California's largest cannabis cultivation company is still reeling months after the Donald Trump administration conducted a deadly immigration raid on its facilities. Glass House Brands reported Wednesday that the July raid cost it over $26 million in lost revenue and reduced its quarterly harvest by over 100,000 pounds of dried cannabis.
CEO Kyle Kazan said on a Wednesday earnings call that the previous quarter was "the company's most difficult to date," referencing the federal operation on July 10, which ended with hundreds of workers arrested and one person dead after they fell from a greenhouse roof. The Department of Homeland Security said it found 14 "children" working at the facility, which would be a violation of state law. California's cannabis regulator separately launched an investigation into underage labor violations.
The company has denied knowingly violating any labor laws, and there have been no state or federal charges against Glass House or its executives.
Glass House owns a massive complex of greenhouses — the company says it's the largest cannabis cultivator in the world — and has staked its future on growing incredible amounts of cannabis at the lowest costs possible. The raid interrupted production after the company was forced to rehire its entire farming staff, yet Kazan promised that the raid's effects would be only "transitory."
Read more at SFGate
