VANCOUVER, BC, Aug. 9, 2021 /CNW/ - Willow Biosciences
Inc. ("Willow" or the "Company")
(TSX: WLLW) (OTCQX: CANSF) has released its financial and
operating results for the three and six months ended
June 30, 2021, reporting significant
advancement in its operations and strong liquidity.
"We continued to make substantial strides forward in the
second quarter, highlighted by our first commercial agreement for
CBG," said Trevor Peters, Willow's
President and Chief Executive Officer. "As the industry for
cannabinoids continues to grow, we are positioning Willow to be a
global player with the ability to meet the various demands of all
customers. Many groups have identified the global market for
biosynthetically derived cannabinoids to be a multi-billion dollar
opportunity in the coming years, and by having demonstrated our
ability to not only commercially produce, but execute on a
multi-year supply agreement, we are set up to take advantage of a
large global market as the leader in the space."
Highlights for the Quarter
- On April 20, 2021, Willow
announced that it completed a series of studies with its
development partner, Signum Biosciences, Inc. ("Signum"),
that demonstrate the safety and anti-inflammatory, anti-aging, and
antimicrobial properties of Willow's cannabigerol ("Willow
CBG"). The studies demonstrate that Willow CBG is safe when
applied to skin and eye areas and can act as a more potent
antioxidant and anti-inflammatory for certain skin applications
when compared to plant derived cannabidiol ("CBD").
- On May 7, 2021, Willow announced
that Ms. Barbara Munroe has been
appointed to the Board of Directors of the Company. Ms. Munroe has
more than 25 years of experience as a lawyer and executive in
diverse industries. In addition to serving as the current Chair of
the Board of Crescent Point Energy Corp., Ms. Munroe has served as
an executive in several customer-centric and diverse industries, as
EVP, Corporate Services and General Counsel for WestJet Airlines
Ltd., the Assistant General Counsel, Upstream at Imperial Oil Ltd.,
and the Senior Vice President, Legal/IP & General Counsel,
Corporate Secretary for SMART Technologies Inc.
- On May 18, 2021, Willow announced
that it has been added to "the Cannabis ETF" (NYSE: THCX), an
exchange traded fund trading on NYSE Arca.
- On May 26, 2021, the Company
presented on a panel with other industry leaders at SynBioBeta's
"Celebrating Synthetic Biology Breakthroughs in Biopharma".
- On June 10, 2021, Willow
announced that it signed a multi-year supply agreement with
Cellular Goods PLC ("Cellular Goods"), whereby Willow will
supply Cellular Goods with its proprietary, ultra-pure,
biosynthetically produced, Willow CBG to be used in Cellular Goods'
premium cannabinoid-based skin care products to be launched in
autumn of 2021.
- Willow ended the quarter with strong liquidity, including
approximately $40.7 million of cash
on hand as at June 30, 2021.
Operational Update
As of the second quarter of 2021, Willow's lead program
cannabigerol ("CBG"), is now at manufacturing scale. Willow
has added resources and expertise to manage commercial production
and further expand its R&D capabilities to grow its product
portfolio. Willow has expanded its Vancouver, British Columbia and Mountain View, California teams to include
manufacturing, quality and regulatory groups, along with additional
R&D scientists focusing on strain optimization and process
development. Willow's total headcount is now 55 employees, 42 of
which are in technical roles.
Willow and Signum evaluated the safety and activity of CBG as an
ingredient for cosmetics, which was announced by the Company in
April 2021. Willow has also engaged a
regulatory consulting group to attain an Independent Generally
Regarded as Safe ("GRAS") conclusion for Willow CBG that is
required for use in food and beverage applications.
With Willow's lead proprietary yeast strain now producing
biosynthetic CBG at commercial scale, and agreements in place to
generate product revenue, Willow's R&D teams are now focused on
development of CBD and tetrahydrocannabinol ("THC") programs
for commercial manufacture. In addition to Willow's commercial
development programs for CBG, CBD and THC, Willow's R&D team
continues to develop biosynthetic processes for cannabidivarin
("CBDV"), cannabigerovarin ("CBGV"), and
tetrahydrocannabivarin ("THCV"), and has added an additional
development project for production of cannabinol ("CBN")
from its biosynthetically derived CBD or THC. Early research
indicates that CBN may be effective as a sleep aid or sedative, in
addition to other potential health benefits. The Center of Disease
Control's Sleep and Sleep Disorder Program states that one in three
adults in the United States do not
get enough sleep, a crucial component for good health, and CBN is
increasingly being incorporated into consumer products designed to
improve sleep quality.
Financial Update
Willow ended the quarter in a strong financial position, with
approximately $40.7 million in cash
on hand.
The Company's financial results are summarized as follows:
|
As at June 30
|
|
2021
|
2020
|
Balance sheet
($000's):
|
|
|
Cash and cash
equivalents
|
40,734
|
12,244
|
Total
assets
|
46,422
|
19,953
|
Shareholder's
equity
|
30,024
|
11,075
|
Weighted average
shares outstanding:
|
|
|
Basic
(000's)
|
123,507
|
78,892
|
Diluted
(000's)
|
140,715
|
78,892
|
Outlook
Willow completed its first commercial scale fermentation run of
its first cannabinoid, CBG, in Q1 2021 and signed up its first
multi year commercial agreement with Cellular Goods in Q2 2021.
This agreement was a significant turning point in the lifecycle of
the Company as it demonstrates that Willow has the full technical
and business development capabilities to meet customer demands.
During the remainder of 2021, Willow plans to continue to optimize
its commercial process for CBG, supply product to customers, seed
commercial samples to new potential customers, and build out a
robust order book for 2022, which the Company expects to be its
first full year of commercial production and sales. CBG is a rare
cannabinoid and Willow is at the forefront of developing that
market.
The industry focus on sustainable and safe manufacturing of
cannabinoids is a large opportunity for Willow, and in July 2021, Willow announced the formation of a
senior-level Environmental, Social, and Governance ("ESG")
committee to oversee sustainability integration efforts and to
provide a direct line from operations to the board of directors on
all ESG matters. Many large multi-national players in the
consumer-packaged goods space have a mandate to deal with companies
that are accretive to their overall sustainability portfolio and
Willow is uniquely positioned to help them achieve this.
With $40.7 million of cash on the
Company's balance sheet as at June 30,
2021, favourable regulatory regime changes being discussed
in the United States, a first
commercial production run completed and first commercial agreement
signed, the Company is in a position of strength to execute on its
business plan. While the market for biosynthetically produced
cannabinoids is new, Willow is at the forefront of this industry
and will continue to demonstrate itself as a market leader.
About Willow Biosciences Inc.
Willow is a leading biotechnology company that develops and
produces high-purity, plant derived ingredients for the consumer
care, food and beverage, and pharmaceutical markets. Willow's
biotechnology platform allows creation of a consistent, scalable
and sustainable product that benefits both B2B and B2C customers.
Willow's R&D team has a proven track record of developing and
commercializing bio-based manufacturing processes and products for
both the consumer and pharmaceutical industries.
Forward-Looking Statements
This news release may include forward-looking statements
including opinions, assumptions, estimates and the Company's
assessment of future plans and operations, and, more particularly,
statements concerning: Willow's milestone projections, including
the timing of CBG production and revenue generation and commercial
manufacturing of CBD and THC; the progress of Willow's commercial
development programs for CBD, THC, CBDV, CBGV, THCV and CBN; the
results of negotiations with strategic partners and potential
customers, including product orders resulting therefrom; the
receipt of a GRAS conclusion in respect of Willow's CBG; the
therapeutic benefits of CBN; global market forecasts for
biosynthetically derived cannabinoids and Willow's ability to
capture market share; Willow's ESG efforts and objectives; and the
business plan of the Company, generally, including cannabinoid
research and production. When used in this news release, the words
"will," "anticipate," "believe," "estimate," "expect," "intent,"
"may," "project," "should," and similar expressions are intended to
be among the statements that identify forward-looking statements.
The forward-looking statements are founded on the basis of
expectations and assumptions made by the Company which include, but
are not limited to: the success of Willow's strategic partnerships,
including the development of future strategic partnerships; the
financial strength of the Company; the ability of the Company to
fund its business plan using cash on hand and existing resources;
the market for Willow's products; the ability of the Company to
obtain and retain applicable licences; the ability of the Company
to obtain suitable manufacturing partners and other strategic
relationships; and the successful implementation of Willow's
commercialization and production strategy, generally.
Forward-looking statements are subject to a wide range of risks and
uncertainties, and although the Company believes that the
expectations represented by such forward-looking statements are
reasonable, there can be no assurance that such expectations will
be realized. Any number of important factors could cause actual
results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking
statements including, but not limited to, risks associated with:
the cannabinoid industry in general; the success of the Company's
research and development strategies; infringement on intellectual
property; failure to benefit from partnerships or successfully
integrate acquisitions; actions and initiatives of federal and
provincial governments and changes to government policies and the
execution and impact of these actions, initiatives and policies;
import/export and research restrictions for cannabinoid-based
operations; the size of the medical-use and adult-use cannabinoid
market; competition from other industry participants; adverse U.S.,
Canadian and global economic conditions; adverse global events and
public-health crises, including the current COVID-19 outbreak;
failure to comply with certain regulations; departure of key
management personnel or inability to attract and retain talent; and
other factors more fully described from time to time in the reports
and filings made by the Company with securities regulatory
authorities. Please refer to the AIF and the MD&A for
additional risk factors relating to Willow, which can be accessed
either on Willow's website at www.willowbio.com or under the
Company's profile on www.sedar.com.
The forward-looking statements contained in this news release
are made as of the date hereof and the Company does not undertake
any obligation to update publicly or to revise any of the included
forward-looking statements, except as required by applicable law.
The forward-looking statements contained herein are expressly
qualified by this cautionary statement.
SOURCE Willow Biosciences Inc.