WeedMD Established as First Licensed Producer in Shoppers Drug Mart’s Pilot Traceability Program for Medical Cannabis
Toronto, Canada, June 18, 2019 – WeedMD Inc. (TSX-V:WMD) (OTCQX:WDDMF) (FSE:4WE) (“WeedMD” or the “Company”) a federally-licensed producer and distributor of medical-grade cannabis, is pleased to announce that it is the first licensed producer (LP) to be included in Shoppers Drug Mart (“Shoppers”) and TruTrace Technologies’ (“TruTrace”, formerly BLOCKStrain Technology Corp.) medical cannabis verification pilot project (the “Pilot Project”).
As recently announced by Shoppers and TruTrace at the second annual World Cannabis Congress, the Pilot Project is built on TruTrace’s proprietary StrainSecure™ platform, which focuses on testing and verification to confirm the origin, authenticity and quality assurance of cannabis products. Link here to read. WeedMD has been a medical cannabis supplier to Shoppers since February 2019 and was the first licensed producer to partner with TruTrace and utilize the StrainSecure platform to register its genetics in late 2018.
“We registered 40 of our proprietary cannabis strains with TruTrace last October, recognizing the importance of strain validation as cannabis products advance through the medical and pharmaceutical channels,” said Keith Merker, CEO of WeedMD. “We’re proud to be the first LP to be included in Shoppers and TruTrace’s recently announced pilot project. Patients and their medical practitioners expect traceability and origin assurance of their cannabis strains as it goes a long way to building continued trust and accountability in our industry.”
About TruTrace’s StrainSecure Registration Program
Following the collection, sequencing and registration of the DNA of its cannabis strains, WeedMD became the first licensed producer in the world to incorporate a cannabis authenticity and tracking platform into its sales program. Read press release here.
Under the program, TruTrace’s team collects plant data and performs genomic sequencing in plant batches which are then registered in a blockchain-enabled database for intellectual property protection and strain validation. Known as the StrainSecure, all information gathered from the plants, including their molecular and chemical makeup, can be tracked via the program. Once approved, a quick response (QR) barcode specific to each cannabis batch can then reveal how it was cloned and cultivated, its cannabinoid content and more. A video introducing the WeedMD and TruTrace pilot project can be found here.
About WeedMD Inc.
WeedMD Inc. is the publicly-traded parent company of WeedMD Rx Inc., a federally-licensed producer and distributor of cannabis products for both the medical and adult-use markets. The Company owns and operates two facilities: a 158-acre state-of-the-art greenhouse and outdoor facility located in Strathroy, Ontario and a 26,000 sq. ft. extraction and processing facility in Aylmer, Ontario. The Company currently has 136,000 square feet of licensed indoor and greenhouse production space and is expected to have a total footprint of more than 550,000 square feet of indoor and greenhouse production online in 2019. Additionally, 27 acres or 1,176,000 sq. ft. of outdoor cultivation is licensed and fully operational with first harvest expected in October 2019. WeedMD has a multi-channeled distribution strategy that includes selling directly to medical patients, strategic relationships across the seniors’ market and supply agreements with Shoppers Drug Mart as well as six provincial distribution agencies where WeedMD’s adult-use brand Color Cannabis is sold.
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For further information, please contact:
For Investor Enquiries:
Valter Pinto
Managing Director
KCSA Strategic Communications
1-212-896-1254
weedmd@kcsa.com
For Media Enquiries:
Marianella delaBarrera
VP, Communications & Corporate Affairs
416-897-6644
marianella@weedmd.com
All product images and labels are provided for information and illustrative purposes only, and do not represent the actual cannabis product, product label, or its appearance.
Forward Looking Information
This press release contains "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation which are based upon WeedMD's current internal expectations, estimates, projections, assumptions and beliefs and views of future events. Forward-looking information can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "expect", "likely", "may", "will", "should", "intend", "anticipate", "potential", "proposed", "estimate" and other similar words, including negative and grammatical variations thereof, or statements that certain events or conditions "may", "would" or "will" happen, or by discussions of strategy.
The forward-looking information in this news release is based upon the expectations, estimates, projections, assumptions and views of future events which management believes to be reasonable in the circumstances. Forward-looking information includes estimates, plans, expectations, opinions, forecasts, projections, targets, guidance or other statements that are not statements of fact. Forward-looking information in this news release include, but are not limited to, statements with respect to internal expectations, expectations with respect to actual production volumes, expectations for future growing capacity and the completion of any capital project or expansions. Forward-looking information necessarily involve known and unknown risks, including, without limitation, risks associated with general economic conditions; adverse industry events; loss of markets; future legislative and regulatory developments; inability to access sufficient capital from internal and external sources, and/or inability to access sufficient capital on favourable terms; the cannabis industry in Canada generally; the ability of WeedMD to implement its business strategies; competition; crop failure; and other risks.
Any forward-looking information speaks only as of the date on which it is made, and, except as required by law, WeedMD does not undertake any obligation to update or revise any forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. New factors emerge from time to time, and it is not possible for WeedMD to predict all such factors. When considering this forward-looking information, readers should keep in mind the risk factors and other cautionary statements in WeedMD's Annual Information Form dated December 13, 2017 (the "AIF") and other disclosure documents of WeedMD filed with the applicable Canadian securities regulatory authorities on SEDAR at www.sedar.com. The risk factors and other factors noted in the AIF and other disclosure documents could cause actual events or results to differ materially from those described in any forward-looking information.
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