Victoria, Australia-based Cannoperations Pty Ltd is the first company to be granted a license to grow and harvest medicinal cannabis in the nation, following approval by the Department of Health’s Office of Drug Control, the agency announced in a press release. Cannoperations is a wholly owned subsidiary of Cann Group Limited. Cannoperations was also issued a cannabis research license last month.
The Health Office indicated that the licenses will initially be for the Victorian market, but that they are planning to issue licenses for other regions “shortly.”
“The [President Malcom] Turnbull Government is committed to facilitating faster access by qualified doctors to medicinal cannabis for patients with the necessary approvals,” says the release from Minister of Health Greg Hunt. “We are now making it easier to access medicinal cannabis products more rapidly, while still maintaining strict safeguards for individual and community safety.”
Prior to granting the license, Cannoperations’ growing facility was assessed by the Office of Drug control, and similar assessments will be conducted on all applicants.
“This heralds the beginning of Australian domestic supply of medicinal cannabis products,” Hunt said in the release.
Cann Group is an agribusiness company – currently unlisted – focusing on breeding, cultivating, and manufacturing medicinal cannabis for the Australian market.