November is a month of giving thanks, spending time with friends and family, and usually the end of Harvest for farmers all over the beautiful state of Michigan!
As our farm, Heritage Farm Company, is coming to the end of Harvest season. We are excited to show all of the hard work our crew has put in this season and even more so to bring tons of new products to the shelves of our retail locations. .
From cutting the plants, weighing, hanging to dry, to fresh frozen, distillate being made, diamonds forming and the processing department hard at work getting the products ready for retail. Willie McKenzie, CEO of Left Coast Holdings, and Charlie McKenzie, Director of Cultivation for Heritage Farms Company shared a few thoughts while wrapping up the 2022 harvest season.
William McKenzie, CEO of Left Coast holdings, who is no stranger to hard work, expressed, “I am so proud of the work our team has put in this year and the immense push to get such a large harvest in. The amount of growth the company has experienced in the last year is extremely inspiring and it all comes from the hard work that everyone puts in day in and day out. I look forward to seeing everyone come together at the holiday party to celebrate a great harvest and another year of growth and development. “
One important thing to note is how difficult growing cannabis in Michigan is compared to other legal states. Unpredictable weather climates, and a shorter summer season bring along a number of unique concerns. Through it all, Charlie Mckenzie kept a positive outlook and took to leading his team to overcome all these challenges.
Charlie states: “We battled weather challenges like freezing nights, and almost seven straight days of rain during the peak of harvest. We learned a lot about our team’s grit and determination in adverse conditions. I am still impressed by their spirit and resolve to get the job done. They are a motivated and passionate group of folks. They sacrificed more than most would do for a job and it’s because they give a shit about the plant, their team and this company. They are proud of what they do and what they produce. Rightfully so.
This year’s experience reiterated that by educating and training the team, as well as giving them the chance to take on new tasks and roles; we are capable of executing and creating incredible results, at scale. We believe we are close to hitting yield metrics on wet weight per plant and finished product weight per plant, but have a few more weeks to get the final numbers in.
We designed, outfitted and commissioned multiple dry rooms for drying outdoor smokable flowers with solid success so far. The flower is coming out terpene rich with 20%+ potency and fully compliant. We have a handful of cultivars that will be for sale over the coming weeks.
We harvested close to 10,000 lbs. of fresh frozen material to be extracted for live resin. With 20+ cultivars in our freezers, our manufacturing team is going to process, package and serve Michigan with the finest and flavorful live resin products. “
One important note is that ours is a locally owned and operated farm located in beautiful Manistee, Michigan. With 4 retail locations in total, Authentic 231 (Manistee), and 3 Heritage Provisionings (East Tawas, Battle Creek, and Stanton.) When you see owners and CEOs helping with the groundwork, such as opening the retail locations, working on the farm, and overall daily operations, this season has served as another reminder of what Heritage Farms and Left Coast Holdings stands for.
