BevCanna Enterprises Inc (CSE:BEV) (OTCMKTS:BVNNF) is a dominant player in the cannabis-infused beverages market.
The Vancouver-based firm creates, manufactures and distributes cannabinoid-infused beverages and consumer products for in-house brands, as well as white-label clients. That encompasses everything from product conceptualization and branding, all the way through to production, packaging and logistics.
BevCanna listed on the Canadian Securities Exchange in July last year, debuting its first brand, Anarchist Mountain Beverages shortly after. The name was inspired by the site of BevCanna’s bottling operations, on Anarchist Mountain. The brand includes a range of THC-dominant ready-to-drink beverages, shots, and powdered drink mixes, with a flavour nod to the plants found throughout the Pacific Northwest.
The infused beverage operator uses patented technology to produce premium, water-soluble cannabinoid infusions using THC and CBD from both cannabis and hemp.
The drinks market is an area the firm is well acquainted with, as it has already built a number of global brands, with past successes amongst the team including Mike’s Hard Lemonade, Vega, and Trace Beverages.
BevCanna has doubled the size of its outdoor cannabis cultivation site to 292 acres, from 130 acres in its prime location in British Columbia's fertile Okanagan Valley, which also includes a 40,000 square foot manufacturing facility in Osoyoos, as well as a pristine spring water aquifer. The firm holds a standard processing license and hemp cultivation license from Health Canada.
With cannabis-infused drinks and other edibles legalized in Canada last year, BevCanna has had a chance to experiment in the Great White North before debuting products on a global stage starting with California. After cementing its foothold in the US and Canadian markets, it has ambitions to expand globally.
The company has multiple revenue streams, including house brands, white label bottling, and is actively pursuing joint ventures, licensing and acquisitions of technology and brands.
It has been a busy spell time for BevCanna which is rolling out new products in the US and Canadian markets. Sales of cannabis-infused beverages are surging during the coronavirus lockdown so timing is everything.
In April, BevCanna revealed it would bring a new CBD-infused immune-supporting drink to the US and Canadian markets. The beverage will be launched under the firm's LEV line of fruit flavored sparkling CBD-infused alkaline spring water beverages. The drinks will be available in 60 milliliter (ml) and 250 ml sizes.
Meanwhile, BevCanna is also debuting its cannabis-infused beverage powder brand Jase. Created with a pomegranate lemonade flavour, Jase will be sold in licensed dispensaries in California this year. Jase will be offered in a ready-to-mix single-serve powder, infused with 10 milligrams (mg) of THC, and available in a 10-pouch box. The Jase brand evokes "California Cool" — the endless summer sun combined with hedonism.
Jase joins BevCanna's roster of recently launched brands, including its Anarchist Mountain Beverage line, and Grüv CBD-infused iced teas, developed in response to a North America-wide consumer study. Iced tea dominated the “Top Five” most popular choices, among 25 product ideas tested in the survey. Grüv has a balanced 1:1 THC and CBD profile to cater to existing and newer cannabis consumers. Feedback from the study showed consumers view the emerging category of CBD-infused beverages as pro-health.
In March, BevCanna inked a letter of intent to become the exclusive Canadian manufacturing partner for Calexo beverages in Canada. BevCanna will leverage its experience in launching drinks in the Canadian market to maintain compliance with Health Canada, as well as spearhead sales and distribution efforts related to the JV. Structured as a profit-sharing agreement, exclusivity is subject to forecast milestones being met.
Meanwhile, BevCanna recently acquired cannabis genetics expert Carmanah Craft Corp in an all-stock deal. The acquisition gives BevCanna access to an extensive library of cannabis genetics, including 50 premium cannabis strains and over 25 types of cannabis seeds, including six auto flower seed varieties. There’s an excess of 50 strains by clone and 250,000 cannabis seeds ranging from high THC to high CBD, noted the company.
Specifically, the library of genetics includes top mould-resistant, outdoor, high yielding, auto flower seeds, many of which are expected to deliver more than 2 kilograms of yield per plant. With the addition of such a substantial auto flower library, the harvest times will start much earlier, according to BevCanna.
The infused beverage innovator boosted its intellectual property portfolio by exercising its option to acquire the right, title and interest to DeeperGreen, which is developed by California-based Greener Frontiers. DeeperGreen converts extracted cannabis into a fast-acting, tasteless, odorless, water-soluble powdered ingredient.
BevCanna has an exclusive supply partnership with Nextleaf Solutions (CSE:OILS) (OTCMKTS:OILFF) for water-soluble cannabinoids in Canada.
Creating economies of scale by recently doubling the size of BevCanna’s outdoor cannabis cultivation site in the fertile Okanagan Valley As a result, lowering production costs to around one-seventh the cost of indoor/greenhouse cannabis cultivation Keeping the competitive edge with a production output estimated at 400,000-to-500,000 pounds of biomass annually Seeking to acquire California juice company Little West Holdings which offers hemp-derived CBD cold-pressed juices Introducing BevCanna’s CBD powder and beverages to Europe, through co-packing and distribution deals with Mota Ventures and Sativida, the company's exclusive European joint venture partners Long-term gains from partnering with Capna Intellectual to bring cannabis vape brand, Bloom, to Canada, and manufacturing and selling Bloom-branded cannabis concentrates and extracts New surveys claim people find drinking THC to be more clean, appealing, and healthy than vaping oil or smoking potIn a statement, BevCanna CFO John Campbell, who is also the chief strategy officer, described 2020 as the “year of execution” for the company.
"We've built a solid foundation across businesses and we are now ready to turn the corner to begin commercializing our operations and generating substantial revenue," said Campbell.
“Our corporate overhead structure is lean, and our capital expenditure needs are moderate. These two cornerstones of our business philosophy will help to ensure our future success," he added.
Contact the author Uttara Choudhury at [email protected]
Follow her on Twitter: @UttaraProactive
