DATA SURGE
From the editor
By Mari-Len De Guzman
Smart systems for growth
The phrase “artificial intelligence” can conjure up visions of robots and machines taking over the world in an apocalyptic setting, driving humankind to extinction. A scary thought to some who feel technology has hijacked our way of life.
Putting aside the paranoia, artificial intelligence (AI) and smart systems can have the potential to change the way businesses operate. Harnessing the power of this technology can give any organization a competitive advantage. Machine learning sy stems for AI are already being used in varying degrees in different major industries, such as manufacturing, automotive, oil and gas, even in aquaculture.
With the cannabis industry poised to become one of the fastest growing industries in Canada, and expected to be worth $5 billion by 2021, technology adaption will be key to this growth. It appears, however, that technology had not been top-of-mind for many companies. In fact, according to an analysis by Toronto-based professional services firm PWC Canada, “much of the technology used by cannabis operators today is rudimentary, unscalable and unsustainable.”
There was a mad rush to get to market and get produc -
tion and business operations going in time for federal legalization. Huge capital resources mostly favoured building production facilities and setting up state-of-theart physical security systems, and very little attention had been given to technologies that can potentially provide strategic advantages to an organization.
“Much of the technology used by cannabis operators today is rudimentary, unscalable and unsustainable.”
Imagine being able to look at your company’s overall operations – from selecting genetics and operating your grow rooms to marketing and packaging your products –and be able to generate predictive models that can tell y ou what your company’s bottom-line will look like a year from now, or what tweaks you need to make in your cultivation process to optimize your output, or which brands and target market you should be focusing your marketing dollars on.
The key to all this is your data and adapting technology that can harness all the intelligence that can be gathered from the vast amount of data
being generated across all aspects of the business operations. Predictive analytics, automation, remote management and smart control systems are some of the new technologies that are gaining traction in other industries and can provide significant benefits to the cannabis industry.
Our cover story (page 42) focuses on big data’s role in shaping the cannabis industry and how organizations and consumers are using data to serve their purposes. This feature is a very good insight on how this industry can leverage big data to gain market intelligence, improve operational efficiencies, enhance cultivation practices and so much more. But this story barely scratches the surface of the immense power big data can have for those willing to spend the time and resources to discover its potential.
N ow that the mad rush seems to be slowing down, and as cannabis companies start to take stock of their revenues and expenditures, perhaps it’s time to look at technologies that can enhance your business viability.
Artificial intelligence and smart technologies were not designed to wipe out humankind. What they can eliminate are inefficient, wasteful, unsustainable business processes.
September/October 2019 Vol. 3, No. 5 growopportunity.ca
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Strainprint launches survey to aid new clinical research
Strainprint Technologies Ltd. said the rst step to world-leading cannabis research has begun with the launch of its custom survey on the e ects of cannabis for endometriosis su erers.
The Toronto-based cannabis data company is collaborating with Gynica and Lumir Lab in Israel to conduct the world’s rst international clinical study on cannabis treatments for endometriosis. On Aug. 7, Strainprint announced an online questionnaire about how women with endometriosis are using cannabis to treat their symptoms.
Strainprint’s vice-president of research
Michelle Arbus said many of Strainprint’s app users and community members are endometriosis su erers.
The data gathered from the app users will give the research team a detailed picture of this practice.
“We believe many women will be eager to take part in this ground-breaking research,” said Arbus in a statement.
“Our online Strainprint Community already provides a safe space to discuss endometriosis and cannabis treatment with fellow su erers, and through this questionnaire… They will now have a chance to be pioneers in a study that could make medical history by helping others not only manage their symptoms, but also greatly improve their quality of life.”
The questionnaire was developed in partnership with Gynica’s senior scientist, Dr. Sari Prutchi Sagiv and will be accessible through an exclusive group on the Strainprint platform.
“Our objective is to recruit su ering candidates to explore cannabis as a viable therapy in the hopes of developing improved diagnostics and treatments to those who are undertreated by current solutions,” said Moshe Hod, president of the European Association of Perinatal Medicine and professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Tel Aviv University medical school.
Flowr gets Health Canada greenlight for outdoor cultivation
The Flowr Corporation has received a second site cultivation licence from Health Canada for its Flowr Forest project. The company has begun transplanting select cultivars and is on track for a first harvest in the fourth quarter of 2019. Once fully operational, Flowr Forest is expected to produce around 10,000 kilograms per year.
CannTrust conundrum
The Ontario Securities Commission has launched a joint investigation with the RCMP to examine unlicensed growing at CannTrust’s greenhouse facility. This comes as the licensed producer faces Health Canada probe for violations of the Cannabis Act, which could result in suspension or termination of licence and nes up to $1 million.
Flowr Forest, located on the company’s Kelowna, B.C. campus, has 42 greenhouses totaling 189,000 square feet situated within a total licensed outdoor grow area of more than 530,000 square feet. The outdoor cultivation area planted is expected to be 150,000 square feet and can be expanded to include an incremental 160,000 square feet. The company in total has over 750,000 square feet dedicated to Flowr Forest’s current and future operations.
“We are extremely pleased to have a cultivation license for Flowr Forest in time to deliver production in 2019,” said Vinay Tolia, Flowr’s chief executive officer. “Getting a second site license required a tremendous effort from our whole team as well as working collaboratively with Health Canada to get to this stage in a timely manner. All site work
was already complete, so we are in the process of transplanting cultivars and expect an additional 10,000 kilograms of production on top of what we will produce at our Kelowna 1 indoor facility.”
Flowr’s chief executive added that having his company’s outdoor, greenhouse and indoor facilities in one location is key to “driving efficiency and optimization” in Flowr’s Canadian operations.
Flowr said it remains committed to producing differentiated products and its dried flower products will continue to be sourced exclusively from its indoor facilities in Kelowna. Cannabis cultivated within Flowr Forest, on the other hand, will support its forthcoming extract business.
The company expects its first new product launch to be a live resin vape offering. Live resins are generated through specific and proprietary harvest, processing and extraction systems which together optimally preserve the full range of cannabinoids and aromatic characteristics of the source plant. The result is a cannabis concentrate with richly aromatic terpene profiles, Flowr said.
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Members of NICHE Canada panel (L-R): Terry Lake, Former B.C. Health and current VP at Hexo Corp.; Comedian Norm Alconcel; Jill Garcia, digital marketing specialist, The Supreme Cannabis Company; Mari-Len De Guzman, editor of Grow Opportunity; Abigail Sampson, director, NICHE Canada; and Rannie Turingan, community engagement manager, The Flowr Corporation
NICHE Canada launches cannabis education dialogue series
NICHE Canada’s rst cannabis education dialogue series kicked o with an industry panel on the importance of cannabis education for Canada’s Filipino community.
“While I can say that in my immediate Filipino community – in my family, in my circle – the perception hasn’t changed a whole lot, I’ve been more con dent saying that I’ve found a space in the cannabis industry and doing meaningful work,” said panelist Abigail Sampson, director of the National Institute for Cannabis Health and Education (NICHE) Canada, a not-for-pro t corporation that supports the development and public policy research tied to the legalization of cannabis in Canada.
An important part of this mandate, said Sampson, is making research and information accessible to immigrant and newcomer communities across the country. “Cannabis & the Filipinx Community” was the inaugural event of NICHE Canada’s community dialogue series.
Jill Garcia is a digital marketing specialist at Supreme Cannabis Company. “For a long time, I never spoke about smoking cannabis or using cannabis, and a er legalization, I introduced my mom to CBD and she’s (now) a rm believer in it,” she said.
Perception about cannabis has so ened in her immediate circle because of her family’s own curiosity about her job, said Mari-Len De Guzman, editor of Grow Opportunity. “The conversation really opens up when you start talking about the medical bene ts of CBD and other strains,” said De Guzman.
With the Canadian government investing $15.2 million for cannabis public education and awareness, De Guzman said she hopes more resources will be made available soon for educating consumers.
Former B.C. Health Minister and current vice-president for corporate social responsibility at Hexo Corp. Terry Lake moderated the panel. - JEAN KO DIN
Pardon now possible for pot possession
MONTREAL – Canadians with criminal records for simple pot possession can now apply for a pardon free of cost and with no mandatory five-year waiting period, but they’ll have to finish their sentence first, federal Justice Minister David Lametti announced Aug. 1.
Lametti told reporters the government’s Bill C-93, adopted last June, has officially come into force, saying it was the next logical step after the government legalized cannabis consumption across Canada last October.
Canadians with criminal records for possessing up to 30 grams of marijuana will no longer have to wait five years after completing their sentence to apply for a pardon, nor must they pay the usual $631 fee to apply.
But anyone still serving a sentence for simple pot possession will have to wait, Lametti said.
“To my understanding no one is actually sitting in jail as a result of a conviction for possession of cannabis,” he said. But some Canadians might still have community service obligations or other requirements connected to a conviction, he added.
A pardon, or record suspension, means the criminal record in question is kept strictly separate from other records and that it may be disclosed only in certain circumstances.
According to federal Justice Minister David Lametti, an estimated 250,000 Canadians have convictions related to cannabis possession.
A pardoned conviction will not appear on the Canadian Police Information Centre – or CPIC – database, which is used by U.S. border officials. But a pardon will not erase information about Canadians already in U.S.-controlled databases, meaning people with criminal records for cannabis possession could still face travel problems.
The minister said the new law is “particularly significant for many in minority communities – including black and Indigenous Canadians – who have been disproportionately affected by the enforcement of previous cannabis laws.” But a pardon is not an expungement, which involves having a conviction completely wiped off the books, and activists have criticized the law for not going far enough, saying a criminal record can be reinstated if it is not expunged.
Reacting to the news, the Congress of Aboriginal Peoples said this was a “small step in the right direction.” National Chief Robert Bertrand said in a statement that the criminal records should be expunged.
“ The issue of simple cannabis possession has had negative effects on Indigenous people in this country and has caused great harm to families and closed many opportunities for employment,” he said in a statement.
– The Canadian Press