Cannabis company Hexo’s restructuring to include loss of 450 jobs, Ontario facility closure

A Hexo Corp. employee examines cannabis plants in one of the company’s greenhouses. Hexo Corp. says its ongoing plan to streamline the cannabis business and cut costs includes the reduction of hundreds of jobs. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld photo

Hexo Corp. says its ongoing plan to streamline the cannabis business and cut costs includes the reduction of 450 jobs.

The Gatineau, Que.-based marijuana producer says in financial filings that the reduction will result in annualized savings of $30.6 million and is meant to simplify its organizational structure so costs are more closely aligned with the business’s size.

The company’s latest management’s discussion and analysis paper says most of the reductions will be achieved by relying less on outside consultants, a new informational technology platform and synergies discovered through recent acquisitions.

The document also says the company will close a processing and manufacturing facility in Belleville, Ont. by the end of July 2022.

The company did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the cuts, which came as Hexo announced that it lost about $147 million in its third quarter compared with $21 million during the same period the year prior.

Its revenue for the three months ended April 30 totalled about $46 million, up from roughly $23 million in the third quarter of 2021.