Perth based ASX listed MGC Pharmaceuticals have planted their first medical cannabis crop at their licensed growing facility in Slovenia.
The company’s first crop will be around 5000 square meters in area and will be used to evaluate the best soil, nutrients and growing conditions for the planting of future large scale crops.
MGC Pharmaceuticals are somewhat unique in the medical marijuana space as they are essentially undertaking two streams of work in relation to the special qualities of medical cannabis.
Firstly, they have a traditional medical research program underway that is seeking to cure and assist people that suffer from certain medical ailments using the rare medicinal properties of medical cannabis.
Secondly, the company has developed a skin care line known as “MGC Derma” that makes use of medical cannabis as the active ingredient.
They recently secured FDA approval in the US granting them the right to market their cannabis based skin care products into all US states with an order worth 1.2m Euro already in the bag from a US cosmetics distributor.
The order is for 60 000 units of MGC Derma anti-aging products including Moisturizing Day Cream SPF 30, Active Firming Anti Aging Mask, Active Bright Facial Cream, Anti Puffiness and Dark Circles Eye Serum.
There is now a growing body of evidence to suggest that medical cannabis could be used to reduce nausea and vomiting during chemotherapy, to improve appetite in people with HIV/AIDS, to treat chronic pain and muscle spasms and a host of other ailments.
Countries that previously had prohibitions on the use of medical cannabis are now falling over themselves to legalise it with a view to promoting research into its myriad of medical uses.
Cannabis contains two unique ingredients known as “THC” and “CBD” or “cannabidiol”. Researchers around the world are rapidly discovering that a mixture of both or even a certain level of one can have profound medical advantages when administered to a patient.
“THC” is the psychoactive ingredient in marijuana and is therefore still somewhat restricted by licensing authorities around the world who are charged with issuing licenses to medical cannabis companies.
However MGC’s latest proposed acquisition, Panax Pharma in the Chezch Republic, which is currently subject to due diligence by MGC, owns a medical cannabis license with far fewer THC restrictions. This could potentially open up opportunities for MGC to provide world leading research without the hindrance of overly restrictive THC growing regulations.
The company expects to harvest its first fill scale cannabis crop in calendar year 2017.
No doubt security on site will be at a premium in the mean time.
By Matt Birney
