Old Kraft plant has the bones, water, hydro and 401 location to make it a winner

Video by Frank Moses: Article & Images by Valerie MacDonald

Large manufacturing facilities that have been lying dormant don’t get the kind of new life that is being breathed into the former Kraft plant in Cobourg.

Already more hiring is underway at FV Pharma Inc. with the hydroponic, marijuana-growing plant now needing packagers, its new president Sara May said in an interview during Friday’s media tour.

FV Pharma has been growing clones for months at 520 William Street and is getting ready to ship product with a workforce of 25. With the April 18 announcement of Health Canada awarding the company a full sales licence, personal for customer service will be needed too, May said.

Hiring is being done through the web company, www.indeed.ca.

By 2021, the facility is expecting to employ 1,500 states a media release from MP Kim Rudd’s office, reiterating a company prediction of several years ago that FV Pharma would become a major local employer.

The company is on the “cutting edge” of the marijuana development industry and is elevating the “job opportunities and diversity” in this community, Rudd said during the tour Friday celebrating her government awarding the sales licence through Health Canada. She noted that it is also participating in marijuana research with the University of Israel.

(L-R) Zeeshan Saeed and Sara May

The president of the parent company, FSD Pharma, Zeeshan Saeed led a large contingent of media and politicians on a tour through areas of the former Kraft plant that will house – in phases- additional areas of production. He pointed out two 110,000 vacant square feet sections of the plant, divided by a wall, that will be converted in the future. The tour included shipping areas and where the rail line comes into the plant.

Viewers saw the growing operations via a wall of monitors in the conference room.

May told the News Now Network she expects production will be increased in 25,000 to 50,000-square-foot “chunks” as the company works with the Town of Cobourg acquiring building permits.

Agreeing that development will take a “phased approach,” she said the company’s initial concern will be to restore the historic Certo building and other buildings that need to be made “physically sound.”

One of the first investors in the project, Adnan Bashir, called the plant and the Town of Cobourg “logically the best location” because it is near to the 401, close to Toronto and has a strong food-grade water supply and hydro substation.

With this project, “Cobourg is in the midst,” said Cobourg Mayor John Henderson commenting on the expanding market of health care that is coming to rely on the use of cannabis products. “I have no doubt you will be successful.”

Co-project partner, Anthony Durkacz of First Republic Capital said they would “closely work with Cobourg.”

FSD Pharma’s plan is to “specialize in providing recreational and medical dried cannabis, capsules and other forms of cannabis as the Government of Canada makes more forms of the product legal for sale and consumption,” states a media release.

(L-R)Anthony Durkac, MP Kim Rudd, Mayor John Henderson

While the former Certo building (fronting Ontario Street and readily identified with its columns) will be restored, it will not be opening as a retail outlet any time soon May said when asked for an update on this project which is outside of its medical marijuana licence.

The province has made changes to the process of opening retail outlets and “we still have to apply,” she said.

“First, we will be creating a space plan (for the whole plant),” she said. The goal is to have that completed by June 7.