MedMen Enterprises Inc., a premier cannabis retailer with operations across the United States, announced plans to sell its Florida assets to Florida-based private company Green Sentry Holdings LLC for $83 million. The cash deal includes the sale of substantially all of MedMen’s Florida-based assets, including its license, dispensaries, inventory and cultivation operations. Additionally, the Company agreed to license its trademarks in the state for a two-year period, subject to termination rights, for a quarterly revenue-based fee. The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions, including applicable regulatory approvals. The deal is expected to close in late April or early May 2022, pending the receipt of all required contractual consents and governmental approvals including the requisite change of ownership approval from the Florida Office of Medical Marijuana Use.

“As MedMen continues to transform its business model and position itself for future growth, our go-forward strategy is going to include an asset-light model that enables us to leverage the power and strength of the MedMen brand,” said Michael Serruya, MedMen’s Chairman and Interim CEO. “We feel confident this model will deliver strong financial results and opportunities for growth across many states and will continue to identify trademark licensing opportunities that will introduce the MedMen brand and retail experience to other markets across the United States and internationally.”



Trulieve Cannabis Corp. announced the opening of a new medical cannabis dispensary in Riverview, Florida. This is Trulieve’s 112th dispensary in Florida and its 161st nationwide.

 

“Trulieve is excited to expand access to medical cannabis in Riverview and build strong relationships in the community,” said Kim Rivers, CEO of Trulieve. “Our company is driven by our commitment to providing tailored, high-quality patient care to as many patients as possible.”



January 28, 2022  — Trulieve Cannabis Corp. (CSE: TRUL) (OTCQX: TCNNF) (“Trulieve” or “the Company”), a leading and top-performing cannabis company in the U.S., today announced that it has closed a second tranche of its previously announced private placement of 8% Senior Secured Notes due 2026 (the “Notes”) for aggregate gross proceeds of US$75.0 million (the “Offering”). Together with the first offering of Notes, which closed on October 6, 2021, Trulieve has issued Notes totaling aggregate gross proceeds of US$425.0 million.

The Notes have the same terms as those issued on October 6, 2021. The press release from the closing of the October 2021 offering can be found here.

Canaccord Genuity Corp. (the “Agent”) acted as sole agent and sole bookrunner in connection with the Offering. The Offering was conducted on a “best-efforts”, private placement basis pursuant to the terms of an agency agreement between the Company and the Agent. The Company has made the required filings to list the Notes on the Canadian Securities Exchange (the “CSE”) following the expiry of the four-month Canadian statutory hold period.

“Trulieve’s strong financial profile and profitable track record afford us access to non-dilutive growth capital at industry leading terms for U.S. cannabis companies with multi-state operations,” said Trulieve Chief Executive Officer, Kim Rivers. “This additional funding provides greater flexibility as we execute on our strategic initiatives in 2022.” 

The Company intends to use the net proceeds of the Offering for capital expenditures and other general corporate purposes.

The offering and sale of the Notes have not been and will not be registered under the Securities ‎Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), or the laws of any other jurisdiction. This news release ‎shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy, nor shall there be any sale ‎of the Notes in any state or jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful.

About Trulieve
Trulieve is an industry leading, vertically integrated cannabis company and multi-state operator in the U.S. operating in 11 states, with leading market positions in Arizona, Florida, and Pennsylvania. Trulieve is poised for accelerated growth and expansion, building scale in retail and distribution in new and existing markets through its hub strategy. By providing innovative, high-quality products across its brand portfolio, Trulieve delivers optimal customer experiences and increases access to cannabis, helping patients and customers to live without limits. Trulieve is listed on the CSE under the symbol TRUL and trades on the OTCQX market under the symbol TCNNF. For more information, please visit Trulieve.com.



By Daniel Casciato

In Florida, one of the premier cannabis testing labs to turn to is Jacksonville-based Americanna Laboratories (Americanna), a laboratory facility with deep roots in agricultural, pharmaceutical and dietary supplements testing. Americanna performs advanced analytical testing for hemp and cannabis products from the farm to consumer using the most trusted and leading instrumentation which provides customers with greater accuracy, reliability, and faster turnaround times.

As one of the first approved by the USDA to be a Hemp Analytical Testing Laboratory in the country and the first in the State of Florida, Americanna conducts all analyses under the strictest of quality programs meeting ISO/IEC 17025, GLP and cGMP standards. Their laboratory facilities are registered with the FDA, EPA, and have been audited by these agencies to ensure compliance with GLP and cGMP standards.

In late December 2021, Americanna was granted regulatory approval from the Florida Department of Health to conduct medical marijuana compliance testing as the state’s most recent Certified Marijuana Testing Laboratory (CMTL). This will allow them to analyze medical marijuana samples from Medical Marijuana Treatment Centers who are providing much needed medicine to patients throughout the state.

The company is now the ninth facility licensed by the Office of Medical Marijuana Use (OMMU) to perform consumer safety and quality control testing in the state of Florida. Under state regulations, medical marijuana testing labs can acquire, possess, test, transport, and lawfully dispose of medical cannabis only if licensed to do so by the OMMU.

“At Americanna, we have set a high standard for ourselves,” says Wyman Dickey, CEO of the company. “It’s great to see our dedicated team achieving, and in many cases, exceeding the goals we have set for them. Attaining our CMTL is another example of how our team surpasses benchmarks and raises future expectations.”

As a result of the certification, Dickey notes they can further expand their quality initiatives.

“Providing an assurance of safety to Florida medical marijuana patients is a serious endeavor,” he adds. “One we heartily understood and accepted when entering this industry. Our passion for the mission took root here in Florida, but it’s only the beginning. We are continuing our work to improve in every facet and expand our reach every day.”

30 Years of Testing Experience as a Minority Owned Business

As a leader in analytical testing services, Americanna Labs has set the standard for testing in the cannabis and hemp industry. The company is dedicated to providing the best, most reliable and accurate testing by bringing ADPEN Laboratories’ 30 years of analytical testing experience in agrochemical, pharmaceutical, nutritional and food safety to the cannabis lab.

The minority and family-owned company’s commitment to the highest laboratory quality standards translates into consumer safety and good science. With over three decades of testing experience, many Fortune 500 companies trust its analytical knowledge and services. In 2018, this led brothers Steven Perez and David Perez to form Americanna Laboratories.

“As an FDA and EPA audited facility, we understand the most stringent quality standard requirements to which our clients must adhere,” explains Steven Perez, Co-Founder and Chief Science Officer. “We save our clients time, money and effort by managing, coordinating and reporting multiple test results under one roof, while providing the highest level of assurance of safety for the end-user.”

Accomplishments Over the Years

Americanna’s experience with FDA regulations provides new manufacturers a trustworthy partner who can advise clients on the importance of method testing and setting specifications for product ingredients and characteristics.

One of its proudest achievements is an ISO/IEC 17025 accreditation by PJLA, an international accreditation body. After earning that ISO certification, Americanna became one of just seven testing labs statewide added to the FDACS approved lab (List of Approved Designated Laboratories) for THC Testing. Florida is known for having one of the most stringent hemp regulatory programs in the country. Licensed hemp growers must have all hemp grown in Florida sampled for THC compliance (not to exceed 0.3%) within 30 days of harvest by one of the seven approved labs on the list.

Last year, the company expanded its scope of ISO accreditation to include more products and offer a one-stop testing solution, which complies with FDA regulations. Tests such as identification, potency, dosage uniformity, homogeneity dissolution and shelf-life along with contaminant testing for pesticides, microbial agents, residual solvents and heavy metals can all be done in-house at its facility.

Looking Ahead

Recently, the company’s method development for testing Delta 8 products has allowed for greater peak separation to be identified and provide greater service to its existing clients.

“Based on the needs of our clients, we had added more testing of dietary supplements which coincides well with our 30+ years of experience as an analytical lab,” says Dickey. “We also offer potency to full panel testing on hemp and cannabis products. This allows clients to first view the potency results prior to tests being run for heavy metals, residual solvents, mycotoxins, and pesticides. This can save a client time and money if a product does not meet their manufactured expectations. Certain clients developing specific formulations and ratios of cannabinoids benefit from our high level of customer service.”

All of these items lead up to a firm footing for the start of 2022, says Dickey. While expansion is on the horizon, he says that the focus will always remain on consumer safety and bringing added value to its clients.

“The Americanna Lab team is poised to make this happen,” he concludes.

For more information, visit americannalaboratories.com.



Trulieve Cannabis Corp. announced an expanded partnership with Connected Cannabis Co., a premier cannabis cultivator. Through this agreement, Trulieve will be the exclusive producer, processor and retailer of Connected branded products throughout Florida.

Connected branded products will be available later this year exclusively at Trulieve’s 111 Florida dispensaries. Trulieve already partners with Connected in Arizona.

“Trulieve is excited about expanding our partnership with Connected as we continue seeking ways to benefit our patients,” said Kim Rivers, CEO of Trulieve. “Connected maintains a portfolio of proprietary top-shelf strains that our customers and patients desire in other markets and we anticipate a similar response in Florida.”

Connected has been building a proprietary genetics portfolio of premium strains and meticulously cultivating cannabis at scale since 2009. With more than a decade of industry experience, they are known as a leading brand in the cannabis space and a pioneer in the industry.