New distribution facility supports rapidly growing demand for hemp/cannabis products

BUFFALO, N.Y., Nov. 16, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — GVB Biopharma, a 22nd Century Group company (Nasdaq: XXII), today announced that it has opened a new, strategically-located distribution facility in the Netherlands to support its growing business in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (EMEA). The new distribution facility will increase existing and new customer access to GVB’s quality hemp/cannabis products, speed up transaction flow, and optimize cross border tax and customs treatment.

Recent increases in GVB’s U.S. manufacturing capacity are complementary to the advent of the Company’s Netherlands distribution facility. Additional capacity is in part earmarked to satisfy increasing demand in European markets where margins are higher than in the U.S.

“We are excited to expand our business operations in Europe, allowing our customers and partners to access quality products in a more efficient manner,” said James A. Mish, chief executive officer of 22nd Century Group. “With our new Netherlands distribution facility, we can now deliver product to our partners in half the time and better serve our growing customer base with quality distillate and isolates. In Europe, the hemp/cannabis industry is expanding rapidly and is expected to reach €3.2 billion by 2025. Our new facility will allow us to capture more of that market share, scale our operations, and expand our customer base in this region.”

About GVB Biopharma
GVB Biopharma, a 22nd Century company, is a global-scale specialty ingredient supplier and contract development & manufacturing organization (CDMO) with manufacturing locations in Nevada and Oregon. GVB is the largest merchant provider of cannabinoid extracts and isolates in North America with a focus on cannabidiol (CBD) and cannabigerol (CBG) extracted and refined at an industrial scale into distillates and isolates. GVB Biopharma’s facilities are NSF International audited and are cGMP Registered for dietary supplements manufacturing. GVB is widely regarded as a best-in-class operator with a leading position in the hemp-derived active ingredients market, with around 15% market share and growing. GVB is also a white-label contract manufacturer of tinctures, gel capsules, gummies, mints, tablets, topical, and vape offerings.

About 22nd Century Group, Inc.
22nd Century Group, Inc. (Nasdaq: XXII) is a leading agricultural biotechnology company focused on tobacco harm reduction, reduced nicotine tobacco and improving health and wellness through plant science. With dozens of patents allowing it to control nicotine biosynthesis in the tobacco plant, the Company has developed proprietary reduced nicotine content (RNC) tobacco plants and cigarettes, which have become the cornerstone of the FDA’s Comprehensive Plan to address the widespread death and disease caused by smoking. The Company received the first and only FDA MRTP authorization of a combustible cigarette in December 2021. In tobacco, hemp/cannabis, and hop plants, 22nd Century uses modern plant breeding technologies, including genetic engineering, gene-editing, and molecular breeding to deliver solutions for the life science and consumer products industries by creating new, proprietary plants with optimized alkaloid and flavonoid profiles as well as improved yields and valuable agronomic traits.

Learn more at xxiicentury.com, on Twitter, on LinkedIn, and on YouTube.

Learn more about VLN^® at tryvln.com.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
Except for historical information, all of the statements, expectations, and assumptions contained in this press release are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements typically contain terms such as “anticipate,” “believe,” “consider,” “continue,” “could,” “estimate,” “expect,” “explore,” “foresee,” “goal,” “guidance,” “intend,” “likely,” “may,” “plan,” “potential,” “predict,” “preliminary,” “probable,” “project,” “promising,” “seek,” “should,” “will,” “would,” and similar expressions. Actual results might differ materially from those explicit or implicit in forward-looking statements. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially are set forth in “Risk Factors” in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K filed on March 1, 2022, and in the Company’s Quarterly Report filed on August 9, 2022. All information provided in this release is as of the date hereof, and the Company assumes no obligation to and does not intend to update these forward-looking statements, except as required by law.

GVB Biopharma U.K. & Europe Contact
Karl Muldowney
Commercial Director, GVB U.K. & Europe
[email protected]

Investor Relations & Media Contact
Mei Kuo
22nd Century Group, Inc.
Director, Communications & Investor Relations
[email protected]

Darrow Associates Investor Relations
Matt Kreps
[email protected]

Source: 22nd Century Group, Inc

This article was published by CFN Enterprises Inc. (OTCQB: CNFN), owner and operator of CFN Media, the industry’s leading agency and digital financial media network dedicated to the burgeoning CBD and legal cannabis industries. Call +1 (833) 420-CNFN for more information.

About Ryan Allway

Mr. Allway has over a decade of experience in the financial markets as both a private investor and financial journalist. He has been actively involved in the cannabis industry since its inception, covering public and private companies.

• Reduced nicotine cigarettes increase cessation, decrease consumption, decrease dependence, and reduce toxicants
• Study dispels common misconception that reduced nicotine cigarettes worsen general health and mental health problems

BUFFALO, N.Y., Nov. 07, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — 22nd Century Group, Inc. (Nasdaq: XXII), a leading agricultural biotechnology company dedicated to improving health with reduced nicotine tobacco, hemp/cannabis, and hops advanced plant technologies, highlighted a recent study that found switching to 22nd Century’s reduced nicotine content (RNC) cigarettes “reduces toxicant exposure and increases smoking cessation without worsening mental health among smokers with mood or anxiety disorders.”

The study conclusively dispelled a common misconception that RNC’s may exacerbate general health and mental health problems. The study also concluded that a national nicotine reduction policy for cigarettes will likely result in reduced nicotine absorption and likely result in greater smoking cessation from smokers with mood and anxiety disorders.

The study examined adult smokers with a current or lifetime anxiety or unipolar mood disorder. The participants were randomly assigned to smoke conventional cigarettes or 22nd Century’s RNC research cigarettes. Adult smokers who were assigned to smoke 22nd Century’s RNC cigarettes had significantly lower cigarette consumption, lower cigarette dependence, lower plasma cotinine (metabolite of nicotine), and lower exhaled carbon-monoxide than smokers assigned to the conventional group.

At the end of the study, despite having selected only participants not intending to stop smoking, those randomized to the group using 22nd Century’s RNC cigarettes were more likely to have quit smoking.

“Study after study, reduced nicotine cigarettes are shown to be beneficial to adult smokers. The combination of reduced nicotine cigarettes and a proposed nicotine standard have the potential to forever change the trajectory of public health by helping adult smokers smoke less,” said James A. Mish, chief executive officer of 22nd Century Group. “Based on last week’s comments from FDA’s Center for Tobacco Products Director, Dr. Brian King, we are confident the FDA will use its existing authority to advance both a reduced nicotine policy and a menthol ban. These policies and 22nd Century’s reduced nicotine cigarettes are expected to save millions of lives and increase the chances that current smokers quit. Our VLN^® reduced nicotine content cigarettes are backed by clear science and evidence which support FDA’s proposed product standards and are the only FDA-authorized combustible product able to meet the stringent reduced nicotine levels determined by the FDA to be ‘minimally or non-addictive’.”

In related news, a webinar hosted by Mitchell Hamline School of Law’s Public Health Law Center on November 3, 2022, featured FDA’s Center for Tobacco Product (CTP) Director Dr. Brian King publicly stating that the proposed menthol standard remains a key priority for him, the FDA, and CTP. The FDA is currently in the process of reviewing the comments they received as they move forward with the proposed rule. Dr. King also noted that the FDA remains committed to using its regulatory authority to protect public health and intends to finalize a nicotine standard for the maximum level of nicotine allowed in combusted tobacco products. The reduced nicotine rule is of high priority for the FDA as it has profound health benefits in terms of preventing initiation of smoking and promoting cessation for current smokers and a huge potential to have a positive impact on public health.

22nd Century believes that the menthol cigarette ban could leave VLN^® Menthol King as the only combustible menthol cigarette on the market, providing a critical off-ramp to help current menthol smokers to smoke less. The Company expects VLN^® Menthol King reduced nicotine cigarettes to be exempted from FDA’s menthol ban under procedures detailed in FDA’s proposed rule announced April 28, 2022. 22nd Century’s VLN^® cigarette products are the only FDA-authorized combustible cigarette able to meet the stringent reduced nicotine content product standard under the FDA’s Comprehensive Plan requiring that all cigarettes be made “minimally or non-addictive.”

About 22nd Century Group, Inc.
22nd Century Group, Inc. (Nasdaq: XXII) is a leading agricultural biotechnology company focused on tobacco harm reduction, reduced nicotine tobacco and improving health and wellness through plant science. With dozens of patents allowing it to control nicotine biosynthesis in the tobacco plant, the Company has developed proprietary reduced nicotine content (RNC) tobacco plants and cigarettes, which have become the cornerstone of the FDA’s Comprehensive Plan to address the widespread death and disease caused by smoking. The Company received the first and only FDA MRTP authorization of a combustible cigarette in December 2021. In tobacco, hemp/cannabis, and hop plants, 22nd Century uses modern plant breeding technologies, including genetic engineering, gene-editing, and molecular breeding to deliver solutions for the life science and consumer products industries by creating new, proprietary plants with optimized alkaloid and flavonoid profiles as well as improved yields and valuable agronomic traits.

Learn more at xxiicentury.com, on Twitter, on LinkedIn, and on YouTube.

Learn more about VLN^® at tryvln.com.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
Except for historical information, all of the statements, expectations, and assumptions contained in this press release are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements typically contain terms such as “anticipate,” “believe,” “consider,” “continue,” “could,” “estimate,” “expect,” “explore,” “foresee,” “goal,” “guidance,” “intend,” “likely,” “may,” “plan,” “potential,” “predict,” “preliminary,” “probable,” “project,” “promising,” “seek,” “should,” “will,” “would,” and similar expressions. Actual results might differ materially from those explicit or implicit in forward-looking statements. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially are set forth in “Risk Factors” in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K filed on March 1, 2022, and in the Company’s Quarterly Report filed on August 9, 2022. All information provided in this release is as of the date hereof, and the Company assumes no obligation to and does not intend to update these forward-looking statements, except as required by law.

Investor Relations & Media Contact
Mei Kuo
22nd Century Group, Inc.
Director, Communications & Investor Relations
[email protected]

Darrow Associates Investor Relations
Matt Kreps
T: 214-597-8200
[email protected]

This article was published by CFN Enterprises Inc. (OTCQB: CNFN), owner and operator of CFN Media, the industry’s leading agency and digital financial media network dedicated to the burgeoning CBD and legal cannabis industries. Call +1 (833) 420-CNFN for more information.

About Ryan Allway

Mr. Allway has over a decade of experience in the financial markets as both a private investor and financial journalist. He has been actively involved in the cannabis industry since its inception, covering public and private companies.