Starting as soon as 2018, some Canadian ACMPR patients may see CBD-based medicines become more affordable, thanks to an international relationship announced in a recent press release between Canada-based licensed producer, Emblem Cannabis Corp, and Uruguayan cannabis firm, ICC.

With the modern climate of legalization, and cannabis research becoming increasingly approachable, scientists continue to discover new information about how and why individual ingredients within cannabis can be used to effectively treat medical conditions. The most commonly known active ingredient within cannabis is THC (tetrahydrocannabinol), and though the ingredient CBD (cannabidol) is not a new discovery, it is rapidly growing in popularity among enthusiasts and medical patients alike.

While THC is the primary ingredient associated with the psychoactive “high” sought by recreational cannabis users, the effects of CBD are typically more physical, and although more subtle to the user than the effects of THC, they are especially noticeable in muscle sensitivity. Studies have shown CBD to be effective in treating Fibromyalgia, Nausea, Alzheimer’s Disease, and even Cancer in preclinical lab trials.

Another factor contributing to the rise in popularity of CBD is that in many countries where cannabis and THC extracts are prohibited, CBD remains unregulated, and in many cases wholly legal. This makes it a less controversial choice for patients whose doctors might lean towards recommending cannabis if not for its legal status.

Many dispensaries and licensed producers in Canada already offer CBD products, most famously ‘Phoenix Tears’ (a.k.a. ‘Rick Simpson Oil’). However, due to the relatively low concentration of CBD found in the vast majority of cannabis and the difficulty in processing for extraction, the market price of CBD extracts can be prohibitive, often costing patients upwards of double the price of THC extracts, or tenfold the price of cannabis in standard flower form.

That may be changing next year, as Ontario-based LP, Emblem Cannabis Corp, is set to begin importing CBD oil from Uruguay, where the minimum wage is the equivalent of just $22 dollars (CAD) per day. In the recent press release from Emblem, V.P. Maxim Zavet said, “This is a unique opportunity for Emblem to tap into Uruguay’s lower cost production platform.”

The relationship between Emblem and ICC will go two ways. ICC has earmarked ten percent of its 2018 output of CBD oil for sale to Emblem, and in the meantime Emblem will be working with ICC to share genetics, starting materials, and best practices in safety and environmental activities. That bodes well for the environment, since Uruguay’s general pollution level scores three times higher than Canada on the World Health Organisation’s pollution index.

ICC (which stands for “International Cannabis Corporation”) is the largest licensed producer of cannabis and cannabis extracts in South America, catering to both the medicinal and recreational cannabis markets, as well as the non-psychoactive industrial hemp market. This new trade relationship stands to serve as a boon to ICC, with Uruguay’s Drug Board having recently rejected cannabis produced by licensees for not meeting sanitary standards. In Canada, however, there were roughly a hundred thousand patients signed up to legally possess and consume cannabis in 2016, and with the Federal Government working toward legalization for recreational use across the country, establishing an entry point into the Canadian cannabis market is well-timed for ICC.

While the Emblem/ICC deal signals Canada’s first import relationship for CBD, it also expands the existing legal cannabis import/export industry. Last summer, British Columbia-based LP, Tilray, made headlines as the first Canadian company to legally export cannabis products by shipping THC concentrates to Croatia, and has since established export relationships with clients in the European Union and Australia, and most recently, a hospital in New Zealand. Another Licensed Producer, Tweed (a subsidiary of Canopy Growth Co), recently imported an array of genetics for their new program to provide seeds for approved patients to grow their own.