NewLeaf Brands Provides an Update to its Shareholders on Recent Corporate Developments and Shares a Positive Outlook

VANCOUVER, British Columbia, May 28, 2020 /CNW/ -- NewLeaf Brands Inc. (CSE: NLB) (OTC: NLBIF) (FSE: 0NF) ("NewLeaf Brands" or the "Company") a parent company operating innovative product divisions in the Naturally Sourced Therapies (NST) space, is delighted to provide its shareholders with a review of the recent milestones the Company has reached.

On April 9th, NewLeaf Brands' wholly-owned subsidiary, We Are Kured, LLC ("Kured") had launched its new CBD flower pre-rolled joints. The response from consumers was swift and overwhelmingly positive, with the Company now expecting to expand its distribution footprint within the United States to keep up with the high consumer demand.

Subsequently, on April 23rd, NewLeaf Brands had signed a share swap agreement with Levee Street Holdings, LLC ("Levee Street") to purchase 50% of Levee Street for CAD $450,000 in common shares. Greg Kassanoff founded Levee Street to infiltrate the "alternative" beverage space, which includes CBD products and is the founder of Levee Street Holdings, LLC, Pioneer Wine & Spirits, LLC, & CEO of Mexcor Pioneer Wine & Spirits ("MPWS"). The latter, MPWS, has thousands of existing retail and restaurant relationships throughout the state of Texas with infrastructure to support various distribution efforts. Overall, Mr. Kassanoff's vast network of accounts and relationships have been instrumental in deploying NewLeaf Brands' suite of products into accounts all over the state of Texas and the Company expects to provide shareholders with further exciting updates in the very near future.

As the Company continues to seek novel routes for growth, Joshua Bartch, CEO of NewLeaf Brands said, "The whole team has been working around the clock to become a market leader in the various sectors the Company operates in, including the mushroom, hemp and cannabis space, and with our recent successes, we believe it's time to review these updates with our dedicated shareholders."

On April 29th, NewLeaf Brands had signed a definitive agreement to acquire Mydecine Group ("Mydecine"), a Colorado headquartered company. Mydecine is a vertically integrated company engaged to utilize the vast medicinal, health and wellness capabilities of the plethora of compounds found in various varieties of mushrooms and the overall many uses of fungi. Founded by Damon Michaels and Rob Roscow, the Company, through its three wholly-owned divisions, "Mydecine Farms", "Mydecine Wellness", and "Mydecine Labs" aims to be an industry pioneer in the cultivation, processing, product development, and research and development of the many beneficial and exciting compounds and other uses that are found in various varieties of fungi from all around the world. Thanks to the tireless efforts of the entire team, NewLeaf Brands expects to announce earth shattering updates on the progress of Mydecine Group in the near future.

Not yet content with the stature of its cannabis and CBD business, NewLeaf Brands had signed a definitive agreement dated May 5th, 2020 with Trellis Holdings Oregon, LLC ("Trellis") to acquire 37.5% of the issued and outstanding share capital of Trellis Holdings Oregon Op LLC ("Trellis") from David Joshua Bartch and Benjamin Martch (the "Vendors") by way of a share exchange (the "Transaction"), as was previously announced on February 6th, 2020. Trellis holds various licenses with the OLCC in the state of Oregon and operates in both the medical and recreational cannabis markets, maintaining an 11-acre recreational cultivation property in Southern Oregon and operating a medical and recreational cannabis dispensary in Portland, Oregon. Trellis has also recently applied for an additional license to increase its outdoor canopy cultivation capabilities by 40,000 sq. ft. while its greenhouse space was granted an additional 10,000 sq. ft. Overall, the Company expects to issue additional tantalizing updates on Trellis in the near future.

Subsequently, on May 11th and 12th, 2020, NewLeaf Brands appointed Damon Michaels to the position of Chief Operations Officer (COO) and Robert Roscow to the position of Chief Science Officer (CSO), respectively. Prior to Ebbu's USD $429 MM acquisition by Canopy Growth, Mr. Michaels managed Ebbu's day-to-day operations, including oversight of production, R&D, HR, compliance, supply chain, marketing and business development while also providing guidance for strategic business practices and strategy. Robert Roscow, on the  other hand, was involved in running the world's first cannabis genomic editing lab, focused on cannabinoid yield improvements, filing patents, establishing a cannabis tissue culture lab, and support of drug development team with statistical analysis and experimental design for Ebbu's proprietary formulations. Since Mr. Michaels appointment, he has been incredibly active in the Company, utilizing his vast network of relationships and bringing his operational knowledge to the team while Mr. Roscow has spearheaded NewLeaf Brands' biotech strategy through various partnerships and relationships that the Company expects to announce extremely soon, and which will put the Company drastically ahead of its competitors.

The Company then announced that Mydecine had begun work to build an ecosystem of resources targeted at unlocking the potential of fungi for human wellness as well as the build out of a specialty mycology lab in Denver, Colorado. The lab will serve Mydecine's needs for the study, selection and cultivation of valuable and rare fungal products and will incorporate state of the art analytical chemistry, molecular biology, next-gen sequencing, and tissue culture. However, since the May 19th announcement, the scope of the project has increased drastically, and the Company intends to announce further updates on its progress in the near future.

Then, on May 21st, NewLeaf Brands signed a non-binding Letter of Intent ("LOI") with MindLeap Health Inc. ("MindLeap") pursuant to which NewLeaf Brands will acquire, by way of share exchange, 100% of all of the issued and outstanding securities of MindLeap, an arm's length company. MindLeap is an advanced telemedicine digital health platform that helps people connect with mental health specialists that can empower them to thrive and develop habits for a healthy mind. While the NewLeaf Brands team has already made it through the due diligence phase, it is currently working on definitive negotiations, with the transaction expected to close soon.

The next day, May 22nd, a broker private placement led by Canaccord Genuity saw great success, as the offering closed and was heavily oversubscribed on the same day that it was opened. NewLeaf Brands is proud to have the full support of the Canaccord team and expects a long and fruitful relationship to develop between the two entities.

Lastly, on May 26th, the Company had appointed Dr. Aubrey Oliver ND, RBT to be its newest advisor. Dr. Oliver is a Jamaican registered Functional Holistic doctor and a graduate of Ashford University in Complementary and Alternative Medicine. In recent years, Dr. Oliver was the Coordinating Physician with Caribbean Clinical Research Associates on the first clinical research of its kind which dealt with CBD oil, nano liposome, and alcohol-based forms to find out the absorbency efficacy on healthy cells. Now, Mr. Oliver is spearheading the Company's efforts to establish various resorts in the Caribbean country to house its unique and advanced psilocybin retreats. Partnering with industry's top minds and authorities to bring project to fruition, NewLeaf Brands expects to issue numerous updates on the progress of these efforts  soon.

Overall, NewLeaf Brands continues to position itself with an eye on the future, adding key personnel and business entities to its ever-growing cache of capabilities. And, in addition to thanking its loyal shareholders, the Company intends to share its crucial developments in the near term. 

About NewLeaf Brands

NewLeaf Brands Inc. is the parent company operating innovative product divisions in the Naturally Sourced Therapies (NST) space. While controlling a variety of Psilocybin and hemp-derived CBD brands that design, manufacture and distribute cutting edge products, NewLeaf Brands Inc. further enhances its portfolio with numerous cultivation properties, retail locations, and other land assets.

NewLeaf Brands Inc. is the progressive and innovative Naturally Sourced Therapies (NST) lifestyle group known around the globe. Focusing on the rapidly emerging psilocybin and psychedelic medicines market, the Company's wholly-owned subsidiary 1220611 B.C. Ltd. (operating as Mydecine Group) ("Mydecine") is a vertically integrated company engaged to utilize the vast medicinal, health and wellness capabilities of the various compounds found in mycology as a whole. Established to parallel the early emergence of the industry, Mydecine aims to be a pioneer in the cultivation, processing, product development, and research and development of mycology's exciting compounds through its three divisions, "Mydecine Farms," "Mydecine Wellness" and "Mydecine Labs." Furthermore, the Company's wholly-owned subsidiaries in the hemp-derived CBD space, We are Kured LLC, Drink Fresh Water LLC, Relyfe Brand LLC, Fresh Water CBD LLC and TeaLief Brand LLC have quickly developed into market leaders and maintain extensive retail and cultivation land investments in the United States.

For further information about NewLeaf Brands, please consult the Company's profile on SEDAR at www.sedar.com

or visit the Company's website at www.nabrandsinc.com.

The Canadian Securities Exchange has neither approved nor disapproved the contents of this news release and accepts no responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy hereof.

This news release contains forward-looking statements, which relate to future events or future performance and reflect management's current expectations and assumptions. Such forward-looking statements reflect management's current beliefs and are based on assumptions made by and information currently available to the Company. Readers are cautioned that these forward looking statements are neither promises nor guarantees, and are subject to risks and uncertainties that may cause future results to differ materially from those expected including, but not limited to completion of planned improvements at both the Canadian and US sites on schedule and on budget, the availability of financing needed to complete the Company's planned improvements on commercially reasonable terms, planned occupancy by the tenant-growers, commencement of operations, differences in yield on expected harvests, delays in obtaining statutory approval for marijuana production plans, issues that may arise throughout the grow period, outdoor crops affected by weather, the ability to mitigate the risk of loss through appropriate insurance policies, and the risks presented by federal statutes that may contradict local and state legislation respecting legalized marijuana. There are no assurances that the business plans for NewLeaf described in this news release will come into effect on the terms or time frame described herein. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date hereof and the Company does not assume any obligation to update or revise them to reflect new events or circumstances save as required under applicable securities legislation. This news release does not constitute an offer to sell securities and the Company is not soliciting an offer to buy securities in any jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of such jurisdiction.

This news release does not constitute an offer of securities for sale in the United States. These securities have not and will not be registered under United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or any state securities laws and may not be offered or sold in the United States or to a U.S. Person unless so registered, or an exemption from registration is relied upon.

On Behalf of the Board of Directors                                                              

Joshua Bartch                               
Chief Executive Officer                
[email protected]  

For Further Information Contact

Corporate Communications
[email protected]
250-488-6728

SOURCE NewLeaf Brands Inc.