Medical cannabis entrepreneur donates $1 million to CETAC-WEST

Medical marijuana pioneer Brent Zettl has donated $1 million to Calgary-based Canadian Environmental Technology Advancement Corporation (CETAC)-WEST, a private, not-for-profit corporation that helped the Saskatoon businessman co-found the plant biotechnology firm Prairie Plant Systems in 1999. Prairie Plant Systems was later awarded Canada’s first contract to produce medical cannabis. Zettl also served as CEO of subsidiary CanniMed Therapeutics, purchased earlier this year by Edmonton-headquartered Aurora Cannabis Inc. for more than $1.1 billion. Led by petroleum engineer and innovator Joe Lukacs, CETAC-WEST helps small to medium-sized companies develop and commercialize new environmental and clean technologies. With support from the federal and provincial governments, CETAC-WEST has generated about $40 million to help small businesses, whose survival rate is more than 90%. Twenty-two of CETAC-WEST’s alumni companies have contributed about 1,000 jobs and more than $250 million in annual revenue to Canada’s economy.