"We expect to increase output of our high-quality flower by 30-35%"

Item 9 Labs has broken ground on its $13.5 million cultivation expansion project. The company has been cultivating, manufacturing, and processing from its existing 19.200 square foot facility, which sits on 5 acres, since 2017. 

The company recently acquired the neighboring 45 acres and anticipates increasing its operations space to 640,000+ square feet. "At 50 acres, the site is one of the largest properties in Arizona that is zoned to grow and cultivate flower," the Item 9 team shares.

The initial development phase is estimated to be completed in Summer 2022 and includes the construction of three steel buildings and two greenhouses – adding 9,600 square feet for indoor cultivation, 9,600 square feet of lab and packaging, and a 9,600 square feet head house to support the addition of the two 18,000 square feet greenhouses.

"With phase one of our expansion, we expect to increase output of our high-quality flower by 30-35%," says Cory Carter, vice president of cultivation of Item 9 Labs Corp. "Our greenhouses will reduce reliance on third-party sourced material for lab productions by 40-50%."

Andrew Bowden, CEO of Item 9 Labs Corp., says, "During this first phase of expansion, we anticipate hiring another 60 to 70 team members across cultivation, processing and packaging positions, with a goal of creating more than 200 jobs by the conclusion of our master site development."