Optimi Health Large Scale Multi-Purpose Mushroom Facility Advances Towards Completion and Licensing

Company on track for Q3 planting with 50-day window to initial harvest

VANCOUVER, British Columbia, March 23, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Optimi Health Corp. (CSE: OPTI) (“Optimi” or the “Company”), developers of a vertically integrated functional mushroom brand focused on the health and wellness sector, is pleased to provide the following overview and update of its facility construction and Controlled Substance Dealer Licensing activities to-date.

Optimi began construction of its two adjacent 10,000 square foot facilities in Princeton, British Columbia in August of 2020. Phase One included all civil engineering including perimeter controls, foundations, building exteriors, water and sewerage connections, interior drainage, and flooring, which have been completed and approved. (See Figure 1)

The second phase which commenced in January 2021, involves a comprehensive pharmaceutical grade interior buildout of the functional mushroom cultivation and processing facility including state-of-the-art machinery and processing equipment as well as an advanced analytics laboratory, and is expected to reach completion this summer with final preparations to commence planting in Q3, 2021 with a subsequently anticipated 50-day timeline to inaugural harvest. The environmental design employs highly efficient clean room technology throughout the facility. The Optimi team brings previous successful experience with similar technology which is being leveraged to make an application for valuable power consumption energy grants offering significant cost advantages on an annualized basis.

As a result of unusually mild winter conditions, and rapid adoption of pandemic health and safety measures, the Optimi team is pleased to report that Phase One completed ahead of schedule and below the projected cost estimate, with the entire project currently within the originally proposed $8.2 million budget.

Figure 1: Optimi Health Princeton, BC Facilities
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It is anticipated that April will bring a stage-3 security inspection under the auspices of the Office of Controlled Substances (OCS) which manages applications for Controlled Drugs and Substances Dealer's Licences submitted in accordance with the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act (CDSA). The Company has completed the application intake and review phase and is confident the facility meets or exceeds the legally required security obligations. The inspection should lead to a timely decision to grant a Dealer’s License thereby enabling the Company to commence production and research into psilocybin-derived psychedelic compounds, concurrent with its functional mushroom commercial retail operations.