Flower One Joins GF Institute and Green Flower in Historic Push to Standardize Cannabis Education

VENTURA, Calif. and NORTH LAS VEGAS, Nev., Sept. 15, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Green Flower and newly-introduced partnership organization, GF Institute (GFI), are proud to announce that Flower One and its President and CEO Kellen O'Keefe are joining the inaugural Steering Committee to provide guidance, insight, and subject matter expertise as the industry welcomes a revolutionary new chapter in cannabis workforce development.

"The cannabis industry's exponential growth makes the establishment of true, powerful, research-tested standards like what GFI will provide even more important," said Gil Christie, GF Institute Chairman. "Flower One's scope, scale, and decades of experience in our field provide the GFI Steering Committee partner a critically-important perspective as we work with the ANSI National Accreditation Board (ANAB), the largest accreditation agency in the Western hemisphere, to standardize the industry like never before."

Change is a constant force in cannabis, and employers often struggle to execute on business imperatives because they're trying to do too many things at the same time and ultimately feel like their ability to focus is spread too thin in terms of their operational bandwidth. In fact, many cannabis employers try to go-it-alone on training programs entirely, struggling to produce training programs with the rigor and depth required to really understand and be prepared for such a fast-growing industry.

As a result, the cannabis industry collectively faces a host of painful and costly issues that all stem from a lack of training and focus on the onboarding experience. Problems like high turnover rates, poor customer service, unsafe or inconsistent products, costly compliance mistakes, and many other potential roadblocks to profitability can be solved with the introduction of a standardized cannabis education curriculum and onboarding program.

GF Institute is launching with 3 credentials, available today, focused on the largest sectors of people growth in the industry:

• Cultivation Technician Certificate (CTC)
• Dispensary Associate Certificate (DAC)
• Manufacturing Agent Certificate (MAC)

"GF Institute's credential program offers operators in the industry an unprecedented resource to secure, retain and develop critical talent in key positions," said Kellen O'Keefe, Flower One's President & CEO. "The Steering Committee's approach to developing cannabis education adds crucial elements of transparency and consistency to cannabis workforce development." 

The GF Institute's standardized credential program is overseen by an independent Steering Committee and advisory board, composed of more than 30 leading cannabis employers. The Steering Committee collectively: approves the curricular for each job role, champion education and professional development, support social equity and community initiatives, and represent brands that are committed to raising the overall knowledge and quality of professionals in the cannabis industry.

Each participant who successfully completes a GF Institute Cannabis Certificate course will automatically become members of the GF Institute's post-graduate community. GFI members will have exclusive access to continuing education programs, networking, career development opportunities, and more. To signify their accomplishment, those who complete the program will also receive a digital certificate of achievement, as well as digital pins that will enable certificate-holding cannabis professionals to post their credentials on LinkedIn.

GF Institute is now accepting applications for "Founding Member" companies who believe that proper training and investing in their workforce is a priority. Interested parties can find more information, including a complete guide to the certificate program, a full list of Steering Committee members, and individual program syllabus with course descriptions, on the GFI website.

About Green Flower:

Founded in 2014, Green Flower is the industry leader in cannabis education, empowering thousands of consumers, regulators, and professionals with the knowledge they need to succeed in the emerging cannabis industry today.

Green Flower's content and technology platform powers the cannabis programs of top universities and colleges across the country, provides customized learning and compliance solutions for cannabis businesses of all sizes, and equips individuals with the skills and credentials necessary to make an impact in the modern cannabis industry.

About Flower One Holdings Inc.:

Flower One is the largest cannabis cultivator, producer, and full-service brand fulfillment partner in the state of Nevada. By combining more than 20 years of greenhouse operational excellence with best-in-class cannabis operators, Flower One offers consistent, reliable, and scalable fulfillment to a growing number of industry-leading cannabis brands (Cookies, Kiva, Old Pal, Heavy Hitters, Lift Ticket's, The Clear, HUXTON, and Flower One's leading in-house brand, NLVO, and more). Flower One currently produces a wide range of products from flower, full-spectrum oils, and distillates to finished consumer packaged goods, including a variety of: pre-rolls, concentrates, edibles, topicals, and more for top-performing brands in cannabis. Flower One's Nevada footprint includes the Company's flagship facility, a 400,000 square-foot high-tech greenhouse and 55,000 square-foot production facility, as well as a second site with a 25,000 square-foot indoor cultivation facility and commercial kitchen. Flower One has built an industry-leading team passionate about sharing cannabis with the world.

The Company's common shares are traded on the Canadian Securities Exchange under the Company's symbol "FONE", in the United States on the OTCQX Best Market under the symbol "FLOOF" and on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange under the symbol "F11". For more information, visit: https://flowerone.com.

Contact: Adam Summers
e: [email protected] p: 708.223.2336

SOURCE Green Flower

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