First Medicinal Cannabis Products Will Deliver Wider Treatment Options To Patients

Successful assessment by the Medicinal Cannabis Agency of Cannasouth’s first medicinal cannabis products will deliver wider treatment options to New Zealand patients and prescribers.

Cannasouth has had three products successfully assessed by the Government’s Medicinal Cannabis Agency (Agency).

Cannasouth CEO Mark Lucas says our products differ from other medicinal cannabis products on the New Zealand market because they contain different ratios of cannabinoids.

“The differentiated formulations of our products will provide New Zealand patients and prescribers with new treatment options compared to existing products on the New Zealand market. At the moment, products available offer very few differences in formulation. We are confident these products offer patients and prescribers a point of difference to meet the treatment needs of a wider range of conditions.

“Full-spectrum extracts contain complex mixtures of cannabinoids. While the technical challenges from this did result in us navigating a lengthy regulatory pathway, the wait is worthwhile because of the benefit patients will receive from these enhanced product options.”

In making the announcement, Mr Lucas reinforced the complex nature of the medicinal cannabis industry and acknowledged the hard work of Cannasouth’s skilled and experienced team.

“This product approval is another sign that the industry is maturing, which will ultimately benefit those who need these medicines most.

“Patients have been desperately waiting for high-quality and competitively priced new cannabis-based medicines to become available under the Medicinal Cannabis scheme. Now we are one step closer towards making more medicinal cannabis options available and giving prescribers and patients more choice for treating a variety of medical conditions.”

Suzanne Burge and Jack Lee are founders of PillDrop, a leading NZ online pharmacy and medicinal cannabis dispensary. Pharmacist Mr Lee says, “These products have a unique combination of cannabinoids. It is great to see new products verified with a point of difference to meet the treatment needs of a wider range of patient conditions. We are seeing strong growth in demand for medicinal cannabis products.”

Agency approval of these products is also a major step forward for Cannasouth in terms of generating medicinal cannabis revenue. Revenue generation from the sale of medicines in New Zealand, in addition to high-quality dried flower biomass, is one of the company’s key goals for 2022.

This will complement Cannasouth’s existing non-cannabinoid revenues generated through its subsidiary Midwest Pharmaceutics NZ Ltd, which sells products and services to the pharmaceutical, health, and wellness supplement sectors.

Cannasouth is also close to harvesting its first commercial crop of medicinal cannabis flower at its controlled environment agriculture (CEA) cultivation facility in the Waikato, while progressing GACP and GMP certification.

A list of all medicinal cannabis products that meet the New Zealand minimum quality standard can be found here. Cannasouth products will be added by the Ministry of Health in due course.

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