Planting Hope Adds Two Board of Directors Members

• Planting Hope has added two new board members, Jessica Gleeson and Kevin Phelps.
• These changes add one new board seat, bringing total company director seats to six.

CHICAGO, IL and VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / December 14, 2023 / The Planting Hope Company Inc. (TSXV:MYLK)(OTCQB:MYLKF)(FRA:J94) ("Planting Hope" or the "Company"), a dynamic Foodtech innovation company dedicated to creating breakthrough delicious, sustainable food and beverage solutions through cutting-edge ingredient, formulation, and packaging technology, is pleased to report the appointment of two new members of its board of directors, Jessica Gleeson and Kevin Phelps.

• Jessica Gleeson - FOODSERVICE AND CHINA EXPERTISE: Jessica has served on the Planting Hope Advisory board as lead advisor since July 2023, and was helpful with the Company's evaluation and acquisition of Argo Tea. Jessica resides in Shanghai where she is currently the CEO of Brighter Beauty; she moved to Shanghai in 2007 when she was tasked with launching Starbucks into China after seven years on the Starbucks management team in Seattle. Jessica spent four years scaling Starbucks across Greater China, then opted to remain-in country ongoing, taking a leadership role with The Walt Disney Company, and subsequently with Claire's Accessories. With more than a decade of expertise in developing top-quality cutting edge café experiences, Jessica has strong knowledge around optimizing world-class café processes and operations. Over the past 15 years of developing Western businesses in China, Jessica has become an expert in the strategic and cultural approach to ensuring a solid foundation and ongoing success in one of the world's largest and fastest-growing and evolving marketplaces.
• Kevin Phelps: - CFO AND FINANCIAL EXPERTISE: A former CPA, Kevin has extensive board and CFO experience. Kevin began his career with Price Waterhouse, and from there was recruited to the Eastman Kodak Company, joining the team that spun Kodak's Bio-Products Division into international bio-chemicals company Genencor International, Inc. At Genencor, Kevin served as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer. Kevin later joined Trillium Group, LLC, a regional private equity firm; as a partner at Trillium, Kevin has underwritten and managed a portfolio of life science and technology companies, often serving as Board Member and fractional CEO and/or CFO for Trillium's portfolio companies. From 2020 to 2022, Kevin served as CEO/CFO of Immune Therapeutics Inc., a publicly traded Florida-based drug development company. Kevin now consults with several technology companies and serves on a number of early-stage Boards of Directors including OyaGen, Inc, Arev Life Sciences Global, Ingenuity, Inc. and ZAAZ, Inc.

Amanda Helming has resigned from the Planting Hope board of directors, concurrent with her recent acceptance of new employment in a role that restricts her participation in outside boards.