Canopy Growth Acquires KeyLeaf Life Sciences

Canopy Growth Corporation has acquired Saskatoon-based bio product extractor KeyLeaf Life Sciences in an effort to support the Canadian cannabis producer’s long-term extraction needs and expansion into the U.S. CBD market.

In the June 26 transaction announcement, Canopy detailed its acquisition of KeyLeaf’s Canadian and U.S. extraction facilities, as well as its intellectual property. The acquisition also includes KeyLeaf’s Illinois-based ingredient science facility, which focuses on the distillation and concentration of cannabis compounds. This facility, according to the press release, will be critical in helping Canopy bring CBD products to the U.S. market by the fourth quarter of 2020.

“The KeyLeaf operations and team deliver instant scale at a pivotal stage in our growth, with brand new products coming to market later this year requiring sophisticated extraction capabilities at scale,” Canopy Chairman and Co-CEO Bruce Linton said in a public statement. “This acquisition is the result of a year’s worth of work with a trusted partner, and part of our commitment to always staying a step ahead as leaders in a nascent industry, focused on the long-game one piece at a time.”

KeyLeaf, formerly known as POS Bio-Sciences, previously partnered with Canopy to build out extraction processes and technology over the past year at Canopy’s retrofitted Saskatchewan facility. KeyLeaf helped Canopy advance technology and commercialize the processing of hemp and cannabis, and to conduct large-scale extraction processes. Once licensed by Health Canada, the Saskatchewan facility is expected to process up to 5,000 kg of input materials daily, according to the press release.

KeyLeaf has over 45 years of experience in the canola, nutraceutical, cosmetic and bio-product industries, and has built extensive intellectual property around plant-based extraction and ingredients. The company’s chemists, engineers and operators will remain on staff, according to the press release, and will support Canopy in the design, training, oversight and implementation of additional extraction sites around the world.

In November 2018, Canopy took control of KeyLeaf for accounting purposes, the press release said. Now, the company plans to use its Saskatchewan facility, as well as the other extraction operations, to process its plant material, which consists of over 5,000 acres of hemp production, over 160 acres of outdoor cannabis production and over four million square feet of greenhouse operations.