THE company behind a medicinal cannabis farm in the Gannawarra Shire has reported a full year record harvest, revenue and profit.
ECS Botanics Holdings recorded an annual total income of $20.5 million – a 31 per cent increase on 2022/23.
That was driven by increased production, increased export sales, fulfilling local contracts, an expanded product offering that included gummies and vapes, and early contributions from direct-to-consumer sales.
Gross margins improved from 18 per cent to 35 per cent (excluding the impact of fair value gain in biological assets).
The company said this margin improvement was a result of an ongoing focus on productivity across the business, a change in customer mix and a strategic emphasis on increasing exports.
ECS ended 2023/24 with a cash balance of $3.2 million.
ECS managing director Nan-Maree Schoerie said the past 12 months had been productive as it continued to deliver its strategic plan to grow the export business and launch its business-to-consumer business.
“Our record outdoor harvest of 6.6 tonnes surpassed expectations for both quantity and quality through our leading expertise in organic cannabis agriculture,” Ms Schoerie said.
“Recent feedback from German customer Ilios Santé states our first shipment sold out within 10 days – a testament to the quality of our organic, pharmaceutical-grade cannabis.
“Following on from our genetic improvement programs, we have recently launched six new exclusive strains, which will be coming to market in the next quarter, two of which are destined for Germany.
“To meet rising demand for lower priced product, we have invested in outdoor crop expansions and commenced procurement for the construction of nine additional PCEs and enhanced four existing PCEs with heating and lighting to support our rapidly growing premium export market.
“Launching our direct-to-consumer Avani brand is another critical step in capturing additional market share and increasing our revenue streams and I am pleased with the early progress we have achieved.
“Evolving our intellectual property remains pivotal in our pursuit of a differentiated strategy.
“Our 10-year license for VESIsorb® grants us access to leading technology that increases the bioavailability of cannabinoids by 400 per cent, making it substantially more cost-effective, and is uniquely absorbed by the user three times faster than current methods.
“The delays associated with identifying a suitable manufacturer are behind us and we expect VESIsorb® to be available during 2024.”
Over the past 12 months, ECS produced 6.6 tonnes of dried cannabis flower, all of which is scheduled to be sold as dried flower or extracted to form cannabis oil products, in local and overseas medical markets.
This represented an increase of 57 per cent on the previous year.
