EVEREST BIOPHARMA Gains COR Approval From HEALTH CANADA for Same Category of Cannabis Extraction Licence as Competitors

KELOWNA, British Columbia, May 22, 2019 (Newswire.com) - ​​​Everest BioPharma International Inc. (the “Company” or “Everest BioPharma”) formerly Everest Distribution Ltd., received, in April 2019, its “Certificate of Readiness” (“COR”) from Health Canada allowing the Company to complete the build-out of its state-of-the art cannabis extraction systems in its Kelowna, BC company-owned plant. The first sales of full spectrum cannabis oil are expected in September, 2019. Recent prices by competitors, MediPharm Labs and Valens GroWorks, have yielded in excess of C$1.00 per gram from long-term tolling agreements with Canadian licenced producers.

Everest BioPharma has been funded to date by its founders who have a unique set of skills and vast experience in the cultivation, processing, testing and analysis of cannabis, both marijuana and hemp.

Nigel Boast, President and CEO of Everest BioPharma stated, “Our 'Certificate of Readiness,' from Health Canada for a standard processing licence, when in full force and effect, will allow Everest to fully implement our business plan which firstly focuses on producing extracted, full spectrum marijuana oil currently used in tinctures and soft gels in Canada. Soon after Health Canada approves new laws in October 2019, our products will include edibles, vapes, creams, lotions, pet and animal products (all categorized as edibles) and the fastest growing market segments in so-called recreational states in the USA. In Europe and the USA those products, with a foundation of CBD derived from HEMP, are in exponential demand. In Canada, legalized marijuana and CBD edible products are not yet legal to sell. Our product launch is timed to catch the predictable wave of edible products which will hit the market in late 2019. Unique to our 'full processing licence,' is our ability  to import and export cannabis and cannabis extracts for medical purposes to foreign markets, as well as to sell to all Canadian licensees.”

Rob Hatch, COO of Everest BioPharma further stated, “My background is growing cannabis and developing and processing consumer products which will be the next wave as the end of the prohibition against cannabis sweeps the globe. Nigel Boast, our president and CEO, has a unique background with a degree in biochemistry and an MBA. He is also an attorney, who is a pioneer in assisting Canadians to enter the cannabis business by facilitating the acquisitions of cannabis cultivation and processing licenses, through the very complicated approval process of Health Canada.

“We put together a full team covering all aspects of financial, regulatory, legal, production, marketing, sales and distribution, in order to carve a significant place in the rapidly expanding cannabis business across Canada and now globally. We have a business plan that will allow us to continue to add to our oil extraction business and serve the significant needs of licenced producers and the edible product purveyors which will represent the next phase of the cannabis growth phenomenon. The edibles business will be the fastest growing part of the industry and Everest is well positioned to climb to the pinnacle of that phenomenon.”

Nigel further stated, “We have been approached with offers of financing including a reverse takeover prior to listing the company publicly and we are still waiting for parties to submit LOIs for funding. We will continue to analyze all proposals from investment bankers and accredited investors, both past and future, since timing is of the essence in order to capture the next wave of the cannabis and hemp markets. The proceeds of any financing from outside investors will allow us to accelerate our expansion of our production capacity and the funding necessary to getting a sales licence and export licences that will allow us to sell our products into both the medical and recreational cannabis markets globally.”

Nigel further stated, “We are aware of the leadership position of our competitors  Medipharma Labs and Valens GroWorks, our neighbours in Kelowna, BC. The new state-of-the-art ethanol based high throughput oil extraction equipment which we are installing in our Kelowna plant will allow us to have productive capacity approaching the same levels as our two competitors that have published oil extraction capacity of 250,000 kg and 240,000 kg respectively. Everest BioPharma’s industry rated capacity is163,636 kg of raw material production, at a tolling or extraction service fee of $1 per gram, will create a cash flow of $163 million per annum. This tolling service fee model requires an LP to deliver the cannabis biomass to be processed by us, the processor, at no cost. When Everest buys biomass and processes it for sale into the open market,  current prices would yield 10 times that amount, or $10 per gram of finished full spectrum oil. This dual strategy is the backbone of the Everest business model. Health Canada’s approval of edibles for sale is anticipated for October 2019 and it is expected that open market pricing will command these substantial premiums. Everest intends to solicit edible brand developers and processors for collaboration in producing products for the Canadian and global markets. The company has international expertise, therefore, has been negotiating with foreign producers of raw material, which will be available for import because of the conditions of the Everest 'standard processing licence.'”

Everest is installing large capacity ethanol-based extraction equipment which will allow it to produce various types of end products such as distillates, crude oil, high terpene and full spectrum extracts currently used in tinctures and shortly edibles, in the  recreational markets, once approved in October 2019.  The large-scale volume (1000 kg per day) ethanol system which can run 365 days of the year, will give Everest a huge advantage over its competitors, who currently have first generation equipment with substantially limited productive capacity.

About Everest Bio Pharma International Inc.

Everest BioPharma is a private company that has recently received its “Certificate of Readiness” (COR) from Health Canada and it ready to take advantage of the value-added segment of the Canadian cannabis industry; by establishing a fully licenced cannabis product development and processing business. Established and run in Kelowna, British Columbia, its highly skilled team comprising an experienced President and CEO Nigel Boast (B.Sc., LLB, MBA, LSX.), COO Robert Hatch (B.Sc. (Hons)) and CFO Ben Leboe (BCom, CMC, CA/CPA (Ret.)) and a Canadian analytical chemist. (B.Sc Hons. Analytical chemistry).

Everest BioPharma is focused on the extraction business and the production and sale of value-added goods as well as the sale of its extraction services to other Canadian Cannabis Companies. Everest BioPharma’s “standard processing licence” permits the processing of both cannabis THC and CBD from hemp. CBD has the therapeutic effects of cannabis without the intoxication, or “high”, associated with THC prevalent cannabis. The company is focused on establishing a stand-alone cannabis processing facility to take advantage of pent-up demand in the new legal recreational market. This was approved in Canada on October 17, 2018. Everest will expand its operations for increased capacity beginning Q2 2020, giving Everest the capacity favorably positioned against its largest competitors.

For more information, please visit https://everestdistribution.ca

For further information, please contact:

Nigel Boast

President & CEO
Everest BioPharma International Inc.
Telephone: 778-581-4003​​

Source: Everest BioPharma International Inc.