CAN (ON): Flora Growth engages Brigitte Baptiste as strategic advisor and enters into agreement with EAN university

Flora Growth has engaged Brigitte Baptiste as a strategic advisor to the Company. Brigitte, along with academics and researchers from EAN University, will assist in the Company’s research and development of sustainable and bioprospection initiatives across Flora’s global premium brand portfolio and will oversee and develop the new cannabis and hemp research programs at EAN University.

As part of this initiative with Flora, a new internship will be created that will study the cannabis plant throughout the supply chain, including its carbon footprint, weather footprint, and associated energy output. There will be a particular focus on sustainable initiatives, including examining the outcomes of the research to introduce more sustainable processes throughout our brands, products, and value chain, all while educating students at EAN University about the benefits of sustainable entrepreneurship.

Brigitte is an ecologist and an expert on environmental issues and biodiversity in Colombia. She is a member of the Multidisciplinary Expert Panel of the Intergovernmental Science and Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services and has been part of the national representation to the Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research. She served as director of the renowned Alexander von Humboldt Biological Resources Research Institute from 2011 until 2019, and in September 2019, she became the director of EAN University. Brigitte studied biology at the Pontificia Universidad Javeriana, then went on to complete a Master's Degree in Conservation and Tropical Development at the University of Florida. She also received a PhD Honoris Causa in Environmental Management from Unipaz in 2016.

“Having a mindfully managed supply chain and responsibility for the planet is essential for success in today’s day and age as consumers now demand to know what’s in and behind the products and brands they are purchasing,” added Brigitte. “It’s crucial that companies have a thorough understanding of their options so they can intelligently build and execute successful campaigns and brands. I’m thrilled to be working with the Flora team as we are aligned on creating and bringing to market sustainable products that thoughtfully consider the environment, biodiversity, and sustainable business practices.”

"We are seeing a tremendous response to our sustainable global cannabis CPG portfolio and are looking to add expertise to accelerate growth by building out our team of advisors that have a track record of success in their respective fields in order to most effectively meet market demand,” said Luis Merchan, President and CEO of Flora. “Flora has successfully achieved integration throughout the value chain and is poised to scale up and go to the next level across a range of industry verticals (beauty and cosmetics, hemp textiles, food and beverage, and pharmaceuticals and nutraceuticals) by leveraging our high-quality, cost-effective organic biomass being grown at our flagship Cosechemos cultivation facility. The opportunity ahead of us is enormous and I look forward to having the collective knowledge that our strategic advisory group brings to ensure that we take advantage of every situation we encounter.”