A Jamaican-Canadian company based in Toronto and formed by Canopy Growth Corp. and Steep Hill Labs’ former employees, has completed what it asserts to be the inaugural DEA-approved export of marijuana products from Jamaica to the United States. The company, Pure Jamaican, alongside Seven-10 Pharmaceuticals, its manufacturing and cultivation division located in Montego Bay, Jamaica, dispatched a range of eight distinct tincture products and three diverse distillate products containing varying ratios of CBD and THC, according to Scott Cathcart, who heads both entities.
Only a small batch of the products was sent for DEA-sanctioned research purposes. The products were shipped to ACS Laboratory, a Sun City Center, Florida-based establishment licensed by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). Florida officials and the testing facility have a tense past. Notably, since 2022, ACS has been fined by Florida regulators about three times. The tens of thousands of dollars in fines were a result of several violations, including providing misleading information on certificates of analysis and not adhering to state standards on testing procedures.
Researchers with DEA licenses have been able to obtain cannabis from a select few authorized growers since 2021. Previously, the University of Mississippi was the only place where cannabis could be obtained for research purposes, or one needed to obtain DEA approval to import from other countries.
Cathcart expressed optimism regarding the potential rescheduling of cannabis from Schedule I to III under the Biden administration, foreseeing opportunities for commercialization in the U.S. market. However, he acknowledged the necessity of undergoing the lengthy FDA approval process before the products could be made commercially available.
Despite this, he is still optimistic that the products may be deemed “nutraceuticals,” which would free them from the need for federal approval before being sold.
Anticipating regulatory shifts, Cathcart is optimistic about the prospects of Pure Jamaican products in the U.S. market, citing the company’s pharmaceutical manufacturing license from the Pharmacy Council of Jamaica and relevant certifications from Jamaica’s Ministry of Health & Wellness. However, it remains uncertain whether the Jamaican pharmaceutical license carries the same weight as a U.S. pharmaceutical license.
Presently, the company is already distributing tincture products directly to Brazilian patients, according to a recent press release from Pure Jamaican. Before establishing Seven-10 and Pure Jamaican in 2018 with Martin Shefsky, another former Steep Hill executive, Cathcart spent about five years as the chief global expansion officer at Steep Hill Labs.
As the regulatory climate in the United States evolves over time, it will no longer be newsworthy when Pure Jamaican, Cronos Group Inc. (NASDAQ: CRON) (TSX: CRON) or any other company or its subsidiary exports, imports or otherwise engages in any interjurisdiction trade in marijuana products.
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