pursuit of this
significant opportunity."
In return for its ownership position in DCG, Village Farms will
contribute its proven experience and capabilities related to, among
other things, business model development, general project
operations, cultivation, post-harvest operations, government
relations and regulatory and finance, as well as a de minimis cash
investment.
About Village Farms International, Inc.
Village Farms is one of the largest and longest-operating
vertically integrated greenhouse growers in North America. Village Farms produces and
distributes fresh, premium-quality produce year-round to national
grocers in the U.S. and Canada
from more than nine million square feet of Controlled Environment
Agriculture (CEA) greenhouses in Canada and the U.S., as well as from its
partner greenhouses in Canada and
Mexico. The Company is leveraging its 30 years of experience
as a large-scale, low-cost vertically integrated grower for the
rapidly emerging global cannabis and CBD opportunities. In
Canada, British-Columbia-based Pure Sunfarms
(majority-owned by Village Farms) is one of the single largest
cannabis operations in the world and one of the best-selling brands
in the country. In the U.S., subject to compliance with all
applicable U.S. federal and state laws, the Company is pursuing a
strategy become a leading developer and supplier of branded and
white-labeled CBD products targeting "big box" and other
major retailers and consumer packaged goods companies, and with one
the largest greenhouse operations in country, is well positioned
for the potential federal legalization of high-THC
cannabis.
Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking
Information
This press release contains forward-looking statements within
the meaning of the United States Private Securities Litigation
Reform Act of 1995, Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as
amended, (the "Securities Act") and Section 21E of the Securities
Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the "Exchange Act"), and is
subject to the safe harbor created by those sections. This press
release also contains "forward-looking information" within the
meaning of applicable Canadian securities law. We refer to such
forward-looking statements and forward-looking information
collectively as "forward-looking statements". Forward-looking
statements may relate to the Company's future outlook or financial
position and anticipated events or results and may include
statements regarding the financial position, business strategy,
budgets, expansion plans, litigation, projected production,
projected costs, capital expenditures, financial results, taxes,
plans and objectives of or involving the Company. Particularly,
statements regarding future results, performance, achievements,
prospects or opportunities for the Company, the greenhouse
vegetable industry or the cannabis industry are forward-looking
statements. In some cases, forward-looking information can be
identified by such terms as "outlook", "may", "might", "will",
"could", "should", "would", "occur", "expect", "plan",
"anticipate", "believe", "intend", "try", "estimate", "predict",
"potential", "continue", "likely", "schedule", "objectives", or the
negative or grammatical variation thereof or other similar
expressions concerning matters that are not historical facts. The
forward-looking statements in this press release are subject to
risks that may include, but are not limited to: our limited
operating history, including that of our Pure Sunfarms Corp. joint
venture for the production of cannabis in Canada (our "Joint Venture") and our start-up
operations of growing hemp in the United
States; the legal status of our Joint Venture; risks
relating to obtaining additional financing, including our
dependence upon credit facilities; potential difficulties in
achieving and/or maintaining profitability; variability of product
pricing; risks inherent in the cannabis, hemp and agricultural
businesses; the ability of our Joint Venture to cultivate and
distribute cannabis in Canada;
existing and new governmental regulations, including risks related
to regulatory compliance and licenses (e.g., our Joint Venture's
ability to obtain licenses for its Delta 2 greenhouse facility as
well as additional licenses under the Canadian Act Respecting
Cannabis To Amend to the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act, the
Criminal Code and other Acts, S.C. 2018, c. 16 (Canada) for its Delta 3 greenhouse facility),
and changes in our regulatory requirements; risks relating to
conversion of our greenhouses to cannabis production for our Joint
Venture; risks related to rules and regulations at the U.S. federal
(Food and Drug Administration and United States Department of
Agriculture), state and municipal levels with respect to produce
and hemp; retail consolidation, technological advances and other
forms of competition; transportation disruptions; product liability
and other potential litigation; retention of key executives; labor
issues; uninsured and underinsured losses; vulnerability to rising
energy costs; environmental, health and safety risks, foreign
exchange exposure, risks associated with cross-border trade;
difficulties in managing our growth; restrictive covenants under
our credit facilities; natural catastrophes; the ongoing and
developing COVID-19 pandemic; and tax risks.
The Company has based these forward-looking statements on
factors and assumptions about future events and financial trends
that it believes may affect its financial condition, results of
operations, business strategy and financial needs. Although the
forward-looking statements contained in this press release are
based upon assumptions that management believes are reasonable
based on information currently available to management, there can
be no assurance that actual results will be consistent with these
forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements necessarily
involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties, many of which
are beyond the Company's control, that may cause the Company's or
the industry's actual results, performance, achievements, prospects
and opportunities in future periods to differ materially from those
expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. These
risks and uncertainties include, among other things, the factors
contained in the Company's filings with securities regulators,
including our most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K, our
subsequent Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and Current Reports on
Form 8-K, each of which is available at www.sec.gov,
as well as our filings on SEDAR, available at www.sedar.com. In
particular, we caution you that our forward-looking statements are
subject to the ongoing and developing circumstances related to the
COVID-19 pandemic, which may have a material adverse effect on our
business, operations and future financial results.
When relying on forward-looking statements to make decisions,
the Company cautions readers not to place undue reliance on these
statements, as forward-looking statements involve significant risks
and uncertainties and should not be read as guarantees of future
results, performance, achievements, prospects and opportunities.
The forward-looking statements made in this press release relate
only to events or information as of the date on which the
statements are made in this press release. Except as required by
law, the Company undertakes no obligation to update or revise
publicly any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new
information, future events or otherwise, after the date on which
the statements are made or to reflect the occurrence of
unanticipated events.
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SOURCE Village Farms International, Inc.