Okanagan Falls cannabis facility to phase in production

OKANAGAN FALLS – Sunniva Canada's construction of a medical marijuana facility in Okanagan Falls is continuing, but on a scaled back basis.

Sunniva spokesperson Rob Knowles says the Okanagan Falls operation has been modified in that it has been downsized to a smaller modular phase that will hopefully allow them to get a cultivation licence more quickly.

Sunniva originally planned a 740,000 square foot greenhouse on its 126-acre Okanagan Falls property, site of the former Okanagan Falls Weyerhaeuser sawmill.

Construction came to a sudden halt in October to allow the company time to spin out its Canadian assets.

Instead of the original planned production of 100,000 kg of premium medical cannabis and 25,000 kg of “trim,” the company now plans to ramp up cultivation through a series of modules with an initial target production of 5,000 kg.

The first cultivation modules are expected to reach the site in January, 2019, with first harvest expected in the third quarter next year.

Knowles says the new phased in approach will require less than $1.5 million to construct. Initial production will serve 20,000 patients in 2019, growing to 50,000 patients in 2020. He added the move is a business strategy shift from being a wholesaler to focussing on direct-to-patient medicinal cannabis.

Future production increases will come through phased development of the Okanagan Falls facility.

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