Health Canada suspends Canntrust and Evergreen licenses

CannTrust announced having received a notice of license suspension from Health Canada in response due to the non-compliance of its production and cultivation facilities.

«Health Canada inspectors issued suspension notices to CannTrust Inc. today and are seizing and holding all cannabis products at both sites,» said Tammy Jarbeau, a spokesperson for the government agency, in a Email to MJBiz Daily.

«Health Canada will continue to closely monitor the actions taken by CannTrust Inc. and will reassess the status of the company’s license as new information becomes available,» Mr. Jarbeau added. «Health Canada may also determine that additional compliance and enforcement measures are warranted.»

CannTrust For now, it retains the right to cultivate and harvest its existing crops, but not to plant new ones or sell cannabis.

Side Evergreen Medical Supply, Health Canada has suspended Evergreen’s ability to «cultivate, process, and sell cannabis, as well as fresh and dried cannabis plants and seeds,» as reported by Bloomberg.

«On August 9, Health Canada suspended the licenses of’Evergreen Medicinal Supply »in order to protect public health and safety, particularly to prevent cannabis from being diverted to the illegal market due to noncompliance with certain provisions of the Cannabis Act and the Cannabis Regulations," explained Tammy Jarbeau.

Evergreen, a British Columbia-based cannabis producer, responded to the suspension of its license by saying it is «working on corrective measures.».

Health Canada inspectors conducted an unannounced inspection at the company’s facility in Saanichton, British Columbia, in April. The inspection revealed «a number of critical findings and an overall non-compliant rating» related to the company’s production practices, record-keeping, inventory control, and compliance with licensing requirements. The company also reportedly has unpaid rent and an expired lease.

Evergreen has received its license to sell medical marijuana in March 2017, with the primary goal of producing cannabis for other licensed growers. Evergreen operates a 600-square-meter facility and had planned to triple its growing area.