Specialist outdoor Canadian cannabis grower and processor Christina Lake Cannabis Corp (CSE:CLC), has begun production of cannabis-derived crude oil at its site in Canada. It is using a brand new CO2-based extraction system Vitalis, which is compliant with Good Manufacturing Practices.
Christina Lake also announced that it was expanding its team of extraction specialists, with further hires from the resources and life sciences sectors.
We have been following Christina Lake Cannabis since mid-December, as the company completes extraction and processing of its existing 2020 outdoor cannabis harvest. It specialises in growing cannabis strains at a cheaper price point than indoor growers in Canada, as it anticipates the opening up of the medical cannabis markets in the US and Europe.
As part of its operation, which has seen over 30 acres of prime Canadian farmland come under cannabis cultivation, Christina Lake has also been working on the construction of cutting-edge, on site processing facilities, which have allowed it manufacture the high grade oils required by the medical and wellness markets.
Over 300kg of cannabis oil produced in a matter of weeks
Over 300kg of crude oil has now been produced within a matter of weeks. The objective is to provide a consistent supply of full spectrum oils with terpenes derived from unique strains of cannabis grown outdoors by sunlight.
The company said that it was confident that it will have the ability to maintain a robust rate of oil extraction from what it is calling an exceptional 2020 harvest of cannabis. It says this could potentially be continued into subsequent growing seasons.
“The global demand for cannabis extracts such as oils, distillates, isolates, and terpenes is tremendous, especially for medicinal applications,” explained Joel Dumaresq, CEO of Christina Lake Cannabis. “We believe that with CLC’s fully integrated operations in cultivating, processing, and extracting outdoor-grown cannabis using the Vitalis System which meets GMP standards, we have the resources to capture much of this demand.”
Christina Lake’s facility consists of a 32-acre property, which includes over 950,000 square feet of outdoor grow space, offices, propagation and drying rooms, research facilities, and a facility dedicated to processing and extraction. CLC also owns a 99-acre plot of land adjoining its principal 32-acre site, which enables it to grow at a much larger scale.
Outdoor cultivation specialist with scope for expansion
Christina Lake cultivates cannabis using strains specifically developed for outdoor cultivation and in its inaugural harvest year produced 32,500 kg (71,650 lb) on its existing facility before developing an adjacent 99-acre expansion property. Such an expansion will ultimately bring CLC’s annual cultivation footprint to over 4.35 million square feet, which could enable at least 150,000 kg (330,693 lb) of low-cost, high-quality, sun-grown cannabis to be produced annually.
Christina Lake is well-positioned to benefit from growth in demand for cannabis-derived products. We anticipate that the new Biden administration will continue to push forward with liberalisation measures for the distribution of medical cannabis products in the US in 2021, in addition to which we also expect further opening up of the European market for cannabis products. Christina Lake can produce oils that comply with the strict criteria being imposed on these ‘first wave’ products by regulators, as well as having the scope to scale up its 2021 production at a much lower price point than indoor growers.
