Company plans cultivation and processing facility in San Juan area and six dispensaries throughout island
MINNEAPOLIS, June 20, 2019 /PRNewswire/ — Vireo Health International, Inc. (“Vireo” or the “Company”) (CSE: VREO), a leading physician-led, science-focused multi-state cannabis company, today announced the acquisition of medical cannabis licenses in the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. The acquisition is comprised of pre-approvals for licenses to cultivate, process, and sell cannabis products and operate up to six dispensaries. This transaction marks the eleventh market in which Vireo is licensed to grow, manufacture, or sell cannabis products.
Vireo continues to seek unique opportunities to drive our science-focused approach into larger markets. We are thrilled to expand into the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, one of the largest pharmaceutical hubs in the world.
Chief Executive Officer, Kyle Kingsley, M.D.
This expansion will give us access to the island’s deep pool of talented professionals, create a wide variety of jobs, and allow us to help many more patients.
Vireo has leased a 40,000 square-foot former Pfizer facility in the Cruce Dávila Business Park, located in Barceloneta, Puerto Rico to house its cultivation and processing operations. The Company also plans to launch six “Green Goods” dispensaries throughout the island in Arecibo, Bayamón, Caguas, Guaynabo, Guayama, and Hormigueros.
Vireo Health of Puerto Rico will be led by Christian Gonzalez, a native of the island with a degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Puerto Rico Mayagüez, who brings more than 15 years of experience in cannabis, medical device, pharmaceutical, and aerospace/defense manufacturing. Gonzalez currently serves as the general manager of Vireo Health of Pennsylvania, where he oversees the company’s state-of-the art cultivation and processing facility.
“It is an honor to lead Vireo’s efforts here in Puerto Rico,” said Mr. Gonzalez. “The island has faced many challenges since Hurricane Maria. I am humbled by the opportunity to return home and contribute to rebuilding the local economy.”
On July 9, 2017, Puerto Rico passed the MEDICINAL Act, which created the Medical Cannabis Regulatory Board and allowed for only medical use of cannabis. In Puerto Rico’s medical cannabis program there are 27 qualifying conditions for which an authorized physician can prescribe cannabis. There are currently 72,000 patients enrolled in the program and the Department of Health set a goal of adding 100,000 more new patients by the end of the year.
This transaction, the agreement for which was previously disclosed in the Company’s CSE listing statement, represents Vireo Health’s fifth acquisition since it began trading on the Canadian Securities Exchange under the ticker symbol “VREO.” Vireo Health now has more than 300 employees in Puerto Rico and ten U.S. states: Arizona, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Nevada, New Mexico, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Rhode Island.
About Vireo Health International, Inc.
Vireo Health International, Inc.’s mission is to build the cannabis company of the future by bringing the best of medicine, engineering and science to the cannabis industry. Vireo’s physician-led team of more than 300 employees provides best-in-class cannabis products and customer experience. Vireo cultivates cannabis in environmentally friendly greenhouses, manufactures pharmaceutical-grade cannabis extracts, and sells its products at both company-owned and third-party dispensaries. The Company currently is licensed in eleven markets including Arizona, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Mexico, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, and Rhode Island. For more information about the company, please visit www.vireohealth.com.
