ICC recreational buyers increased by 156% in 21 days!!ICC International Cannabis Corporation Provides Update on Recreational Cannabis Sales in Uruguay
Highlights: - Uruguayan registered recreational buyers increased by 156% in 21 days, since launch of local recreational sales - ICC increases production square footage utilization in its 70,656 square foot recreational greenhouse facility by 43%, reaching 100% utilization - ICC announces 150% increase in yearly recreational production target to an expected 5,000kg per annum from current 2,000kg per annum
VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA--(Marketwired - Aug. 9, 2017) -ICC International Cannabis Corporation ("ICC" or the "Company") (TSX VENTURE:ICC), a fully licensed producer and distributor of recreational and medical cannabis and cannabinoid extracts ("CBD") in Uruguay, is pleased to provide an update on its recent sales activities.
Recreational Cannabis Sales Update:
ICC, South America's first fully licensed and government approved producer and distributor of recreational cannabis commenced sales on July 19, 2017 when it began to distribute its two recreational cannabis products (ALFA I and BETA I) via sixteen approved pharmacies in Uruguay. Over 4,500 authorized purchasers had registered prior to the July 19, 2017 launch date, and since then, an additional 7,008 purchasers have registered, representing a 156% increase of registered recreational buyers in a 21-day period. Furthermore, four new pharmacies have begun the application process and ten more have shown interest in doing so.
"The number of registered users as purchasers to access the psychoactive cannabis of non-medical use in pharmacies doubled, amounting today to 11,508 qualified. New requests for adhesion of pharmacies to the system are being processed, so that the number of access points in different parts of the country will increase progressively"published by the Instituto de Regulacion y Control de Cannabis ("IRCCA"), the regulatory body overseeing the cannabis industry in Uruguay.
Within the first two weeks of non-medical sales, the Company received additional product orders from IRCCA and its approved pharmacies for a total of 64kg, translating to 12,800 packages of 5 gram ALFA I and BETA I products. Although a bi-weekly replenishment of stock was previously agreed to by the Company and IRCCA, due to the high demand, four additional deliveries had to be made in this two week time period. The recreational market in Uruguay is expected to reach a potential 160,000 registered buyers, with each registrant able to purchase up to 40 grams of recreational cannabis per month. The Company continues to expand its production output in order to meet expected ongoing recreational sales demand.
"ICC continues to hit new corporate milestones, and remains focused on further executing on our key strategic growth initiatives. ICC has quickly transitioned from being a development stage company, to becoming a fully licensed and approved recreational and medical cannabis producer in Uruguay," stated Alejandro Antalich, CEO of ICC.
The Company also reports it has increased its recreational production footprint by 43% or 21,500 square feet. The 70,656 square foot state-of-the-art greenhouse located in San Jos, Uruguay is now fully utilized and exclusively dedicated to recreational cultivation and production. In addition, the Company has improved its growing processes, crop drying systems and storage facilities, which it believes will translate to significant yield improvements, thus warranting a new 12-month production target of an expected 5,000kg.
"At this stage, we are very pleased with the results of our recreational cannabis business and we believe it is a foundational part of ICC that complements our goal of also being a high volume and low cost producer of CBD for export purposes," stated Alejandro Antalich, CEO of ICC.