Cannabis producer CannTrust lays off 180 workers following regulatory problems

Ontario cannabis producer CannTrust Holdings is laying off about 180 workers.

The company has been facing regulatory problems with both its product and how it’s produced.

“We have made the extremely difficult decision to restructure our workforce to reflect the current requirements of our business,” said Robert Marcovitch, CannTrust’s interim Chief Executive Officer in a news release. “These changes also position the Company to better serve our patients and customers with high quality, innovative products in the future.”

Last month, Ontario’s government cannabis retailer returned almost $3 million worth of cannabis after finding that some of the products didn’t live up to the terms of its supply agreement.

CannTrust is also being investigated by Health Canada for growing the crop in unlicenced rooms.

“Over the past two months, we have moved swiftly to assess and address the Health Canada report indicating areas of non-compliance in our operations, as well as the findings of the Special Committee’s independent investigation,” said Marcovitch. “We remain fully committed to building the organization we need for future success and rebuilding the trust of all of our stakeholders.”

The layoff amounts to about 20 per cent of the company’s work force.

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