Facebook Instagram Linkedin Twitter Website
Home Blog Page 131

The ABC’s of CBD

By
IHR Magazine
-
0

The cannabis boom has arrived. Along with the numerous potent clouds of potent smoke be produced all across the nation, there’s an influx of consumers in need of information.

Legal marijuana is being sold across Canada in a variety of retail outlets, but what about the healing properties of cannabis? CBD might be the answer to a pain-free lifestyle.

What is CBD?

Cannabidiol also known as CBD, does not produce a high or intoxication. There is some evidence that CBD may block or lower some of the effects of THC on the mind. This may occur when the amount of CBD in the cannabis is the same or higher than the amount of THC. CBD is also being studied for its possible therapeutic uses.

CBD is a non-psychoactive, oil-soluble compound extracted from the cannabis plant, and is typically marketed dissolved in plant oil.  It has been widely reported to offer numerous health benefits from stress and anxiety relief, to decreased muscle, joint, cancer and other pain, reduced inflammation, and to nearly miraculous relief of persistent seizures. However, because CBD is an oil-based product, its ingestion typically results in poor absorption in water-based living systems.  There has been enormous interest in the development of truly water-soluble CBD, to achieve efficient absorption and bioavailability from foods and beverages.

CBD has had a complicated journey towards legislation in North America, with the final say often coming down to how it was produced. CBD derived from hemp has generally been considered permissible while CBD from marijuana has not.

One of the sticking points seems to be that although there are studies showing CBD can alleviate feelings of social anxiety, and that it reduces inflammation and works as a pain reliever, medical claims made by CBD producers and manufacturers are untested and not regulated.

The Cannabis Act states that “Other products, such as edible products and concentrates, will be legal for sale approximately one year after the Cannabis Act has come into force and federal regulations for their production have been developed and brought into force.”

CBD products have quickly grown from traditional oils and extracts to soft drinks, pet treats, and gummy candy. However, CBD still remains in a grey area due to its classifications as a cannabis derivative. On the other hand, CBD doesn’t cause any psychoactive effects like its THC counterpart, which is why CBD regulations are much more lenient than those focused on THC.

Studies have suggested that CBD is also effective in suppressing symptoms associated with cancer, chronic pain, Alzheimer’s, anxiety, depression, and many other medical conditions. CBD-based products are very versatile since they can potentially treat many conditions in different medical fields.

Additionally, CBD requires a lower dosage and less frequent use when compared to traditional, medically-prescribed treatments such as opioids. Studies have shown that cannabis, in general, has significantly fewer side effects when compared to regulated and approved treatments within the market already. However, the Health Canada still requires much more research in order to approve or even possibly list cannabis-based medical treatments as a registered medicine.

It appears that the Canadian government is going with a slow roll out, focusing on psychoactive cannabis containing THC, with plans to address CBD and other cannabis products at a later date.

However, although it may seem that all of this uncertainty will be ironed out by years end, purchasing CBD in Canada will still require effort, despite the new laws. Legal CBD products will continue to only be available through authorized retailers and products will carry security features on the packaging like cigarettes and alcohol. There will also be strict limitations in place in terms of the health claims producers can make. Health Canada follows the legislative lead and also makes no distinction between CBD from hemp or marijuana.

As with any emerging industry, there are certain to be growing pains, both in Canada and the United States. Unfortunately for CBD users in Canada, the much longed for legalization has not automatically made CBD accessible for all.

Zimbabwe Organic Certifications granted to Organto Supply Partner

By
IHR Magazine
-
0

Organto recently announced that its strategic supply partner in Zimbabwe has received organic certification for lands to be devoted to exclusive production of organic vegetables for Organto. As a result, Organto has commenced receipt of a supply of organic green beans for the European market.

Organto’s strategic supply partner in Zimbabwe is an established supplier of conventional and organic fruits and vegetables.  In late 2018, Organto entered into a five-year agreement whereby Organto would have exclusive sales rights for certain organic products produced by the supply partner. It was initially focused on value-added year-round organic vegetables, including organic green beans, organic snow peas and organic sugar snaps.  The receipt of these licenses represented the final step in the approval process and deliveries to Organto have now commenced.  The certifications from Eco-Cert S.A. cover two growing operations located in separate provinces. They offer diverse climatic features, critical as a year-round supply of value-added vegetables.

“We are pleased that our supply partner has now received organic certification for these growing operations, and we are excited to commence delivery of organic green beans, which will be followed by other value-added organic vegetable and fruit products. Our supply partner has also started planting organic snow peas and organic sugar snaps and we expect to have these products available for commercial distribution in mid-May, 2019.” commented Steve Bromley, Chair and Interim CEO of Organto Foods Inc.  “We have been challenged in the past by supply/demand imbalances on these products, so we are looking forward to adding this strategic supply to our year-round branded and distributed products platform.”

Organto also plans to add organic soft fruits, other organic vegetables including organic asparagus tips plus root crops, such as organic ginger, in alignment with Organto’s strategic business model, and as a second phase to this strategic relationship.

ABOUT ORGANTO

Organto’s business model is rooted in its commitment to sustainable business practices focused on environmental responsibility and a commitment to the communities where it operates, its people and its shareholders.  Organto is comprised of two independent business units, i) the Organto Foods Group, and ii) the Organto Global Cannabis Group. The Organto Foods Group is an integrated provider of year-round value-added branded organic vegetables and seasonal organic and non-GMO fruit and vegetable products using an asset-light business model to serve a growing socially responsible and health-conscious consumer around the globe. The Organto Global Cannabis Group is focused on the growing market for medicinal cannabis around the world, with initial efforts focussed on key regions of Latin America, utilizing low-cost natural growing operations and a diverse and exclusive IP seed library to deliver the medicinal properties consumers expect.

Zenabis Now Licensed to Sell Cannabis Oil

By
IHR Magazine
-
0
Photo by Roberto Valdivia on Unsplash

Zenabis Global Inc. (“Zenabis”) (TSXV: ZENA) announced today that it is now licensed to process and sell cannabis oil products in Canada. The license enables Zenabis to now sell cannabis oil produced at its Atholville, New Brunswick facility, one of the largest indoor cannabis growing facilities in Canada, where Zenabis was already processing oil. Zenabis expects to market and sell cannabis oil products to its medical clients and to adult use consumers through supply and distribution agreements that Zenabis has in place with nine Canadian jurisdictions including British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Quebec, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Manitoba, Prince Edward Island, and the Yukon.

Zenabis expects to have its initial cannabis oil products available for sale in both the medical and adult use markets by early Q2, 2019 and will be launching additional formats and formulations throughout the year.

“This approval provides us with the ability to serve new and existing customers with an expanded range of adult use and medical products through new and easy to use consumption methods. This product category is incredibly important for Zenabis, as it supports our overall growth and product leadership strategy,” said Andrew Grieve, Chief Executive Officer of Zenabis. “Ingestion of cannabis oil tends to offer a longer lasting effect than vaping or smoking dried cannabis, providing medical clients and adult use consumers with a broader set of options in Zenabis products. We look forward to bringing our cannabis oil products to market and continuing to innovate and expand our product offerings. In addition, with this update to our Atholville processing license, we now have the capacity to develop a variety of additional value-added cannabis oil products, and cannabis extract products consistent with the proposed amendments to the Cannabis Regulations that allow for greater product diversity.”

Cannabis Oil: A Value-Added Product Opportunity

Cannabis oil is a value-added option for both medical clients and adult use cannabis consumers. Cannabis oil products may be sold as oral drops or sprays, or in soft gel capsules, providing consumers a convenient, controlled and discrete dose. Cannabis oil tends to have longer lasting effects when compared to vaporizing or smoking dried cannabis. Zenabis cannabis oil products are manufactured from high-grade plant material using highly engineered extraction methods to ensure the highest quality of consumer products. Zenabis values quality first and, as with all Zenabis products, our cannabis oil is tested by an independent third-party lab to ensure product safety, consistency and quality.

Zenabis Atholville License Amendment and Construction Update

Zenabis is pleased to announce that it has received license amendment approval from Health Canada for three additional flower rooms at its Zenabis Atholville facility. This represents an additional 2,100kg of annual production capacity and 10,500 sq. ft. of incremental licensed operational space. With this amendment, the combined licensed annual production capacity of Zenabis Atholville, Zenabis Stellarton, and Zenabis Delta is now 10,200kg.

Construction at Zenabis Atholville remains on budget and on schedule, with ongoing conversion work expected to add an additional 25,000kg in annual production capacity that will become operational in stages over the course of Q2 2019.

Employee Count Surpasses 600

Zenabis’ employee count continues to grow in line with its operational footprint, largely driven by several recent license approvals from Health Canada, including the standard cultivation license granted to our facility in Stellarton, NS, and today’s announcements on the approval to process and sell cannabis oil products and the expansion of our operational space in Atholville, NB. The number of Zenabis’ employees, including contractors and seasonal workers, now exceeds 600, have been fewer than 400 as of December 1st, 2018.

Note: Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor it’s Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Medical Clinic Network Launches Cannabis Partnership Across Ontario

By
IHR Magazine
-
0

MedCare Clinics and CannaWay Clinic introduce the CannaWay Clinic Affiliate Program for patients in need of comprehensive medical cannabis treatment plans

OAKVILLE, ON, March 27, 2019 /CNW/ – Medcare Health Systems Inc. (“MedCare Clinics“) and CannaWay Clinics Inc.  (“CannaWay Clinic“) will be introducing medical cannabis services to patients at up to 14 medical clinics across Ontario through a new partnership arrangement (the “CannaWay Clinic Affiliate Program“).

The CannaWay Clinic Affiliate Program will be launching at six MedCare Clinics to initiate the province-wide rollout, in St. Catharines, Vaughan, Niagara Falls, Brampton and Markham.

“We developed the CannaWay Clinic Affiliate Program so that patients could access the quality care that we provide at CannaWay Clinic at the same doctor’s office they are used to visiting. By working with more physicians and expanding our own footprint, we are building a foundation of support for medical cannabis within the mainstream medical community in Canada,” says Dr. Teosar Bhesania, President, CannaWay Clinic. Through the CannaWay Clinic Affiliate Program, patients of MedCare Clinics will now have access to:

  • physicians with the knowledge and tools to provide comprehensive assessments for medical cannabis treatment plans;
  • cannabis counsellors who aid with treatment plan implementation and support; and
  • medical cannabis products such as oils, capsules and sprays from a variety of licensed cannabis producers (for patients who obtain a medical cannabis prescription)

Since recreational legalization, there has been an influx of patients requesting information about medical cannabis. The CannaWay Clinic Affiliate Program empowers the MedCare Clinics team to assess the appropriateness of medical cannabis with confidence for patients seeking relief from various symptoms or ailments.

CannaWay Clinic

CannaWay Clinic is a network of medical clinics that specialize in cannabis treatment programs. Established in 2017, the CannaWay team is made up of doctors from the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons Canada and medical cannabis counsellors with experience in conventional medicine and patient care. To learn more, visit cannawayclinic.ca.

MedCare Clinics

MedCare Clinics is committed to improving access to consistent and quality public health care provided by highly qualified medical practitioners in modern, state-of-the-art facilities. MedCare Clinics operates numerous multi-specialty turn-key clinics as well as providing practice management services for primary care and specialist physicians. MedCare Clinics is dedicated to patient-centred care for the entire family. Our qualified practitioners have a variety of backgrounds and interests to meet patient needs.

CAUTIONARY NOTE REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING INFORMATION

This news release contains “forward-looking information” and “forward-looking statements” (collectively, “forward-looking statements“) within the meaning of the applicable Canadian securities legislation. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, are forward-looking statements and are based on expectations, estimates and projections as at the date of this news release. Any statement that involves discussions with respect to predictions, expectations, beliefs, plans, projections, objectives, assumptions, future events or performance (often but not always using phrases such as “expects”, or “does not expect”, “is expected”, “anticipates” or “does not anticipate”, “plans”, “budget”, “scheduled”, “forecasts”, “estimates”, “believes” or “intends” or variations of such words and phrases or stating that certain actions, events or results “may” or “could”, “would”, “might” or “will” be taken to occur or be achieved) are not statements of historical fact and may be forward-looking statements. In this news release, forward-looking statements relate, among other things, future plans with respect to the implementation and expansion of the CannaWay Clinic Affiliate Program. Forward-looking statements are necessarily based upon a number of estimates and assumptions that, while considered reasonable, are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors which may cause the actual results and future events to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Such factors include, but are not limited to: general business, economic, competitive, political, contractual and social uncertainties; and the delay or failure to receive any requisite regulatory approvals. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on the forward-looking statements and information contained in this news release. Except as required by law, neither CannaWay Clinic nor MedCare Clinics assumes no obligation to update the forward-looking statements of beliefs, opinions, projections, or other factors, should they change.

SOURCE: CannaWay Clinic

BioPlus ranked as #1 in Specialty Pharmacy Office Staff Satisfaction Survey conducted by Zitter Health Insights

By
IHR Magazine
-
0

BioPlus Specialty Pharmacy (BioPlus), a leading independent specialty pharmacy, is proud to announce that it has earned the highest ranking among independent specialty pharmacies, with this top score tied to particularly high marks in oncology practices.

 

How was the survey measured?

A core measurement in this survey is the Net Promoter ScoreTM (NPS), which is an index of how likely a physician office is to recommend a particular specialty pharmacy. BioPlus earned the highest ranking of NPS of all independent specialty pharmacies. In fact, BioPlus’ score was double the independent specialty pharmacy average.

“To see BioPlus rank solidly as #1 of independent specialty pharmacies in this survey is an honour that reflects on the teamwork that happens every day here at BioPlus,” says Stephen Vogt, Pharm.D., CEO of BioPlus. It’s noteworthy that during the timeframe of this survey, the entire specialty pharmacy industry experienced a decrease in satisfaction scores. This makes the 26 point increase for BioPlus in this same time period all the more impressive.

“It’s unfortunate to see the specialty pharmacy industry as a whole failing in the eyes of doctors and staff. They don’t want to use our services or recommend specialty pharmacies to their family and friends – there’s nothing special about that! While I am proud of our specialty pharmacy and how positively it’s viewed by medical offices, the industry as a whole should take heed of the overall falling numbers,” Dr. Vogt explains.

According to survey results, BioPlus’ high rankings were supported by an appreciation by physician offices for benefit verification completion within just one day, excellent customer service, and an efficient prior authorization process. Dr. Vogt points to how “This survey revealed that navigation of the insurance process and support with the increasing financial burden experienced by families needing specialty medications are real ‘pain points’ for doctors and staff caring for patients – which is why BioPlus works hard to ease the path with these kinds of issues, “The RxExpressTM program at BioPlus makes BioPlus faster than most other pharmacies. The RxExpress process begins with a 2-Hour Patient Acceptance Guarantee which ensures notification to physician offices in less than two hours whether a referred patient is accepted for treatment. After that, prescriptions move to the 2-Day Ready 2 Ship process and throughout this process, the patient financial assistance department helps ensure that financial issues don’t stand in the way of patient treatment. In 2018, our financial assistance department connected patients with $33 million in patient assistance, in the form of grants, co-pay assistance, and donations.

The Zitter Health Insights 2018 Specialty Pharmacy Office Staff Satisfaction Survey covers the time period of the second half of 2018 and was based on office personnel from physician offices, including physicians, registered nurses, office managers, and administrative assistants.

 

About BioPlus Specialty Pharmacy

BioPlus Specialty Pharmacy is a leading independent, national specialty pharmacy and the first and only specialty pharmacy to offer a two-hour turnaround from referral to patient acceptance. Our company celebrates 30 years of innovative excellence in specialty pharmacy, working closely with payers and the pharmaceutical industry, as well as with prescribers to get prompt treatment for patients, and directly supporting our patients nationwide to achieve optimal health outcomes. We provide a complete range of specialty services, including for cancer, multiple sclerosis, hepatitis C, and other complexes, chronic conditions. BioPlus, a privately-held, pharmacist-owned company based in Altamonte Springs, Florida, is accredited by URAC, VIPPS, and ACHC with a Distinction in Oncology.

 

CHFA’s John Holtmann Leadership Award goes to SierraSil Health Inc. president, Michael Bentley

By
IHR Magazine
-
0

SierraSil Health Inc honourably announces President, Michael Bentley has received the John Holtmann Leadership Award from the Canadian Health Food Association on Saturday, February 23rd, 2019.

The John Holtmann Leadership Award

Sierrasil on natural pain management

 

Created in memory of John Holtmann, the award recognizes a leader and mentor, within the natural health industry, who demonstrates passion and commitment. The recipient serves as an inspiration for others and has played a significant role within his/her company and the wider industry.

In recognizing Michael at the their annual CHFA West Conference, Mike Fata, CHFA Board Chair and Founder of Manitoba Harvest Hemp, said that Michael has been actively engaged in their regulatory and government relations efforts for many years and has also volunteered his time with the Council for Responsible Nutrition (CRN) to advance industry goals.

Mike noted that SierraSil Health has made significant efforts, in terms of research and GMP (Good Manufacturing Practices), which contribute to improving the standards of NHPs and the overall maturity of the industry. He added that Michael’s interest and commitment have been invaluable and a great example for others in the industry, including his being a volunteer in community organizations.

In acknowledging the honour, Michael thanked Mike and the selection committee and paid tribute to the previous John Holtmann Award recipients, as well as John Holtmann and his foundational contributions to the natural health industry. He thanked the SierraSil team, SierraSil’s key business partners, Ecotrend Ecologics and GFR Pharma, his wife Lesley, and Quality Control and operations personnel as the unsung heroes of our industry.

Michael also thanked the pioneers of the industry, the staff at the CHFA and the responsible manufacturers and educators of our industry for helping to move it from being “alternative” to mainstream for people seeking to optimize healthy living.

 

About the Canadian Health Food Association (CHFA)

The Canadian Health Food Association is Canada’s largest trade association dedicated to natural health and organic products. Members include manufacturers, retailers, wholesalers, distributors, and importers of natural health and organic products. These can include foods, vitamin and mineral supplements, herbal products, sports nutrition products, health and beauty aids and more. The natural health product industry contributes $4 billion, and the organic product industry contributes another $5 billion to the Canadian economy. CHFA is committed to promoting and protecting both.

 

About SierraSil Health Inc

SierraSil Health Inc is a private Canadian company founded in 2003 to commercialize a proprietary mineral complex, trade-named SierraSil®. The Company has a mission to help a million consumers be healthier and more active naturally utilizing our patented, researched back natural mineral complex. Sales are primarily in Canada through retail partners and the Company is actively pursuing export partnerships and further research to extend its reach and fulfill its mission.

Financial group acquires all available assets of the Campbell’s Soup Processing Facility in Toronto, Ontario

By
IHR Magazine
-
0

A Public Sale of Assets Representing over $200 Million at Replacement Cost in Soup Cooking, Processing, Filling & Packaging will be open to the public after the massive plant is decommissioned in May 2019.

TCL Asset Group Inc., Corporate Assets Inc., Rabin Worldwide and Capital Recovery Group LLC, today announced the recent joint venture acquisition of assets from the Campbell’s Soup 600,000 sq ft Toronto processing plant. The world-renowned facility is known within the industry for having late model, well-maintained equipment.

The joint venture is now facilitating an unprecedented offering that will not only attract manufacturers in the soup production industry but buyers from other food and beverage sectors globally.

A privately negotiated sale of the facility’s major assets is ongoing now and will be held until the end of summer 2019. At that point, there will be a Multi-Day Onsite & Online Public Auction sale of all remaining assets.

Information about the sale can be found on the TCL website, Corporate Assets’ website, Rabin Worldwide’s website and Capital Recovery Group LLC.

Assets include canning and aseptic filling and packaging lines which are capable of handling the 20M+ cases of soup manufactured from the site annually. Specific assets available include:

Vegetable Receiving Department, Multi Batch Pump Area, Processing Department, Elmar Canning Lines, Combibloc Aseptic Filling and packaging Lines, Aseptic Pilot Plant, Labeling & Case Packing Department, Power & Facility Equipment, Co-Generation System, General Plant Equipment.

A representative from the joint venture partnership says, “This sale is the largest food processing machinery and equipment offering ever held in Canada. This highly significant event gives buyers the opportunity to acquire high-quality equipment from an iconic food production company”

The joint venture is welcoming all offers for pre-sale of equipment. The auction sale date will be announced later this year.

SOURCE: Rabin Worldwide

From Soy foods to Pipeline Foods; SunOpta’s sudden change of Business

By
IHR Magazine
-
0
Photo by Glenn Carstens-Peters on Unsplash

In late February, Vancouver, Canada-based SunOpta Inc, a leading Canadian specialty, non-GMO and organic food manufacturer, announced that it has divested its specialty and organic soy and corn business to Pipeline Foods, LLC (“Pipeline Foods”) for C$66.5 million ($50.3m).

This is the third divestment that SunOpta has made since 2017 when it sold its flexible re-sealable pouch products and nutrition bar operations.

What’s Next?

SunOpta will continue to operate its other North American-based sourcing and supply operations. This consists of sunflower and roasting operations. In addition, SunOpta’s European-based international sourcing and supply platform, Tradin Organic, which were not part of the sale will also continue to operate.

Other News:

On February 26th, during its fourth quarter 2018 sales results, SunOpta also the termination of David J. Colo as President and CEO, who held the position for 12 months. His position is now appointed to be filled by director Katrina (Kathy) Houde as interim CEO.

Collaboration Remarks:

The New York and Toronto-listed company said the transaction closed on February 22, 2019, and is subject to certain post-closing adjustments. The business formed part of SunOpta’s North American-based raw material sourcing and supply segment and includes five facilities.

In 2018, the soy and corn business contributed US$104.4 million of external revenue, US$8.3 million of gross profit (including $0.8 million of depreciation), and US$6.8 million of earnings before income taxes.

“Our specialty and organic soy and corn business has a long history of supplying high-quality specialty, non-GMO and organic ingredients to the food industry,” said John Ruelle, senior vice president of Raw Material Sourcing and Supply at SunOpta. “I want to thank all of our employees, who are transitioning to Pipeline Foods, for their hard work and dedication. Each employee has had a meaningful impact and contributed to the Company’s Value Creation Plan during their time at SunOpta. We believe Pipeline Foods is well positioned in this space, which should serve the industry well and be positive for our transitioning employees.”

Eric Jackson, chief executive of Pipeline Foods said the company was excited by the opportunity to grow its business and expand the accessibility of organic and specialty grains in the US. “With this move, we are merging the newest team in the sustainable agriculture supply chain business with the most tenured and respected team in the business and creating something even better,” he said. “With a focused passion, we seek to merge the best parts of each organization’s culture, practices, experience, and relationships to build a world-class business that can deliver value to our farmer-partners as well as our customers.”

“We are pleased with the overall valuation of the transaction, which is a testament to the exceptional specialty, non-GMO and organic food and feed business we have built over the last 20 years. This decision allows us to reduce debt and redeploy capital to further enhance our growing consumer products and international organic sourcing platforms,” said Kathy Houde, SunOpta’s interim CEO.

She continues; “We accelerated revenue growth during the fourth quarter, with revenue increasing 9.6 percent and adjusted revenue increasing 16.0 percent over the fourth quarter of the prior year. We generated double-digit revenue growth in both our Consumer Products and Global Ingredient segments. This reflects the impacts of our enhanced go-to-market efforts in key product categories and strengthened customer relationships.”

And lastly, Houde says “Our sales opportunity pipeline remains robust. We are progressing on plan with capital investment projects to both expand capacity and improve margins in key areas of our portfolio.”

 

About SunOpta:

SunOpta’s Hope, Minnesota facility is the first food manufacturing facility in the United States to receive U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Process Verified Program (PVP) verification for Non-Genetically Modified Organisms (GMO)/Non-Genetically Engineered (GE) products. USDA granted approval for SunOpta’s Hope facility to produce PVP verified Non-GE/GMO food-grade soybeans and corn. SunOpta’s soybeans and corn were the first produced in the United States to have the full auditing and verification of the USDA.

SPUD.ca launching the first fresh food digital marketplace in Canada with consolidated delivery for local and independent food brands looking to sell online

By
IHR Magazine
-
0
SPUD.ca launching the first fresh food digital marketplace in Canada with consolidated delivery for local and independent food brands looking to sell online

Sustainable Produce Urban Delivery Inc. (SPUD) is pleased to announce the launch of Be Fresh Marketplace, a fresh digital platform for local artisans, small shops and independent grocers to sell online with consolidated delivery. The effort comes as small local food brands struggle to move past geographic constraints and high rents to find a sustainable e-commerce solution that meets their needs.  SPUD is utilizing its industry-leading technology in grocery e-commerce, warehousing and home delivery to increase the accessibility of e-commerce for local food companies. (Xanax)

“Small food businesses are an important part of our company and the vitality of the cities we live in. It is really hard for these amazing fresh food companies to create an online shopping experience on their own,” said Peter van Stolk, CEO at SPUD.ca. “We are committed to local and working with these businesses to adapt to the digital age.”

Several local shops in Calgary have already benefited from the Be Fresh Marketplace during the company’s pilot test last month. Empire Provisions, an artisanal butchery and charcuterie, has experienced significant growth in its online business since joining the Be Fresh Marketplace community. “We are very happy with how this has been progressing,” said Karen Kho, Owner and Operator of Empire Provisions. “We’ve tried a number of other food delivery platforms but none of them compare to the quality of service we’ve experienced with Be Fresh Marketplace.”

Be Fresh Marketplace leverages SPUD.ca’s high-traffic e-commerce website to offer other local sellers a fast way to create an online store and start selling their products. The marketplace will utilize the sustainable fulfillment technology of SPUD’s food delivery platform, Food-X Urban Delivery, to consolidate orders and deliver to customers.

Sobeys Inc. to expand PrescribeIT™ service to pharmacies across Canada

By
IHR Magazine
-
0
Sobeys Inc. to expand PrescribeIT™ service to pharmacies across Canada

Sobey inc. ( IGA, Safeway, Thrifty Foods, Foodland, FreshCo, Lawton Drugs) is pleased to announce an exciting new partnership with Canada Health Infoway to launch PrescribeIT™, Canada’s only national not-for-profit electronic prescribing service. This innovative e-prescribing platform will soon be offered across all banners.

PrescribeIT™ is a national e-prescribing service that allows physicians and prescribers to send prescriptions and renewal requests electronically to a patient’s preferred pharmacy, resulting in more efficient patient care, enhanced safety and greater accuracy when filling prescriptions.

In partnership with Canada Health Infoway, Sobeys plans to roll out the PrescribeIT™ service to retail pharmacy locations across Canada over the next two years. Sobeys continues to work with the provincial ministries of health and municipalities from across the country to launch the service throughout Canada in 2019 and 2020.

“We are proud to partner with Canada Health Infoway to lead the implementation of this innovative e-prescription service to our customers and pharmacy patients across the country,” said Jedd Wood, Vice President & General Manager, Sobeys National Pharmacy. “The adoption of the PrescribeIT™ platform in pharmacy retail locations across Canada will provide significant benefit to patients, physicians and pharmacy teams. By making our prescription processes more efficient, pharmacy teams will be able to dedicate more time to patient care and creating better pharmacy experiences.”

“Canada Health Infoway is excited that Sobeys Inc. is partnering with us to launch PrescribeIT™ in its retail pharmacies across the country,” said Michael Green, President and CEO, Infoway. “This national, not-for-profit e-prescribing service provides safer and more effective medication management and protects patients’ personal health information from being sold or used for commercial activities. It’s an important step in helping Canadians experience better health outcomes.”

In December 2018, Sobeys announced it was the first pharmacy retailer in Atlantic Canada to offer PrescribeIT™, allowing physicians and health professionals to send prescriptions and renewals electronically to a patient’s pharmacy, completely eliminating the need for paper.

PrescribeIT™ is a free service offered by health care prescribers and pharmacies. Patients that are interested in using the PrescribeIT™ service may wish to consult with their physician or prescriber.

Sobeys currently offers the PrescribeIT™ service in four Sobeys and Lawtons pharmacies in Saint John, New Brunswick, three Sobeys and Safeway pharmacies in Lethbridge, Alberta and two Sobeys pharmacies in Ontario.

1...130131132...389Page 131 of 389

EDITOR PICKS

POPULAR POSTS

POPULAR CATEGORY

© 2026 IHR Magazine | Canada's Natural Health Industry Authority | Le guide de l’industrie canadienne de la santé naturelle