Roots Sustainable (ASX:ROO) has nudged aside its CEO in favour of the founder, a man with marijuana experience, to take the company deeper into cannabis country.

Sharon Devir, the CEO and chairman who listed the company in 2017, is being replaced in both roles by Boaz Wachtel, effective immediately.

Wachtel invented Roots’ soil temperature control technology and has been the head of R&D and business development since listing.

He is the company’s largest shareholder.

Wachtel chairs Creso Pharma (ASX:CPH) and was the managing director of Phytotech when it listed in 2015 but quit eight months later after it merged with a Canadian company to become MMJ Phytotech (ASX:MMJ).

Roots sells a root-heating technology to help plants grow efficiently all year round, and has long had an eye on the marijuana growing market.

The company says it is ramping up efforts to get into a sector that “presents considerable upside and more near-term revenue opportunities”.

 

In other ASX cannabis news:

James Ellingford has become the new eSense Lab (ASX:ESE) chair. Ellingford has sat on several marijuana company boards, but also on boards such as tech company Manalto (ASX:MLT) and the former Hardey Resources, now called Paterson Resources (ASX:PSL).