Christina Lake Cannabis' executive management and its team of Master Growers have agreed upon a provisional crop allocation structure for the 2021 growing season. "Based on the 2020 performance of the Company’s proprietary cannabis strains, which are genetically optimized for outdoor growth under natural sunlight, CLC has selected seven strains which would comprise approximately 90% of its 2021 crop," Christina Lake team explains. "Additionally, the Company has elected to trial the outdoor performance of 49 other cannabis strains from CLC’s seed bank and plant portfolio, which would comprise the remaining 10% of the Company’s planned crop for 2021."
Although higher ratios of experimental growth are common in the cannabis industry, the Company is taking a conservative approach to its allocation for this year by heavily favouring strains in which CLC has the greatest degree of confidence based on previous results. "The Company intends to continue focusing on extraction to produce winterized oils and distillates, which are presently in high demand for uses in medicinal applications as well as consumer packaged goods under “Cannabis 2.0”."
In its December 18, 2020 press release, CLC shared details about its genetic databank which consists of more than 600,000 seeds and over 100 different proprietary strains of cannabis. Over a period of approximately three years, the Company experimented with combining genetics to optimize the properties of a given plant’s biomass when grown under sunlight. These proprietary formulations are engineered with an objective of maximizing specific elements of a given cannabis plant (or their respective extracts) such as tetrahydrocannabinol (“THC”) content and terpene profiles.
During trial periods of outdoor cultivation, the Company’s Master Growers meticulously track the growth and performance of each proprietary strain, noting any areas of concern such as mildew or susceptibility to pests, as well as its flowering patterns and the plant’s response to certain nutrients. Although the Company’s primary objective is to cultivate cannabis for extractions with high THC content, certain strains with lower THC levels have been chosen for their highly desirable terpene profiles, which can be strategically utilized in specific products for end users.
For the 2021 growing season, CLC intends to utilize more land than it did in 2020 to cultivate a total of 56 strategically allocated strains. In addition to strains that were successfully grown last year, which will comprise approximately 60% of the Company’s 2021 crop, the Company is also introducing three strains that have already undergone a rigorous two-year testing cycle to confirm their suitability for commercial-scale growth. About 10% of the Company’s planned crop for 2021 is to consist of experimental strains, most of which have already passed the first year of the testing cycle and some of which have demonstrated THC content of 25% or higher, well above the average THC content of CLC’s 2020 crop.
During the 2020 growing season, approximately 75% of the Company’s plants were physically supported by latticework frames known as trellises. Because the trellises appear to have been beneficial to the health of the Company’s plants, CLC intends to install trellises for all of its plants in an effort to further improve its output in 2021, in both quantitative and qualitative terms.
Joel Dumaresq, Chief Executive Officer and a Director of the Company commented, “The value we create in cultivating cannabis is by no means limited to growing plants outdoors in an optimal climate such as that of Christina Lake. In fact, the proprietary strains of cannabis that we have developed in-house to capitalize upon the environmental advantages we benefit from are arguably the backbone of our enterprise because they enable us to maximize our yields of elements such as THC and terpenes based on our discretion in accordance with market demand. Our integrated business model of cultivation, extraction, and R&D is unique in the Canadian marketplace, and I believe that by strategically allocating proven strains and high-THC experimental strains, we can sustain a reliable and predictable rate of output. In addition to the expanded cultivation area, the possibility of being able to ‘turn over’ certain strains more than once in the growing season, and our increased focus upon strains with higher THC levels, our internal calculations indicate that the overall 2021 harvest yield could expand by 35% or more over the 2020 harvest yield.”
For more information:
Christina Lake Cannabis
Suite 810
789 West Pender Street
Vancouver, BC, V6C 1H2
Joel Dumaresq
1.604.306.4000
christinalakecannabis.com