Canopy Growth (TSX: WEED) (NYSE: CGC) has issued updates on important developments in the United Kingdom and Luxembourg.
The company’s pharmaceutical business Spectrum Therapeutics is engaged in expanding its pan-European cannabis production and distribution network in the UK and Luxembourg to serve the needs of physicians and their patients.
Canopy aims to transform healthcare in Europe by providing better access to medical cannabis treatments.
UK Update
In the UK, Spectrum has received licenses from the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) and Home Office to store and distribute cannabis-based medicinal products (CBMPs).
The first of its kind facility in the UK is designed to reduce prescription delivery time, a key development as the company establishes its footprint in the UK. The license also allows the company to import CBMPs to the UK directly from Spectrum’s European and global networks.
“Medicinal cannabis has been available in the UK for less than twelve months, and in that time, we have established cost-effective UK infrastructure to meet the needs of patients,” stated Cosmo Feilding Mellen, managing director of Spectrum. “We are delighted to have been granted licenses from both the MHRA and Home Office in order to provide a solution to one of the most significant barriers for access in the UK.”
Spectrum passed a preliminary inspection from the MHRA to receive a license. The company is working with the MHRA and the Home Office to maintain the agreed terms, ensuring that CBMPs can be stored at volume in the UK under the highest standards of practice.
Luxembourg Update
Spectrum has become the exclusive supplier of medical cannabis to the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg. The contract will see Luxembourg receive medical cannabis from the company’s licensed facilities in Denmark and around the world until December 31, 2021.
In 2018, the government of Luxembourg passed a law to decriminalize medical cannabis for patients with severe unmet needs. Under the new legislation, general practitioners and specialist medical professionals who have undertaken specific training are able to prescribe cannabis to eligible patients in Luxembourg. Patients with severe needs include those living with cancer, neuro-degenerative, chronic and painful diseases.
“Luxembourg is a country with big ambitions when it comes to medical cannabis, and we are excited to have earned the opportunity to supply this new market,” stated Paul Steckler, co-managing director of Europe of Canopy.
Canopy has received all authorizations required to import medical cannabis into Luxembourg and has completed the first shipment of medicinal cannabis to Luxembourg’s Division de la Pharmacie et des Medicaments.