A Kelowna company has achieved another step in positioning itself as a premium cannabis supplier across Canada.

The Flowr Group (Okanagan) Inc., building a research and development facility in Kelowna, has received its sales license from Health Canada.

The license enables Flowr to sell to the Canadian medical and adult-use recreational markets.

Flowr will begin selling to the medical market in the coming weeks and the recreational market when it opens in October.

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This comes on the heels of Flowr already selected by the British Columbia Liquor Distribution Branch to supply premium cannabis to province-owned dispensaries, and continues to be in discussions with other provinces on similar supply agreements.

Flowr claims its premium cannabis will offer consumers and patients one of the highest quality sensory experiences available in the Canadian market.

The company’s Kelowna cultivation facilities meet pharmaceutical quality production standards, growing cannabis that exceeds Health Canada’s stringent quality standards without using taste-diminishing and smell-altering irradiation.

Flowr says without the proper experience and protocols, most producers have to use irradiation to kill yeast, mold and bacteria on their flower to meet quality standards. The presence of these pathogens and use of irradiation both negatively affect the pleasurable scents and flavors of cannabis while introducing or enhancing negative scents and flavours.

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“We’re pleased to have successfully completed the rigorous Health Canada sales licensing process and are excited to begin offering consumers and patients the high quality experience that Flowr cannabis provides,” said Steve Klein, Flowr’s co-founder, chairman and chief strategist.

“This is another important step forward for Flowr in our journey to becoming the leading supplier of premium, non-irradiated cannabis to the Canadian medical and recreational markets.”

Initially, Flowr will offer two brands:

• FlowrRx, featuring premium quality medicinal cannabis that enables patients to live better, fuller lives. A dedicated client services team will provide patients with personalized support while an R&D team develops innovative flower strains and premium products targeted to specific conditions.

• Flowr is the company’s premium recreational adult-use brand for the cannabis connoisseur and enthusiast market.

The Flowr Group, with its head offices located in Markham, Ont., builds and operates large-scale, GMP compliant cultivation facilities utilizing its own patented growing systems, with Kelowna chosen as the location for the first research and development facility.

The company announced earlier in the year that it had been selected by the Hawthorne Canada subsidiary of The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company for an exclusive strategic research and development alliance. Flowr also has announced its intention to list shares on the TSX Ventures Exchange.

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