VANCOUVER, BC, Feb. 10, 2022 /CNW/ - Village Farms
International, Inc. ("Village Farms" or the "Company") (NASDAQ:
VFF) today announced the appointment of Ann
Gillin Lefever to the position of Executive Vice President
of Corporate Affairs, reporting directly to the Chief Executive
Officer, effective immediately. In this newly created role,
Ms. Gillin Lefever will be
responsible for overseeing investor relations, providing guidance
on strategy, growth (including potential mergers and
acquisitions) and risk, and leading internal communications,
as well as supporting government and public affairs.
Ms. Gillin Lefever is an
accomplished business, financial and capital markets executive, who
has leveraged her deep experience in equity analysis, capital
markets, governance and business strategy for a successful career
as an advisor to C-level and board leadership on structuring
businesses to create a foundation for positive long-term operating
performance, strategy and communications.
"I am thrilled to welcome Ann to the Village Farms' executive
team," said Michael DeGiglio, CEO,
Village Farms. "Village Farms' has had the benefit of Ann's
expertise and experience for several years as a consultant to the
Company, throughout which time her counsel has been integral to our
strategic planning, analysis, capital markets strategy and
communication. She brings a unique and valued perspective to
the team that is firmly aligned with our evolution to a vertically
integrated plant-based consumer products company, focused on
cannabinoids and related health products, with opportunities
in North America and around the world. I look
forward to her continued contribution, now as a full-time member of
the Village Farms' team."
In addition to Village Farms, Ms. Gillin
Lefever advised several other organizations on governance
and financial strategies while dedicating time to her family, whom
she describes as her life-mentors. Her prior
professional experience includes roles in the Equities Division
management teams of Barclays Capital and Lehman Brothers, where she
was Head of the Institutional Sales Team for four years. She also
developed a business model, Desk-Based Analytics, that created
synergies between equity traders and institutional clients and led
to increased market share and profitability through innovative
content. As a Senior Equity Research analyst covering
Consumer Products at both Lehman Brothers and Sanford Bernstein, Ann won many awards for
ground-breaking coverage and relished a partnership with other
esteemed Food, Beverage and Tobacco analysts at Lehman Brothers.
Ms. Gillin Lefever holds a Bachelor
of Science Degree in Finance from Georgetown
University and an MBA from The Wharton School.
Currently, she sits on Georgetown
University McDonough School's Board of Advisors.
About Village Farms International, Inc.
Village Farms leverages decades of experience as a large-scale,
Controlled Environment Agriculture-based, vertically integrated
supplier for high-value, high-growth plant-based Consumer Packaged
Goods opportunities, with a strong foundation as a leading fresh
produce supplier to grocery and large-format retailers throughout
the US and Canada, and new
high-growth opportunities in the cannabis and CBD categories in
North America and selected markets
internationally.
In Canada, the Company's
wholly-owned Canadian subsidiary, Pure Sunfarms, is one of the
single largest cannabis operations in the world, the lowest-cost
greenhouse producer and one of Canada's best-selling brands. The Company also
owns 70% of Québec-based, ROSE LifeScience, a leading third-party
cannabis products commercialization expert in the Province of
Québec,
In the US, wholly-owned Balanced Health Botanicals is one of the
leading CBD brands and e-commerce platforms in the country.
Subject to compliance with all applicable US federal and state laws
and stock exchange rules, Village Farms plans to enter the US
high-THC cannabis market via multiple strategies, leveraging one of
the largest greenhouse operations in the country (more than 5.5
million square feet in West
Texas), as well as the operational and product expertise
gained through Pure Sunfarms' cannabis success in Canada.
Internationally, Village Farms is targeting selected, nascent,
legal cannabis and CBD opportunities with significant medium- and
long-term potential, with an initial focus on the Asia-Pacific region and Europe.
Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking
Information
This press release contains forward-looking statements within
the meaning of the United States Private Securities Litigation
Reform Act of 1995, Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as
amended, (the "Securities Act") and Section 21E of the Securities
Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the "Exchange Act"), and is
subject to the safe harbor created by those sections. This press
release also contains "forward-looking information" within the
meaning of applicable Canadian securities law. We refer to such
forward-looking statements and forward-looking information
collectively as "forward-looking statements". Forward-looking
statements include statements regarding the Company's delisting
from the TSX and anticipated benefits therefrom, and may also
relate to the Company's future outlook or financial position and
anticipated events or results and may include statements regarding
the financial position, business strategy, budgets, expansion
plans, litigation, projected production, projected costs, capital
expenditures, financial results, taxes, plans and objectives of or
involving the Company. Particularly, statements regarding the
anticipated benefits of delisting from the TSX as well as future
results, performance, achievements, prospects or opportunities for
the Company, the greenhouse vegetable industry or the cannabis
industry are forward-looking statements. In some cases,
forward-looking information can be identified by such terms as
"can", "outlook", "may", "might", "will", "could", "should",
"would", "occur", "expect", "plan", "anticipate", "believe",
"intend", "try", "estimate", "predict", "potential", "continue",
"likely", "schedule", "objectives", or the negative or grammatical
variation thereof or other similar expressions concerning matters
that are not historical facts. The forward-looking statements in
this press release are subject to risks that may include, but are
not limited to: our operating history, including that of ROSE
Lifescience ("ROSE"), Balanced Health Botanicals ("Balanced
Health"), Pure Sunfarms and our start-up operations of growing hemp
in the United States; the legal
status of Pure Sunfarms, ROSE and Balanced Health cannabis
business; risks relating to the integration of ROSE into our
business; risks relating to obtaining additional financing,
including our dependence upon credit facilities; potential
difficulties in achieving and/or maintaining profitability;
variability of product pricing; risks inherent in the cannabis,
hemp, CBD, cannabinoids, and agricultural businesses; market
position, ability to leverage current business relationships for
future business involving hemp and cannabinoids, the ability of
Pure Sunfarms and ROSE to cultivate and distribute cannabis in
Canada; existing and new
governmental regulations, including risks related to regulatory
compliance and regarding obtaining and maintaining licenses
required under the Cannabis Act (Canada), the Criminal Code and other Acts,
S.C. 2018, c. 16 (Canada) for its
Canadian operational facilities), and changes in our regulatory
requirements; legal and operational risks relating to expected
conversion of our greenhouses to cannabis production in
Canada and in the United States; risks related to rules and
regulations at the US federal (Food and Drug Administration and
United States Department of Agriculture), state and municipal
levels with respect to produce and hemp, cannabidiol-based products
commercialization; retail consolidation, technological advances and
other forms of competition; transportation disruptions; product
liability and other potential litigation; retention of key
executives; labor issues; uninsured and underinsured losses;
vulnerability to rising energy costs; environmental, health and
safety risks, foreign exchange exposure, risks associated with
cross-border trade; difficulties in managing our growth;
restrictive covenants under our credit facilities; natural
catastrophes; the ongoing and developing COVID-19 pandemic; and tax
risks.
The Company has based these forward-looking statements on
factors and assumptions about future events and financial trends
that it believes may affect its financial condition, results of
operations, business strategy and financial needs. Although the
forward-looking statements contained in this press release are
based upon assumptions that management believes are reasonable
based on information currently available to management, there can
be no assurance that actual results will be consistent with these
forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements necessarily
involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties, many of which
are beyond the Company's control, that may cause the Company's or
the industry's actual results, performance, achievements, prospects
and opportunities in future periods to differ materially from those
expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. These
risks and uncertainties include, among other things, the factors
contained in the Company's filings with securities regulators,
including this press release. In particular, we caution you that
our forward-looking statements are subject to the ongoing and
developing circumstances related to the COVID-19 pandemic, which
may have a material adverse effect on our business, operations and
future financial results.
When relying on forward-looking statements to make decisions,
the Company cautions readers not to place undue reliance on these
statements, as forward-looking statements involve significant risks
and uncertainties and should not be read as guarantees of future
results, performance, achievements, prospects and opportunities.
The forward-looking statements made in this press release relate
only to events or information as of the date on which the
statements are made in this press release. Except as required by
law, the Company undertakes no obligation to update or revise
publicly any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new
information, future events or otherwise, after the date on which
the statements are made or to reflect the occurrence of
unanticipated events.
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SOURCE Village Farms International, Inc.