A cannabis farm in eastern Ontario has received government grants exceeding C$600,000 for its hemp cultivation and minor cannabinoid studies.
Cannabis Orchards Inc. announced securing the research funding for its two ongoing initiatives last week. It was provided by the government’s AgriScience Program and the National Research Council of Canada.
The majority of the funding, over C$400,000, will be put toward a triploid hemp breeding project. This complex process, completed through “polyploidization” can yield larger more vigorous plants with higher cannabinoid ratios. The other portion of the sum will be put toward cultivating different varieties of triploid hemp.
Regular cannabis plants have two sets of chromosomes (diploid) while triploids have three, which is unconventional but beneficial. Triploid pot can have higher THC levels than other cultivars too.
“Our research program is focused on minor cannabinoid breeding and polyploidy of industrial hemp and will truly be transformative for hemp farmers, cannabinoid processors, as well as the pharmaceutical industry,” Cannabis Orchards CEO, Dr. Jamie Ghossein, said on LinkedIn this week.
Cannabis Orchards wants to develop seedless triploid hemp that produces favourable quantities of minor, uncommon cannabinoids like cannabigerol (CBG) and cannabichromene (CBC). Seeds are undesirable in the cannabis flower market and triploid grass doesn’t have any. The grower says its investigations could potentially help other hemp growers maximize their yields and profits.
These projects started earlier this year and will conclude by 2026. In total, they will cost the farm about C$1.2 million.
“Triploid cannabis breeding increases yield and potency, with potential benefits such as shorter flowering times and higher biomass,” cannabis industry writer, Dario Sabaghi, described in a February article from Forbes.
Overhead shot of the farm. Photo credit: Cannabis Orchards Inc.
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Health Canada approves farm’s CBDV cultivar ‘Vendetta’
Canada’s government department added the farm’s Vendetta strain to its list of approved industrial hemp cultivars on Monday. Strains meeting this criteria must contain less than 0.3 per cent THC. They are not grown for recreational purposes.
“Emerging evidence indicates that CBDV may offer a number of medicinal benefits,” the cannabis education platform Leafly says, “helping to keep nausea at bay, treat behavioural issues associated with Autism Spectrum Disorder, and ease inflammation.”
Cannabis Orchards says it is the first-ever variety of hemp with a near 1:1 ratio of the common cannabinoid cannabidiol (CBD) and the far less common cannabidivarin (CBDV).
“This approval by Health Canada not only expands our offering of minor cannabinoids but also opens new doors for research and therapeutic development using CBDV,” Ghossein explained.
rowan@mugglehead.com
