Adam JacksonMarch 28, 2023
The merger with MediPharm Labs is expected to close within weeks.
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Adam JacksonMarch 28, 2023Adam JacksonFebruary 6, 2023
MDMA and psilocybin used for therapy will be reclassified by July 1, 2023.
Adam JacksonAugust 2, 2022
Zelira Therapeutics Ltd (ASX: ZLD,OTC-QB: ZLDAF), recieved formal approval from German regulatory authority BfArM to launch in the German medical cannabis market for its new insomnia medication Zenivol.
Zenivol is the first clinically validated, pharmaceutical-grade, cannabis-based sleep medication. Zenivol’s clinical research achieved the highest level of scientific review when it was peer reviewed in the Journal of Sleep — available by prescription in Australia under the country’s legal cannabis regulations.
“The formal approval of Zenivol by BfArM in Germany marks a major milestone for Zelira,” said Zelira CEO Dr. Oludare Odumosu. “Germany is one of the largest global markets for cannabinoid-based medicines, and also one of the highest quality global regulatory markets for pharmaceuticals. We look forward to working with our partner, Adjupharm, in launching Zenivol in Germany and supporting patients and physicians in treating chronic insomnia in a safe and effective manner. With formal regulatory approval for Zenivol now received in Germany, we continue to progress activities to license Zenivol into other global markets.”
Zelira is a leading global therapeutic medical cannabinoid company with access to the world’s largest and fastest-growing cannabinoid medicine markets. The company owns a portfolio of proprietary revenue-generating products and a pipeline of candidates undergoing clinical development that are positioned to enter global markets.
The company is focused on developing branded cannabinoid-based medicines for the treatment of a variety of medical conditions in its Rx business, including insomnia, autism and chronic non-cancer pain.
The company has two proprietary formulations under the HOPE brand that are generating revenues in Australia, and Pennsylvania and have been licensed in Louisiana and Washington D.C. — with other states in the U.S. expected to follow. Zelira is also generating revenue in Australia from its proprietary and patented Zenivol, which had successfully completed the world’s first Phase 1b clinical trial for chronic insomnia where it was found to be a safe and effective treatment.
The company conducts its work in partnership with world-leading researchers and organizations including Curtin University in Perth, Western Australia; the Telethon Kids Institute in Perth; the University of Western Australia, in Perth; St. Vincent’s Hospital in Melbourne, Australia; and the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) in the United States.
StaffJuly 11, 2022
MediPharm Labs Corp. (TSX: LABS) (OTCQX: MEDIF) is selling its MediPharm Labs Australia Pty Ltd to OneLife Botanicals PTY in a deal valued at $6.9M AUD ($6.2M CAD). The transaction is expected to close within 90 days. The deal includes the assets of MPLA, specialized licensing, operational knowledge, and Australian and New Zealand customers currently served from that facility. All international contracts outside of Australia and New Zealand will remain with MediPharm Labs and be serviced from the Barrie GMP facility.
“This sale represents a major milestone for MediPharm Labs as it continues to focus on rightsizing the business to achieve profitability,” said David Pidduck, CEO of MediPharm Labs. “As we look to maintain our strong cash balance, this transaction paired with corporate restructuring completed in June 2022 should allow us to reduce our quarterly burn rate as we improve sales.”
In July 2021, MediPharm Labs was the first purpose-built cannabis facility to receive a pharmaceutical Drug Establishment License. Awarded by Health Canada, this license is recognized in over 50 countries as part of the Pharmaceutical Inspection Co-operation Scheme (PIC/S). At this time, the company said it has completed a review of its international manufacturing platform and identified significant potential savings in moving all domestic and international manufacturing to the Canadian facility.
OneLife Botanicals CEO Andrew Grant said, “This purchase aligns and expedites the strategic aim of our organization to produce high-quality medicinal cannabis products by integrating manufacturing into the end-to-end supply chain. The integration of a fully operational facility brings forward our objectives to take our products and brand to the market. Our company undertook extensive research in considering this important acquisition and is highly confident about the capabilities and capacity of the operation to manufacture products in accordance with all compliance and quality standards. The integration of this business with our existing cultivation facility facilitates savings in capital investment, access to operational efficiencies and establishes us as a significant supplier in the Australian medicinal cannabis industry. We intend to build on the existing customer base and develop additional product distribution opportunities to become a formidable participant in the market.”
MediPharm and OneLife Botanicals said they will also enter into a transition services agreement to allow for the two companies to smoothly transition products and services produced in the facility, and to work together on future commercial opportunities.
StaffJanuary 2, 2020Asterion Cannabis Inc., a Canadian firm with operations in Australia, announced a non-brokered private placement of up to 6,666,667 units at the price of C$1.50 per Unit, for aggregate gross proceeds of up to C$10 million. The company said it plans to use the money to build approximately 40 hectares (99 acres) of cutting-edge, secure, purpose-built greenhouses near Toowoomba in South East Queensland, Australia for the production of high-quality organic medicinal cannabis, and for general working capital purposes.
Asterion is focused on the future of advanced agriculture and aims to produce the highest quality of genetically uniform cannabis strains, at an affordable price. Just last week, the company said that it had received its licenses for the cultivation, manufacturing, and research of medicinal cannabis from the Australian Government’s Office of Drug Control.
“This is a major milestone for Asterion as it prepares to commence work on its industry-leading medicinal cannabis cultivation and processing facility near Toowoomba in South East Queensland, Australia,” said Mr. Stephen Van Deventer, Asterion’s Chairman, and Chief Executive Officer. “Asterion is delighted that it has passed through the ODC’s rigorous assessment process and been awarded the licences it requires to establish its flagship project. The ODC approvals represent a major step for Asterion towards the manufacturing of pharmaceutical-grade medicinal cannabis at our planned 75 ha (185 acre) Toowoomba Facility.”
Terms
Each Unit will consist of one common share in the capital of the Company (each, a “Share“) and one-half of one common share purchase warrant (each whole common share purchase warrant, a “Warrant“), with each whole Warrant entitling the holder thereof to purchase one additional Share at an exercise price of CAD $2.00 for a period of 24 months from the closing of the Financing, subject to acceleration. Finder’s fees may be payable on a portion of the Financing. All securities issued under the Financing will be subject to a hold period of four months and one day in Canada.
Van Deventer added, “Asterion intends to commence work on the Toowoomba Facility in the first quarter of 2020 and is expected to commence cultivation of its first crop in 2022. On completion, the Toowoomba Facility is expected to employ more than 1,000 people harvesting more than 20,000 plants a day, and to generate an estimated AUD $2 billion annually in exports, while also supplying medicinal cannabis to the Australian market. Asterion is committed to its program of innovation across the supply chain, with the goal of furthering the development of medicinal cannabis-based pharmaceuticals to provide a safe and effective treatment for a variety of medical conditions.”
Debra BorchardtJuly 2, 2019
International expansion is the words of the day as several companies announced plans to reach beyond the borders of Canada and the U.S. It seems Colombia is where all the action is.
MJ Freeway
MJ Freeway, a subsidiary of Akerna Corp. (NASDAQ: KERN) said it is expanding further into Europe by serving clients in two additional countries, Italy and Macedonia. The company also recently opened a Medellín, Colombia office to serve its growing footprint in South America. MJ Freeway client, Clever Leaves, is the first Colombian company authorized to export cannabis into Canada.
“We believe it is imperative for countries with emerging cannabis businesses such as Italy and Macedonia to have access to our compliance technology,” says Jessica Billingsley, CEO of Akerna and MJ Freeway. “By giving governments, businesses, and consumers the tools needed to productively manage regulatory demands, we are able to execute our plan to connect data points across the global cannabis supply chain.”
The company stated that Macedonia is one of the few countries in the world to approve medical cannabis for cultivation and export. Italy has significantly increased its hemp production to serve its growing domestic market for industrial products and infusing in cosmetics and other consumer goods. As a result of the expansion into Italy and Macedonia, MJ Freeway has increased its footprint to five European countries including Spain, Switzerland and Denmark.
MYM Nutraceuticals Inc.
MYM Nutraceuticals Inc.(CSE: MYM) (OTCBB: MYMMF) announced that its subsidiary in Colombia, Colombia Organica S.A.S signed agreements in principle to cultivate both THC and CBD-rich cannabis with independent farmers for an initial five acres. The company said in a statement that cannabis will be cultivated by farmers who will be licensees under the existing Colombia Organica cannabis cultivation licenses. The first crops cultivated on the initial five acres will function as test crops with the intention to add subsequent acreage.
“Our team in Colombia has begun to execute on our plan to cultivate both THC and CBD-rich cannabis in South America,” said Howard Steinberg, CEO of MYM. “The strategy of extending our licenses to neighboring farmers to cultivate cannabis will serve to increase our biomass supply that we intend on processing and exporting to the global market.”
The farmers will be responsible for all costs associated with cultivation from seed to sale. Colombia Organica agrees to purchase the harvested biomass at a price to be determined at the time of delivery based on the average market price at that time.
Aleafia Health
Aleafia Health Inc. (TSX: ALEF)(OTC: ALEAF) said it received multiple Export Permits from Health Canada, which allow the Company to begin its first international cannabis product shipment. Aleafia said it expects to ship its branded medical cannabis oils in the next month, which will be distributed by Australian Licensed Producer CannaPacific Pty. Limited. Aleafia Health owns a 10 % equity stake in CannaPacific.
“The receipt of Health Canada Export Permits enables Aleafia Health to sell high-margin, value-added cannabis products across international borders for the first time, representing a major milestone as we augment our global distribution platform,” said Aleafia Health Chairman Julian Fantino. “We continue to prove the international viability of our highly differentiated cannabis health and wellness ecosystem with products, clinic operations, education and distribution. With among the largest cultivation and extraction footprints in Canada coming online, we will continue to look to new international markets.”
“This is such a tremendous milestone for CannaPacific. Our relationship with Aleafia Health continues to accelerate our strategic vision of leadership in the Australasian medical cannabis market,” said CannaPacific CEO Joshua Dennis. “We have the facility, the proven management team, and now the product portfolio to continue executing towards our goal.”
Debra BorchardtJanuary 15, 2018
It’s merger Monday in the cannabis industry as Aphria steps up to make a big deal with Broken Coast Cannabis.
Aphria Inc. (APHQF) announced that it entered into a binding letter agreement to acquire 100% of Broken Coast Cannabis Inc., a premium cannabis producer located in British Columbia. The deal is expected to add incremental annual production of 10,500 kgs, some of that cannabis is market ready today, quickly boosting Aphria’s forecast annual production to 230,000 kgs. The transaction also gives Aphria more geographic diversification, a cross-Canada distribution platform, and access to over 40,000 medical patients.
The total value of the deal is approximately C$230 million, to be paid with up to C$10 million in cash and the remainder in Aphria shares. Shares issued to Broken Coast shareholders will be issued at a price of C$15.09 and the deal is expected to close January 31. Each of the three co-founders of Broken Coast, who cumulatively hold over 80% of the outstanding capital, will remain with the pro-forma company.
This is Aphria’s second major investment into consumer- and brand-focused assets, in advance of the legalization of adult-use cannabis expected in 2018. In a company statement, Aphria said that Broken Coast has had positive Adjusted EBITDA since 2015 and that its lean operations are highly complementary to Aphria. In combination with Aphria’s track record, the combined entity is expected to be amongst the most profitable and sustainable producers in the country.
“Adding one of Canada’s most sought-after premium brands represents a major triumph for Aphria and our shareholders and firmly establishes our position as a Canadian leader in premium indoor cannabis production,” said Vic Neufeld, Chief Executive Officer of Aphria. “Broken Coast has proven that you can grow premium quality cannabis, charge a reasonable price and earn a profit all at the same time. Our two companies are closely aligned, particularly as it relates to our relentless focus on production costs and profitability.”
Strategic Investment in Althea
Aphria Inc. also announced that it signed a supply agreement with Australian-based Althea Company Pty Ltd. and invested C$2.5 million in Althea in exchange for 25% shareholdings in the Company. The investment increases Aphria’s presence in the emerging Australian cannabis market. This is the second supply agreement Aphria has signed in Australia.
According to the company statement, Aphria will provide Althea with packaged co-branded cannabis oil and dried flower products for the Australian medical cannabis market. Althea has already received import permits from the Australian Government’s Office of Drug Control (ODC) and Aphria is expected to export the first shipment this month, subject to regulatory approvals by Health Canada.
Aphria stock was lately trading at $14.45 on the OTC Marketplace, down from its 52-week high of $19.86, but way above its 52-week low of $3.39.
Jack SmithJanuary 9, 2018
Elixinol Global, a newly created company, said that it would continue to move forward with its initial public offering on the Australian Stock Exchange (ASX), aiding to provide investors with access to the burgeoning demand for cannabis-infused products, despite worries around the globe.
As part of the offering, Colorado-based Elixinol is merging with Hemp Foods Australia and Elixinol Australia to form Elixinol Global. The companies did not say how much existing shareholders and investors would own of the newly created company, but noted the benefits of the combined company, calling it a “single-source access.”
“With global exports of Australian medical marijuana now approved, the world will
soon have single-source access to best in class medical marijuana and hemp
products from Elixinol, one of the world’s most trusted brands,” said Paul Benhaim,
CEO of Elixinol Global, in a prepared statement, announcing the transaction.
Elixinol Global’s CFO, Ron Dufficy, noted Benhaim’s previous achievements (Benhaim founded Elixinol, Hemp Foods, and Elixinol Australia) as part of a way to create value. “It is time to offer investors an opportunity to take advantage of the collective footprint in this revolutionary emerging global market while capitalizing on potential efficiencies,” Ron added.
The separate entities will still retain their core competencies, just under a single roof. For Australian-based Hemp Foods, that means focusing on making and selling “quality hemp food products and skin care.” Colorado-based Elixinol will still continue to sell “hemp-based
cannabidiol (CBD) dietary supplements and topical products from US and European
hemp,” whereas Elixinol Pty will “provide the globe access to medical marijuana exports from
Australia.”
The legal cannabis-infused products industry is expected to grow by more than three-fold over the next four years, topping $20 billion by 2021, according to data compiled by BDS Analytics. Separately, Brightfield Group, a cannabis investment research firm, puts the international market for cannabis-related products at an expected $31.4 billion by 2021, up from $7.7 billion today.
Whether it’s $20 billion or more than $31 billion, it’s clear the market is expected to grow, despite the proclamations U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions has made, as he attempts to curtail the legal cannabis market in the U.S. Benhaim believes that the newly-formed Elixinol will be important to health-conscious consumers looking for their goods and products.
“We’ve worked very hard to make Elixinol the most trusted CBD brand in the world,” Benhaim said. “Elixinol Global is only the beginning of expanded opportunities for investors, strategic partners, and our global customers.”
Shares of the newly formed company are expected to start trading on the ASX on Jan. 8. under the ticker “EXL.”
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