POT PRODUCTION PROPOSAL
A pot full of jobs might one day start to grow in Port Hawkesbury.
A pot full of jobs might one day start to grow in Port Hawkesbury.
Fabian Henry, founder and director of Breton Canna Pharms Ltd., has applied to Health Canada to be a licensed producer under the Cannabis Act to produce medical and adult recreational cannabis in Port Hawkesbury.
“We will be the largest cannabis producer on Cape Breton Island, Canada’s number one Island,” he said, in anticipation of being awarded a licence.
Henry, 38, formerly of Scotchtown and now of Fredericton, N.B., said their licence would allow them to grow 12,500 kilograms of cannabis a year for medical and adult recreational use with prices ranging from $5$8.50 per gram.
“We should have our cultivation licence by April of next year and that will allow us to start growing,” he said.
“It should bring 50-100 jobs. At full production it should be upwards of 100 jobs. We are proud to be doing this in Cape Breton, for sure.”
On July 31, Henry took over the former call centre building at 24 Queen St. Extension in Port Hawkesbury.
“We are currently the largest applicant with our 75,000 sq. ft., 14-acre property.”
The facility is only 500 metres from an RCMP station.
“It couldn’t be in a better, more secure location,” he added.
Henry’s background in cannabis is extensive and well-known.
In 2013 Henry and Mike Southwell, both Canadian Forces veterans, founded the company Marijuana for Trauma — now Canada House Clinics — with a mission to help alleviate the suffering of veterans struggling with their operational stress injuries. After completing a reverse takeover (RTO) with licensed producer Abba Medix in 2016, Fabian donated 100 per cent of his ownership to a charity for veterans called Global Alliance Foundation Fund.
“I donated 100 per cent of my ownership of the company I created so I could look my fellow veterans in the face and they know I’m trying to do something good for them and not just trying to make money. When you come from Scotchtown you do those things. We didn’t have much growing up.”
Henry said when he got out of the business in 2016 he knew there was going to be a need for a licensed producer to secure a supply for medical patients and that’s when he began preparing for his current venture.
“I’m focused on helping veterans. There’s enough veterans in this country that will focus on a lifetime of helping.”
Henry said the adult recreation market has taken medical marijuana — the good medicine — away from patients.
“Because they are getting more money for the recreational product, the medical patient is going to suffer,” he said.
“There’s a shortage in supply right now and we are going to focus on the medical side, the research and development side and especially certain strains for specific ailments such as PTSD. We’re not ignoring the adult use market, there just needs to be some emphasis on medicine.”
Henry said their leadership team of experienced industry experts includes Inverness County councillor Jim Mustard, Rory MacEachern and Murray Ryan.
There are longtime connections.
“Jim Mustard is my neighbour in Eygpt Falls, I played hockey with Rory’s brother,” said Henry. “We’re all Cape Bretoners, so it’s beautiful.”
In the meantime, the former call centre building has since been gutted and is now ready for production of cannabis.
“We are looking to start the build-out by the end of November,” he said.
“The inside is going to be all cannabis.”
The company is now working on raising $15,000,000 to build the facility. Henry said currently their goal for the moment is raising $2 million by the end of November for the initial first phase of their build-out to get their cultivation licence.
“We have a lot of interest in the first phase and, to be honest it, might even be closed by Thursday,” he said.
“We aren’t going to say ‘no’, though, if someone still wants to invest.”
Phase two will involve a $6-million investment and include an additional 22,000 sq. ft. and phase three a $7-million investment for the remainder of the 75,000 sq. ft. building.
The company says they will be using cutting-edge technolgy to track and manage supply to eliminate human error from shipping direct to patient and to manage supply and back up supply to fit medical groups’ needs, especially in the field of mental health.
There is also a second company going through the application process in Cape Breton. In a story in the Cape Breton Post on Sept. 28, David Burton, president and co-founder of Headland, said he is working on construction of a cannabis production facility at the light industrial park in Lennox Passage.
If licensed, the Halifax-based company will grow a “high-end craft brand” of cannabis for medical and recreational purposes
It’s expected 43 jobs will be filled locally, with positions ranging from department co-ordinators, to managers, greenhouse technicians and security staff.