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Tuesday, Mar 19, 2024
Mugglehead Magazine
Alternative investment news based in Vancouver, B.C.

The weed wire

MediPharm enters Denmark’s medical cannabis market

The Ontario-based extractor signed two deals with Danish suppliers as the European market continues to expand

Copenhagen City, Denmark, Scandinavia. Beautiful summer day

MediPharm Labs Corp. (TSX: LABS) says its pharmaceutical approach to cannabis has helped it land two new contracts inside Denmark’s medical market.

On Tuesday, the Canadian extractor said it will supply concentrates under white-label deals with two unnamed medical cannabis suppliers in Denmark. The CBD and THC cannabis oil products will be shipped from the company’s GMP-approved facilities in Ontario and Australia.

One of the deals has an initial two-year term, and the other a one-year term, which are both subject for renewal, according to the company.  Shipments are slated for October, pending regulatory approval by Danish health authorities. The volume and value of the deals hasn’t been disclosed.

“The express purpose of establishing a multi-jurisdictional, GMP-certified production capability is to lead the global cannabis market for medicinal, wellness and adult use applications and these agreements represent another step forward in realizing our ambitions,” CEO Pat McCutcheon said in a statement. “Getting in on the ground floor of the Danish medical market with new and innovative medical cannabis focused products positions us for additional growth in Europe.”

Denmark opened medical cannabis access for patients in 2018 as part of a four-year pilot program. Its purpose is to offer patients with legal, safe products and provide national health authorities with patient data. That information will be analyzed to understand usage and efficacy at the end of the trial period to consider establishing a permanent medical market. The program is only eligible for patients suffering from multiple sclerosis, spinal cord damage, cancer and neuropathic pain.

In 2019, over 2,100 patients received medical cannabis products from 429 doctors under the program, according to the Danish Ministry of Health.

The Danish model is based on a pharmaceutical paradigm with strict standards and requirements set by regulators for producers and processors. All extracted products must meet GMP standards to ensure patient safety and minimize risk.

MediPharm Labs Australia, a subsidiary of MediPharm, says it’s able to supply Denmark and attract other international supply deals because it adheres to these high standards.

“This volume and the pace of new business wins are a clear and important validation of our decision to build a GMP-certified cannabis extraction facility supply chain for world markets and a testament to MediPharm Labs growing profile and reputation,” MediPharm Labs Australia CEO Warren Everitt said.

In 2018, MediPharm Labs Australia built a 10,000 square foot cannabis facility that received GMP-certification in May 2020. Press photo

MediPharm Labs Australia received GMP certification in May, which helped it secure its first white-label agreement in Europe later that month. That deal was signed with Cannaray, a U.K.-based medical cannabis company with CBD distribution contracts in several European countries.

The European cannabis market has been rapidly developing and is projected by Prohibition Partners to top US$2.5 billion by 2024, up from US$300 million this year.

The Netherlands is poised to open up the continent’s first legal recreational cannabis market with the launch of a four-year pilot program slated for 2021.

Read more: Village Farms expands into Netherlands with pending coffee shop supply deal

According to Open Access Government, Denmark could be another legalization domino in the region and the county’s medical cannabis regulatory framework could serve as a template for other European nations.

MediPharm stock rose 7.5 per cent Tuesday, closing at $1 on the Toronto Stock Exchange. The company has seen its Canadian revenues crater in 2020, which has forced it to shift its business to provide white-label services and supply global markets.

Read more: Earnings week August: Pot stock feats and flops

Read more: MediPharm launches sublingual spray through Shoppers

Top image of Copenhagen, Denmark via Deposit Photos

 

jared@mugglehead.com

@JaredGnam

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