UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

 

 

FORM 8-K

 

 

CURRENT REPORT

Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d)

of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934

Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported): March 9, 2020

 

 

VILLAGE FARMS INTERNATIONAL, INC.

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

 

 

 

Canada   001-38783   98-1007671

(State or Other Jurisdiction

of Incorporation)

 

(Commission

File No.)

 

(IRS Employee

Identification No.)

4700-80th Street

Delta, British Columbia Canada

V4K 3N3

(Address of Principal Executive Offices)

(604) 940-6012

(Registrant’s telephone number, including area code)

(Former name or former address, if changed since last report)

 

 

Check the appropriate box below if the Form 8-K filing is intended to simultaneously satisfy the filing obligation of the registrant under any of the following provisions:

 

☐

Written communications pursuant to Rule 425 under the Securities Act (17 CFR 230.425)

 

☐

Soliciting material pursuant to Rule 14a-12 under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14a-12)

 

☐

Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 14d-2(b) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14d-2(b))

 

☐

Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 13e-4(c) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.13e-4(c))

 

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:

 

Title of Each Class

 

Trading

Symbol(s)

 

Name of Each Exchange

on Which Registered

Common Shares, without par value   VFF   The Nasdaq Stock Market LLC

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is an emerging growth company as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act of 1933 (§230.405 of this chapter) or Rule 12b-2 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (§240.12b-2 of this chapter).

Emerging growth company  ☒

If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act.  ☐

 

 

 

Item 7.01

Regulation FD Disclosure.

On March 9, 2020, the Company issued a press release announcing that it had finalized its previously announced settlement agreement with Emerald Health Therapeutics and closed the related transactions, as described in this Current Report on Form 8-K. A copy of the press release is attached as Exhibit 99.1 of this Current Report on Form 8-K and incorporated into this Item 7.01 by reference.

The information contained in this Current Report on Form 8-K under Item 7.01, including the attached Exhibit 99.1, is being furnished pursuant to Item 7.01 of Form 8-K and shall not be deemed to be “filed” for purposes of Section 18 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”), or otherwise subject to the liabilities of that section. The information contained in this Current Report on Form 8-K under Item 7.01, shall not be incorporated by reference into any filing under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or the Exchange Act, whether made before or after the date hereof, except as shall be expressly set forth by specific reference in such a filing.

 

Item 8.01

Other Events

On March 9, 2020, the Company issued a press release announcing that it had finalized its previously announced settlement agreement with Emerald Health Therapeutics and closed the related transactions.

 

Item 9.01

Financial Statements and Exhibits.

(d) Exhibits.

 

Exhibit

Number

  

Description

99.1   

Press Release dated March 9, 2020.

SIGNATURES

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.

Date: March 12, 2020

 

Village Farms International, Inc.
By:  

/s/ Michael A. DeGiglio

Name:   Michael A. DeGiglio
Title:   Chief Executive Officer and Director

Exhibit 99.1

 

LOGO

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Village Farms International Announces Finalization of Settlement Agreement

with Emerald Health Therapeutics and Closing of Related Transactions –

Village Farms Owns 57.4% of Pure Sunfarms

Vancouver, British Columbia, March 9, 2020 – Village Farms International, Inc. (“Village Farms” or the “Company”) (TSX: VFF; NASDAQ: VFF) today announced it has finalized its previously announced settlement agreement with Emerald Health Therapeutics (TSXV: EMH; OTCQX: EMHTF) (“Emerald”) and closed the related transactions. The settlement agreement settles all outstanding disputes with respect to Pure Sunfarms.

The net impact of the settlement and related transactions on the ownership of Pure Sunfarms, as agreed to by both Village Farms and Emerald, is such that as of December 31, 2019, Village Farms owned 53.5% of Pure Sunfarms and Emerald owned 46.5% of Pure Sunfarms, and as of the date of this news release, Village Farms owns 57.4% of Pure Sunfarms and Emerald owns 42.6% of Pure Sunfarms.

About Village Farms International, Inc.

Village Farms is one of the largest and longest-operating vertically integrated greenhouse growers in North America and the only publicly traded greenhouse produce company in Canada. Village Farms produces and distributes fresh, premium-quality produce with consistency 365 days a year to national grocers in the U.S. and Canada from more than nine million square feet of Controlled Environment Agriculture (CEA) greenhouses in British Columbia and Texas, as well as from its partner greenhouses in British Columbia, Ontario and Mexico. The Company is now leveraging its 30 years of experience as a vertically integrated grower for the rapidly emerging global cannabis opportunity through its majority ownership of British Columbia-based Pure Sunfarms Corp., one of the single largest cannabis growing operations in the world. The Company also intends to pursue opportunities to become a vertically integrated leader in the U.S. hemp-derived CBD market, subject to compliance with all applicable U.S. federal and state laws, Village Farms has established two joint ventures, Village Fields Hemp and Arkansas Valley Green and Gold Hemp, for outdoor hemp cultivation and CBD extraction and is pursuing controlled environment hemp production at a portion of its Texas greenhouse operations, which total 5.7 million square feet of production area.

Cautionary Language

Certain statements contained in this press release constitute forward-looking information within the meaning of applicable securities laws (“forward-looking statements”). Forward-looking statements may relate to the Company’s future outlook or financial position and anticipated events or results and may include statements regarding the financial position, business strategy, budgets, litigation, projected production, projected costs, capital expenditures, financial results, taxes, plans and objectives of or involving the Company. Particularly, statements regarding future results, performance, achievements, prospects or opportunities for the Company, Pure Sunfarms, the greenhouse vegetable industry or the cannabis and hemp industries are forward-looking statements. In some cases, forward-looking information can be identified by such terms as “outlook”, “may”, “might”, “will”, “could”, “should”, “would”, “occur”, “expect”, “plan”, “anticipate”, “believe”, “intend”, “estimate”, “predict”, “potential”, “continue”, “likely”, “schedule”, “objectives”, or the negative or grammatical variation thereof or other similar expressions concerning matters that are not historical facts.

Although the forward-looking statements contained in this press release are based upon assumptions that management believes are reasonable based on information currently available to management, there can be no assurance that actual results will be consistent with these forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements necessarily involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond the Company’s control, that may cause the Company’s or the industry’s actual results, performance, achievements, prospects and opportunities in future periods to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. These risks and uncertainties include, among other things, the factors contained in the Company’s filings with U.S. and Canadian securities regulators, including as detailed in the Company’s annual information form and management’s discussion and analysis for the year-ended December 31, 2018.

When relying on forward-looking statements to make decisions, the Company cautions readers not to place undue reliance on these statements, as forward-looking statements involve significant risks and uncertainties and should not be read as guarantees of future results, performance, achievements, prospects and opportunities. The forward-looking statements made in this press release only relate to events or information as of the date on which the statements are made in this press release. Except as required by law, the Company undertakes no obligation to update or revise publicly any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

Contact Information

Lawrence Chamberlain

Investor Relations

(416) 519-4196

lawrence.chamberlain@loderockadvisors.com