SG&A expense included a noncash impairment charge of $0.3 million for 2023 and $1.2 million for 2022, executing the impairment charges, our SG&A expenses for Q4 continued to decrease by $0.1 million on a year-over-year basis. SG&A expense decreased by 20% from $12.4 million in fiscal 2022 to $9.9 million in 2023. These improvements are the direct result of our ongoing efforts to reduce our overall cost structure. We have taken cost out from all areas of our business and we will continue to do so in 2024 and beyond in order to generate positive cash flow. For the fourth quarter 2023, we generated an operating loss of $0.9 million compared to an operating loss of $2.1 million a year ago. Our adjusted EBITDA loss for the fourth quarter was $0.5 million compared to $0.7 million in the fourth quarter of 2022.
The improved operating performance and adjusted EBITDA loss was a result of our asset-light business model, which allowed us to implement cost savings throughout the organization to minimize our cash outflow. On a GAAP basis, we reported a fourth quarter 2023 net loss of $0.9 million compared to a net loss of $2.3 million in the fourth quarter of 2022. Now let me turn to our balance sheet. We continue to manage our cash position very carefully and ended the fourth quarter of 2023 with $1.3 million of cash compared to $0.6 million at the end of fiscal 2022. Cash generated by operations during the year ended 2023 was $2.3 million, a significant improvement from the same period a year ago, which had cash usage of $1.9 million. The improvement in our operating cash are due in part to the receipt of our ERC funds of $2.5 million and lower cost of operations.
Excluding the ERC funds, our cash flow from operations is close to breakeven. During the fourth quarter of 2023, we used a modest amount of $0.3 million in operating cash. We continue to aggressively manage our overall cash position with improved cash collections on our outstanding AR and daily management of our inventory and vendor payables. We continue to adjust our cost structure to be in line with our expected revenue with the overarching goal to generate positive operating cash on a continuous basis. We anticipate some modest cash usage in the first half of 2024. Our inventory was $5.7 million at the end of the year compared to $6.6 million at prior year-end as we continue to focus on efficient cash management and converting our raw materials into cash.
Our raw materials mostly consisted of hemp oil, which we previously purchased and continue to convert into finished products. Our raw material balance has decreased from $3.6 million at prior year-end to $2.9 million as of December 31st, 2023. Also in April 2023, we extinguished our note payable with Streeterville and are now essentially debt-free. In addition, we have working capital of $1.8 million. On December 7th, 2023, we closed the acquisition of Cultured Foods and we consolidated their results into our financials from this point forward. With our improved balance sheet and our reduced cost structure in place, we have the financial flexibility to continue executing our plan and look forward to improving trends as the year unfolds. Now I will turn the call back over to Joe.
Joseph Dowling: Joerg, thank you. As Joerg and I have discussed this morning, we continue to align our company to the scale of the industry to achieve profitability and positive cash flow. We know that investors are looking for leaders like CV Sciences to achieve positive financial fundamentals such as profitability and free cash flow to demonstrate the viability of our industry. We have made the tough decisions to ensure that we are scaled properly, operating efficiently and are focused on adding long-term shareholder value. We believe that the acquisition of Cultured Foods is an example of long-term shareholder value potential, which bring these great products that are sustainable plant-based food products into our US B2B distribution network while working with our EU team to grow this business in the European market.
The global vegan food market is expected to grow five times by 2030 with millennials and flexitarians as the driving force behind soaring vegan food sales. We also plan to leverage the Cultured Foods European infrastructure to introduce select products from our flagship +PlusCBD brand across Europe as laws allow providing a nice growth opportunity for our core CBD business. We will continue to participate in the contraction and consolidation of both the cannabis and hemp industries, and we’ll evaluate both inbound and outbound M&A opportunities that have strategic value and help scale the business profitably. We are optimistic about the long-term opportunity for our company to remain a competitive force in the health and wellness industry. We have made difficult decisions to ensure that we are scaled properly, operating efficiently and are focused on adding long-term shareholder value.
