Clever Leaves’ Nutraceutical Manufacturer, Herbal Brands Inc., Begins Importing CBD into the US

NEW YORK, Feb. 09, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Clever Leaves Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: CLVR, CLVRW) (“Clever Leaves” or the “Company”), a leading multi-national operator and licensed producer of pharmaceutical-grade cannabinoids, announced today its branded nutraceutical manufacturer, Herbal Brands, has entered into a strategic partnership with the LooperGroup and TruSource Hemp Group (“TruSource”), a leading provider of services for the hemp industry, to import the Company’s first commercial shipment of CBD into the United States. Clever Leaves´ Colombian facilities are the first and only cannabis operations in LATAM to have a Good Manufacturing Practices certification from the European Union (EU-GMP).
“This partnership will capitalize on both Clever Leaves’ and TruSource’s combined expertise within the hemp industry, resulting in significant access to high quality grade CBD products for the U.S. marketplace,” said Kyle Detwiler, CEO of Clever Leaves. The CBD industry is estimated to reach $20 billion by 2024¹, and the Company expects this U.S.-based strategic partnership to unlock opportunities to provide high quality, cost-effective raw materials for the U.S. market.”“TruSource offers Clever Leaves the deployment expertise for an important new market, enabling our company to import its first commercial shipment of CBD into the U.S.” he added.“The partnership between Clever Leaves, TruSource, and the LooperGroup is a powerful alliance. Clever Leaves’ expertise in large-scale cultivation, evolving formulations, and industry innovation will provide U.S. hemp commercial customers with access to an unprecedented, vertically integrated supply of CBD isolate, extracts and finished solutions,” said D. Williams, TruSource Hemp Group’s President & CEO.“This achievement opens the gateway for importing pharmaceutical grade CBD products from Colombia to the United States. We are pleased to be a member of the team which achieved this notable milestone and we look forward to maximizing the opportunities this offers,” said Robert W. Looper, President & CEO of The LooperGroup.Andrés Fajardo, President of Clever Leaves, said, “Our efforts are aimed toward manufacturing products of the highest quality. To that end, we operate under rigorous international pharmaceutical-grade quality standards. Thus far, our products have been widely accepted in more than 15 different countries across five continents.”He added, “This partnership enables our Herbal Brands business, which currently has access to more than 10,000 retail distribution points in the U.S., to manage every aspect of our CBD topical product development from ‘seed to consumer’ and allows us to provide the highest quality CBD products to the U.S. market.”This first shipment successfully cleared customs in the United States in Q1 of 2021.For all business inquiries, please visit Clever Leaves’ direct to business sales platform, www.cleverleaves360.com, to set up an appointment with a Clever Leaves’ business consultant.About Clever Leaves Holdings Inc.
Clever Leaves is a multi-national cannabis company with an emphasis on ecologically sustainable, large-scale cultivation and pharmaceutical-grade processing as the cornerstones of its global cannabis business. With operations and investments in the United States, Canada, Colombia, Germany and Portugal, Clever Leaves has created an effective distribution network and global footprint, with a foundation built upon capital efficiency and rapid growth. Clever Leaves aims to be one of the industry’s leading global cannabis companies recognized for its principles, people, and performance while fostering a healthier global community. Clever Leaves has received multiple international certifications that have enabled it to increase its export and sales capacity from its Colombian operations, including European Union Good Manufacturing Practices (EU GMP) Certification, a Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) Certification by Colombia National Food and Drug Surveillance Institute – Invima, and Good Agricultural and Collecting Practices (GACP) Certification. Clever Leaves was granted a provisional license in Portugal from Infarmed – the Portuguese health authority – that allows Clever Leaves to cultivate, import and export dry flower for medicinal and research purposes.For more information, please visit https://cleverleaves.com/en/home/.Herbal Brands Inc. is an Arizona based manufacturer and distributor of health and wellness products. The Herbal Brands portfolio includes a number of nutraceutical and beverage brands that sell in over 20,000 retail locations across the United StatesAbout TruSource Hemp Group
TruSource Hemp Group is a leading provider of services for the Hemp Industry to include bulk wholesale, consulting, marketing, business positioning and futures analytics. The TruSource Hemp Group LLC is an industrial scale supplier of Hemp Biomass and Full Spectrum CBD oil from outdoor and indoor grown industrial hemp, and utilizes exclusive suppliers through a Grow and Sold customized program to provide premium Hemp products for customers. TruSource Hemp Group is an established business enterprise based in Metro Atlanta Georgia and operates a global network.Press contacts:
McKenna Miller 
KCSA Strategic Communications 
+1347-487-6197
mmiller@kcsa.com Diana Sigüenza
Strategic Communications Director
+57310-236-8830
Diana.siguenza@cleverleaves.comInvestor inquiries:
Sean Mansouri, CFA or Cody Slach
Gateway Investor Relations
+1949-574-3860
CLVR@gatewayir.com____________________
¹ According to an analysis by BDS Analytics and Arcview Market Research