Willow Industries Closes First Institutional Funding Round to Accelerate Roll-Out of Its Cannabis and Hemp Decontamination Technology

DENVER, June 12, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Willow Industries, the leader in cannabis and hemp decontamination technology, announced today that it raised $2 million in venture funding from cannabis institutional investors, co-lead by AFI Capital Partners and Welcan Capital, and were joined by Halley Venture Partners and Flatiron Venture Partners.

Willow Industries is attacking the $3 Billion+ cannabis contamination market. Nationally and internationally, cannabis flower is regulated and tested for microbial contamination prior to sale. The regulations around cannabis microbial contamination were initiated to assure consumer health and safety across the medicinal and recreational cannabis industry. "Microbial contaminants pose a major health risk to consumers who utilize medical cannabis for numerous conditions, and whose upper airway and immune systems are compromised," said Dr. Ramie Tritt, a leading ENT and nasal-sinus surgeon. "Willow has developed a solution to reduce or eliminate microbial contaminants without compromising the medicinal and recreational properties of the flower to allow safe use of cannabis."

The Willow solution utilizes industry recognized USDA/EPA approved ozone gas in the patent-pending WillowPure system to destroy pathogenic contaminants on harvested cannabis, while maintaining the integrity of the plant's terpenes, potency, color and taste. "Historically when cannabis cultivators fail the regulated testing, they were required to destroy the product and risk financial collapse," said Willow board member, Ephraim Lindenbaum of Advance Ventures. "Willow has rolled out the WillowPure systems in three volume scaled, mobile units to support boutique cultivators all the way to large multi-state operators."

"The support we received in this financing round from our investors substantiates the value that Willow provides to cannabis cultivators around the country," said Jill Ellsworth, Willow's Founder and CEO. "This investment allows us to maintain our position as the leader in what we're passionate about: consumer safety and helping cultivators across the country sell high-quality, clean, safe cannabis."

"We look to back foundational businesses and teams with domain expertise," said Willow board member, Vikas Desai of Welcan Capital. "Willow Industries solves a critical problem in the cannabis supply chain and allows operators to minimize crop loss and increase cost savings. It was an easy decision to support the growth of a company that ensures the safety of consumers and that will push operators to implement preventative quality control practices."

The market for cannabis was worth about $10 billion in 2018 and is expected to top more than $31 billion by 2021. Currently, Willow operates in nine states, and the company expects to scale and expand alongside the legal cannabis industry, in both the US and internationally.

About Willow Industries

Willow Industries is the industry leader in post-harvest microbial decontamination that results in healthier cannabis, protecting consumer safety. Their ozone-based, patent-pending technology, WillowPure uses a scientifically proven method to reduce cannabis contaminants, such as yeast, mold and bacteria, while protecting the medicinal properties of the plant. Willow's technology is environmentally friendly, non-toxic, and scalable for all types of operators. To date, Willow has saved cultivators over $50M in flower failure. Learn more at https://willowindustries.com/.

Renee Cotsis
[email protected]

SOURCE Willow Industries