One of the pioneers of industrial cannabis and hemp growing in Australia is selling its Tasmanian operation.
Publicly listed ECS Botanics has put its cannabis farm in Tasmania's Northern Midlands on the market.
The company plans to keep its new cannabis farm near Swan Hill, in northwest Victoria, and focus on higher-profit medicinal cannabis.
It plans to move away from industrial hemp for fibre and even health food products like hemp seed oil.
The company says it is in the "enviable position of having demand for our medicinal cannabis products substantially exceed our capacity to supply".
ECS cultivates and manufactures cannabis products in Tasmania and Victoria, supplying domestic and overseas markets.
It is the brainchild of managing director and founder Alexander Keach who began the Tasmanian operation.
The Mildura operation, called Murray Meds, was only bought by ECS Botanics from Flowerday in March last year for $2.5 million and is now its flagship.
Victoria legalised the use of medicinal cannabis in 2016.
Murray Meds grew its first outdoor crop in 2020.
Further north at Mildura, the Cann Group has invested heavily in a medicinal cannabis growing factory.
ECS has lodged an application with the Office of Drug Control to double the size of its Sunraysia plantings.
ECS is selling its "low profit assets" - its Tasmanian operations and Hemp Food and Wellness Division.
No estimate price has been provided for the Tasmanian farm sale.
The company also plans to increase debt.
Former Murray Meds' managing director Nan-Maree Schoerie will replace Mr Keach as managing director of ECS Botanics and Mr Keach will become head of corporate relations.
The fully operational facility on 45 hectares (111 acres) near Cressy, south of Launceston "is now surplus to company needs".
"The sale presents a rare opportunity to secure a new facility and medicinal cannabis compound, with all of the supporting infrastructure, allowing a new operator to continue production from day one," Matt Childs of CBRE said.
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The fully permitted and licensed Cressy enterprise is currently a low THC facility but with the necessary land and infrastructure to support a significant expansion.
Low-THC plants are grown for industrial uses having no measurable psychoactive effect.
The Cressy facility is licensed to produce tonnes of organic medicinal cannabis annually.
Agents said it would require very little capital expenditure to become a high THC enterprise combining indoor or glasshouse with outdoor or protected cropping.
The property has access to 64 megalitres of irrigation entitlements with direct access to the Cressy Irrigation Channel.
It features a fully automated irrigation and fertigation system delivering water to two 17ha centre pivot irrigators as well as drip irrigation to the site developed for medicinal cannabis production.
It is fully secured with appropriate fencing and features a CCTV monitored security system with scan entry.
A new main switchboard and three-phase transformer were recently installed as part of a power upgrade, with the site also featuring offices, staff hospitality facilities, a low THC medicinal cannabis manufacturing shed, drying rooms, dehumidifiers, a lab room and a large security vault.
Other infrastructure includes an original shearing shed with sheep yards, machinery and hay sheds, timber horse stables, and a three-bedroom homestead.
Expressions of interest close August 3.
For more information contact David Goodfellow (03) 86213333 or Matt Childs of CBRE Agribusiness on 0418 512495.
Chris McLennan
ACM national rural property writer based in Bacchus Marsh, Victoria. Career journalist. Multi award winner.
ACM national rural property writer based in Bacchus Marsh, Victoria. Career journalist. Multi award winner.
