Canadian cannabis growers and processors are eligible to apply for funding under the new 3.5 billion Canadian dollar ($2.6 billion) Sustainable Canadian Agricultural Partnership program if certain conditions are met, the administrator of the initiative, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, told MJBizDaily.
Any prospective sources of new funding would be welcome news for Canada’s smaller cannabis growers and processors, many of which are struggling under persistent deflationary and ultracompetitive pressures, plus tight funding from private-sector lenders.
Financing from the Sustainable Canadian Agricultural Partnership (Sustainable CAP) program is in addition to other sources of federal funding, which Canadian cannabis companies have already been tapping, including:
The Sustainable CAP program is a joint federal-provincial initiative under Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, the department of the government responsible for agriculture.
Cannabis Council of Canada CEO George Smitherman told MJBizDaily it’s a great step that marijuana companies are eligible for the programs.
“It is a key adjustment in the openness of the agriculture (department) to recognize that cannabis is a value-added agricultural commodity,” Smitherman said via email.
The Cannabis Council of Canada is the national industry group representing the interests of dozens of the nation’s licensed producers and processors.
The Sustainable CAP program, which replaced the Canadian Agricultural Partnership (CAP) earlier this year, runs from April 1, 2023, to March 31, 2028.
Pour lire la suite: MJBIzDaily