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Canada-based Aurora Cannabis has purchased two Lithuanian hemp companies for a total of €6.3 million ($7.3 million) in cash and stock. Aurora bought seed contractor and processor Agropro UAB, and Borela UAB, a processor and distributor of hemp-based food products, the company announced.

Aurora, Edmonton, Alberta, paid €5,364,000 (approximately $6.2 million) in cash and €960,000 ($1.1 million) in stock to purchase 100% of the two firms.

Second Canadian acquisition in month

It’s the second major acquisition by a Canadian cannabis company in Europe in the past month after The Green Organic Dutchman Holdings Ltd., Ancaster, Ontario, bought Polish hemp firm HemPoland for €15 million ($17.4 million) plus a €10 million ($11.6 million) incentive package in August.

Aurora said it also will refinance existing debt of the acquired firms totaling €2,076,000 (approximately $2.4 million).

“Through Aurora, we gain access to a wider distribution network, as well as access to industry-leading science to help ramp up production, while enhancing margins through the introduction of new products, proven production techniques, and robust genetics,” said Skirmantas Nikstele Co-Founder & CEO at Agropro.

The Canadian Hemp Trade Alliance (CHTA) says it is exploring a research project totaling almost $5 million over the next five years to boost industry standards, explore hemp’s many applications and develop plant genetics.

The project would look specifically at standards for quality and safety; livestock feed applications; and human health applications, CHTA said in a release.

First research project completed

CHTA just completed a $330,500 project that focused on safety and quality in Canadian hemp, with support from the Ministry of Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada under the government’s Growing Forward 2, Agri-Risk Initiatives program.

The project, was a collaboration between the CHTA and Toronto-based Agri-Neo Inc., a food safety specialist, that focused on determining safe and cost-effective prevention and mitigation techniques for the control of pathogens in industrial hemp. The project also delivered Best Management Practices training to producers and processors.

Developing policies

CHTA said it will work with the Ministry of Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency and Health Canada to develop policies and regulations aimed at facilitating growth while at the same time protecting consumers in markets around the world where Canadian hemp products are sold.

Despite significant institutional challenges, the European CBD market will see strong growth for those companies that can navigate the murky waters of EU regulation while managing growth in a fast moving industry.

And while CBD represents huge global potential for the food, pharmaceutical and nutraceutical sectors, some players could end up victims of a shakeout as investors and consumers gravitate toward companies, products and brands that focus on quality and science.

Those were among key conclusions drawn from “The Future of Medical Hemp” Summit as delegates from Europe, Asia and North America met for two days of discussions at HempToday Center in Poland in late August.

Tough slogging but worth it

While varying legal frameworks country-by-country make Europe sometimes tough to navigate, the situation is manageable – and well worth it, said Jacek Kramarz, Chief of Sales at HemPoland, maker of the fast-moving CBD brand CannabiGold. The Elbląg, Poland-based firm was recently sold in what is the biggest acquisition of its kind on the continent to date.

“What’s more difficult is planning the business,” said Kramarz, noting that longer-term forecasting can be a meaningless exercise in a sector that’s growing so fast. Compounding challenges in Europe are things as pedestrian as the packaging and labeling of products – which must be carefully executed to meet local language and marketing needs as well as regulatory considerations, Kramarz noted.

An open letter to the South African constitutional court, endorsed by several South African cannabis NGO’s and businesses, has bemoaned the lack of progress and missed opportunities in establishing a viable hemp industry in the country. This despite “research trials” having been undertaken since 1998, and despite the fact that legalisation of the crop presents a unique ability to address many of the social ills that plague the country, including a clogged criminal justice system, struggling economy and notoriously high levels of unemployment.

South Africa is unique in that it is fighting cannabis prohibition via the country’s strong constitution. Several high profile court cases have and are taking place, including a high court judgment made in March 2017, that deemed the infringements on privacy and freedom of current cannabis prohibition laws unconstitutional. Despite this finding, over 180,000 South Africans have been arrested for cannabis possession, cultivation or consumption since the court judgment, according to some estimates.

Strategy is drag on law enforcement

The open letter presents an overview of cannabis in the criminal justice system, and shows how cannabis legalization could relieve some of the pressure on the courts, freeing up police resources to focus on serious crimes. It also alludes to developments in other sub-Saharan countries and international hemp trends, and describes the state of medical hemp in SA.

The letter details the massive opportunity presented by industrial hemp to the South African economy – in revitalizing agriculture, promoting industry, alleviating poverty and social inequality, to eventually meet the SA government’s own National Development Plan.

Cannabis opportunities missed

According to the plan, South Africa “can realize these goals by drawing on the energies of its people, growing an inclusive economy, building capabilities, enhancing the capacity of the state, and promoting leadership and partnerships throughout society” and according to the open letter, efficient and inclusive regulation of cannabis will go a long way in achieving these lofty goals.

U.S.-based We Are For Better Alternatives (WAFBA) says it has ordered a first shipment of specialized guitars molded from hemp composite as it launches Silver Mountain Hemp (SMH), a new brand.

The guitars are the centerpiece for a line that also includes components and accessories. WAFBA has organized several strategic partnerships to source the products, said Morris Beegle, founder and owner at Ft. Collins, Colorado-based WAFBA.

“We’re demonstrating the potential to establish a supply chain with great partners who are committed to earth-friendly practices,” Beegle said of the development of the products, all of which have hemp in them. “Our entire business model is really centered around that.”

Highly customizable

SMH looks to stand out in the highly competitive musical instrument market by offering guitars built to customers’ specifications. “The plan is to let buyers customize their guitars with different color finishes, electronics, bridges, fretboards, tuners and knobs,” said Beegle, a 30-year veteran of the American entertainment industry. His firm also is owner of the Colorado-based NoCo Hemp Expo as well as Southern Hemp Expo, which debuts in Nashville, Tennessee this month.

Illinois is the latest state in the USA to set rules allowing for the farming and processing of industrial hemp. Under a law signed by Gov. Bruce Rauner earlier this week, stakeholders can grow and produce products from hemp under state permits. Significantly, the law allows processors to extract CBD – the highly valuable compound that’s in the midst of a boom around the world.

One of the vast Midwestern plains states in the USA, Illinois has roughly 25 million acres (10 million hectares) of farmland and 75,000 farms. The state is known mainly as a grower of soybeans and corn.

‘Makes good sense’

“Legalizing the farming of industrial hemp just makes good sense,” Rauner said in a statement upon the bill’s signing.

The law sets a licensing program for growers and processors under the state Department of Agriculture (DOA), which will monitor crops for THC content; hemp may not exceed 0.3% THC content in the U.S. and Canada. Unlike some state programs in the USA, Illinois set no limits on the number of licenses it can issue. The Illinois DOA is obligated to set up the licensing program in the next 120 days.

‘New sustainable agriculture’

Hemp can bring a “new sustainable agriculture industry and millions of dollars in investment and economic growth to Illinois,” Jen Walling, executive director of the Illinois Environmental Council, said in a statement. “Industrial hemp will bring new opportunities to Illinois farmers.”

By Brian Houlihan, Dublin Hemp Museum | When Napoleon’s invaded Russia in 1812, the aim in part was to cut off Britain’s hemp supply, vital to the British war efforts as their large navy relied heavily on it for sailing and other uses. Read the story . . . and Meet Brian Houlihan at the Hemp2020 | Investment & Entrepreneurship Summit Oct. 19-20.

The post Hemp History: Invading Russia to halt Britain’s hemp supply appeared first on HempToday.

Western Australia officials have lifted the amount of THC allowable in industrial hemp to a full one percent, bringing the state in line with others in Australia – a global pace-setter in pushing THC limits higher.

Only Switzerland and Uruguay have a 1% upper limit for hemp while most nations around the world operate under rules setting the limit at 0.3%. European stakeholders are currently pushing EU officials to raise a member-state-wide 0.2% THC limit to the 0.3% level.

Potential to create jobs

The changes in Western Australia come in amendments to the Industrial Hemp Act of 2004, and were passed by the State Parliament last week. The previous limit in WA was 0.35% THC.

“The cross-party support for these amendments is a sign of the wide recognition for the job-creating potential of this industry for regional WA,” Alannah MacTiernan, West Australia Agriculture and Food Minister said after the amendments passed. “These amendments will reduce risk for hemp growers and open up new opportunities in hemp seed as a food and drink product.”

Australia and New Zealand opened their markets for hemp foods in April 2017.

Australia-based Creso Pharma has inked an agreement with Pharmacare Europe to market and distribute its cannaQIX CBD product in the UK, the companies said in a release.

The deal could also lead to Pharmacare marketing other of Creso’s hemp-derived nutraceuticals products in the UK and other European markets under Pharmacare’s Naturopathica brand, the companies said. Pharmacare has more than 10,000 points of sale in Europe.

Creso announced in January that it would be entering the UK with cannaQIX and 50 nutraceutical products after signing a deal with Precision Healthcare for distribution in UK pharmacies and health food stores.

Pharmacare is a European subsidiary of Australia-based PharmaCare Laboratories that operates in Europe and the Middle East, across pharmacy, retail and online channels.

The UK launch of cannaQIX is planned for October 2018.

The Green Organic Dutchman Holdings Ltd. (TGOD) said it will buy 100% of HemPoland, maker of fast-moving CBD brand CannabiGold, in a deal that values the Elblag, Poland-based company at $15.5 million.

The agreement to acquire privately-held HemPoland comprises $7.75 million in cash and 1,968,323 in restricted TGOD shares currently valued at $7.75 million, TGOD said in a release. TGOD, based in Ancaster, Ontario, Canada, trades on the Toronto Stock Exchange and OTC in the U.S.

$12 million in added incentives

Additionally, the sellers can get performance based incentives of up to $12 million for delivery of $32 million of EBITDA in fiscal year 2021, according to the release.

TGOD also agreed to provide a $10.3 million cash investment “for rapid European expansion,” through funding R&D, drug development and global initiatives.

TGOD called the acquisition a “key component” in the company’s drive to expand its global distribution network. “Gaining market share with CBD products now, in the EU, with over 700 locations allows TGOD to establish immediate brand awareness across all verticals including infused beverages,” TGOD’s CEO Brian Athaide said, noting the deal opens “a gateway to Europe’s 750 million people.”

Small is beautiful at Obelisk Farm. That’s the spot in eastern Latvia where Andris Visnevskis and Debora Paulino have escaped the urban life and are living out their hemp dream.

“We did it mainly because of the kids,” Visnevskis said of the couple’s transition from the bustle of London to the clean air and pastoral life of the farm in 2013.

Having read about the properties of hemp seed oil, Andris and Debora purchased the run-down 2.5 hectare property – which includes an old farm house and several stone and wooden out buildings – with visions of entering the hemp food market.

Business model

While their initial idea was to grow hemp for its nutrient-rich seed, the couple quickly realized that their farm’s small size and lack of proper machinery called for an adjustment to the business model.

So in their second year at Obelisk, they added educational tours of the farm and launched a series of workshops in how to grow hemp, and how it can be used in food, paper, and for construction.

Hemp researcher and innovator Carl Martel of Carleton University, Ontario, Canada, will explain how carbonized hemp can be used to create energy storing hempcrete during the 8th Annual Symposium of the International Hemp Building Association (IHBA) Oct. 16-17 in Belgium.

Martel, who has been researching industrial hemp since 2010, is among leading global hemp experts who will give updates on groundbreaking building projects, humanitarian initiatives and the latest developments in hemp-based construction during the event, to be held at Castle Hof Ter Loonst at Kampenhout near Brussels,

Formally trained as a geo-archaeologist, Martel has worked with a number of hemp companies across Canada and Australia. A grain quality post-harvest management systems expert, he is the co-inventor of a grain disinfection system currently deployed in those countries.

Martel’s recent focus has been on value added products from agricultural waste such as carbon foam for insulation, water filtration and desalination, and energy storage.

By Arne Verhoef | HempToday – In the “New Green Revolution” brought on by the resurgence of Cannabis, Asian hemp, with the most genetic diversity on the planet, has a decided advantage.

The original Green Revolution, also called the Third Agricultural Revolution (1960-c. 1979), brought rapid agricultural advances unparalleled in earlier periods. Agricultural inputs and new technologies helped increase production, but that Revolution’s biggest driving force was the genetic improvement of staple crops – high-yielding varieties developed through selective breeding.

A ‘New Green Revolution’

Ironically, hemp escaped much of this development, handicapped by international narcotics conventions. Now, as the return of the Cannabis plant presents a “New Green Revolution” all its own, hemp is rapidly entering mainstream agriculture worldwide.

As the homeland of Cannabis, no place on Earth has a longer history with hemp than Asia. Cannabis occurs all over the continent, from Afghanistan and Vietnam, to Thailand and the Koreas. In India, there are probably as many hemp varieties as there are languages, while in some parts of China it would seem that every valley has its own unique crop.

A richness of heritage strains

In Mongolia near-wild populations of the plant exist, showcasing a staggering array of traits. Japan, with its long history of hemp use, has feral populations of their heritage strains to remind us of their pre-prohibition Cannabis richness.

Insured patients in the USA would pay up to $200 per month for CBD-based drug Epidiolex under a recent pricing announcement from the maker, UK-based GW Pharmaceuticals.

Epidiolex is the first cannabis-derived pharmaceutical to gain federal approval in the U.S. It was primarily developed for the treatment of two severe forms of epilepsy — Dravet Syndrome and Lennox-Gastaut Syndrome

For the uninsured, Epidiolex will cost about $32,500 per year, or just over $2,700 per month. That’s in line with other prescription drugs used to treat the same afflictions.

“We wanted to make sure we were pricing Epidiolex in such a way where the means to access . . . would be consistent with branded epilepsy drugs these patients already use,” said Justin Grover, GW’s CEO.

Input of insurance companies

The price was determined mainly based on talks with insurance companies, according to Julian Gangolli, GW’s North American President.

Jacek Kramarz, Chief of Sales at Poland’s blue-chip CBD maker HemPoland, will talk about his experiences with a fast-moving startup that’s quickly expanded distribution of its CannabiGold brand into 20 markets over the last two years during “The Future of Medical Hemp” international industry summit and networking event Aug. 24-25 at HempToday Center in Poland.

Kramarz also will give a snapshot of the European CBD markets and run through the basics of CBD and its effects on humans.

Kramarz has been instrumental in the development of HemPoland, a vertically integrated producer that carefully manages the value chain from field to shelf, and which has worked its way into the leading ranks of European CBD purveyors. He previously worked in management consulting in Vienna where he coordinated international projects tackling complex changes in company ownership and restructuring. He is also a licensed securities broker

Only 1 accreditation remains for the Aug. 24-25 networking & intelligence gathering. The application period remains open through Aug. 17.

Three U.S. states are represented

Representatives from the U.S. states of Colorado, Wisconsin and Maine are signed up to attend, as are delegates from Italy, Germany, China, Greece, Poland, Lithuania, Israel and the Czech Republic. Participants have the option of making a 15-minute presentation about their companies, startups or business plans.

The European Industrial Hemp Association (EIHA) has called on over-the-counter (OTC) clearinghouse Clearstream to shield five CBD companies who are in danger of losing post-trading services managed by the Luxembourg firm, a wholly owned subsidiary of Deutsche Börse.

More than 100 other cannabis companies are already excluded from a recently announced Clearstream provision that would stop the deposit of shares, due to take effect Sept. 28, 2018, by putting settlement restrictions on “companies primarily, directly or indirectly, active in the field of medical cannabis.”

Outdated cannabis laws

Industry sources say the changes at Clearstream were caused by recently updated guidelines from the local controlling authority, the Commission de Surveillance Financier (CSSF), that are based on outdated cannabis laws in Luxembourg.

The five companies mentioned in the EIHA letter to the Deutsche Börse are Naturally Splendid Enterprises, New Age Farm, Inc., Nutritional High International Inc., all of Canada; and CannaVEST Corp. and CV Sciences, Inc., both of the USA.

Products meet THC limits

“The companies . . . solely work with industrial hemp. Their range of products comprises food products made from industrial hemp (seeds) and/or neutraceuticals of hemp protein or cannabidiol (CBD), which is a non-psychoactive substance and therefore is not subject of the narcotic laws in European Countries (including Luxembourg),” EIHA wrote in the letter, noting several of the firms make products that are already on the market and are established as “medical” or “medicinal” in nature.

Colorado, USA-based Sana Packaging said it has delivered a round of first orders to customers in North America. The startup designs and develops plant-based hemp plastic packaging for the broader cannabis industry.

“We’re excited about our launch and we’re even more excited to provide the cannabis industry with some much needed differentiated, sustainable, and compliant packaging solutions,” Ron Basak-Smith, Sana’s co-founder and CEO, said in a release. “As rapidly growing and emerging industries, we believe the cannabis and industrial hemp industries have a responsibility to be platforms for positive social, economic, and environmental change.”

Sana said it uses 100% plant-based and chemical-free hemp plastic in its products.

The company is led by Basak-Smith and James Eichner, who met at the University of Colorado, Boulder’s MBA program. That’s where Sana got its spark, in a class project. After winning a university pitch competition, the enterprise got a boost from Canopy Boulder, a Colorado cannabis industry accelerator in 2017.

The post Colorado hemp plastic startup says it’s shipped first orders in N. America appeared first on HempToday.

The monopoly on medical knowledge previously held by governments, pharma companies and the medical establishment has now been broken forever due to technological advancements and the internet, according to Boaz Wachtel, an Israeli industry veteran who has launched two cannabis companies traded on the Australian Stock Exchange.

Wachtel will present “The Democratization of Knowledge: What it means for Medical Cannabis,” during “The Future of Medical Hemp” micro conference Aug. 24-25 at HempToday Center in Poland

Only 2 accreditations remain for the networking & intelligence gathering which is limited to 25 participants. Registrants have the option of making a 15-minute presentation about their companies, startups or business plans. The application period is open through Aug. 15.

Sign up for “The Future of Medical Hemp“

“The media tools available today can quickly fuel demand and further data sharing among patient groups in such a way that market estimates for CBD, especially because it is non-psychoactive and safe, are not far from future reality,” Wachtel said.

Canadian Greenfield Technologies Corp. (CGT) says it has developed the HempTrain Decortication System, specialized equipment based on high-speed kinematic technology that turns out intact structural bast fiber while capturing a clean microfiber stream and other hemp derivatives.

A turn-key installation of a HempTrain module with capacity 1 ton/hr is priced at $1,850,000; it includes a bale opener, main processing units, electrical and dust control – delivered, installed and commissioned., the Calgary-based company said in a release.

Short-time payback

“This green microfiber stream significantly increases the value of the production, allowing for a high margin and short-time payback business model,” the company said. The cost of operating the technology is much lower per ton/hr of throughput than conventional decorticators, while producing much higher value materials, according to CGT.

The technology is an advancement over earlier generations of decorticators which employ a hammer mill, which damages bast fiber and causes attrition of hurd fiber.

GTC said it will begin hosting demonstrations of the decorticator in September.

Italy’s Ministry of Agriculture has proposed a special Council to support development of hemp value chains, and to ease the process of getting hemp products to market.

“If we want to market the resulting products from the cultivation of hemp or labeling them as food or give another destination, competent ministries must intervene to say what are the requirements and parameters to do so,” said Agriculture Commission President Filippo Gallinella. “It is absolutely necessary to involve all ministries and various commissions in the Council.”

Clarity on rules needed

Clarity around hemp foods and other products will give entrepreneurs and investors assurance they won’t be blindsided by a lack of rules if they want to start hemp businesses, Gallinella added.

The Council would join the Agriculture Ministry with the Ministries of Health, Economic Development, Interior and Environment, along with trade associations and research sector representatives with the aim of easing the process of getting hemp-based products to market. The initiative was launched during a recent conference by Rome-based Confagricoltura, a confederation of Italian farming enterprises. A wide range of stakeholders attended the conference.

“We have good laws,” said Diana Pallini, a member of the Confagricoltura Council, but clarity is needed in some areas.” She said creating innovative hemp products can help strenthen the “Made in Italy” brand.