"Our licence reinstatement is the result of an enormous amount of hard work by the CannTrust team," says CEO Greg Guyatt

Embattled Canadian cannabis producer CannTrust announced Wednesday morning that its Vaughan manufacturing facility has had its licence restored, according to a press release.

The re-licensed producer attributes its reinstatement to has “working diligently to resolve regulatory deficiencies within its business.”

Over the past year, the company has faced mass layoffs, major staff shakeups, formal investigations, numerous financial blows, and the loss of its licences after a whistleblower revealed that the company was illegally growing cannabis in five unlicensed grow rooms hidden from Health Canada by specially-built poly walls.

The producer stood by its product, despite destroying millions of dollars worth of plants.

“Our licence reinstatement is the result of an enormous amount of hard work by the CannTrust team,” CannTrust CEO Greg Guyatt said in a statement. “Today marks the beginning of the next chapter in CannTrust’s history. We have used the last 12 months to improve every aspect of our business, placing a determined focus on regulatory compliance as we remediated, restructured, and evolved. We are excited to return to work with our partners to provide our consumers and patients with high-quality cannabis products.”

However, CannTrust notes that it remains “under CCAA protection to facilitate the Company’s efforts to resolve its civil litigation exposures and complete its review of strategic alternatives,” although it is “unable to predict either their timing or their outcome” and remains “without meaningful revenues.”

The company has repeatedly faced the ire of the cannabis community over allegations that it has been held to very different standards than those faced by unlicensed companies or individuals.

Nonetheless, the producer intends to re-start operations at the Vaughan facility “imminently,” with plans to have its products back on the shelves by the fourth quarter of 2020.

“CannTrust has undergone significant organizational and operational changes as part of our remediation activities,” said Chief Regulatory Officer Dr. Ilana Platt. “Regulatory compliance, risk management, and effective oversight are integral to everything we do.”