New Zealand organic grower Puro has teamed up with Medical Kiwi to export medicinal cannabis products to Europe.
The production and supply contract will see Puro provide five tonnes of cannabis flower in year one, with volumes increasing in subsequent years.
Medical Kiwi will use its Christchurch drying plant for initial processing to ensure the flower meets European customer requirements. Sales are scheduled to commence in the first half of 2023.
Puro executive chair Tim Aldridge said the firm’s cultivation and plant genetics expertise and Medical Kiwi’s processing capacity and customer relationships in Europe were the “perfect fit”.
He added: “There’s huge demand globally for high-quality pharmaceutical cannabis… The stage is set to take New Zealand cannabis to the world, and we’re excited about joining forces with Medical Kiwi to help make this happen.”
Medical Kiwi chair Aldo Miccio said: “The value in export earnings for this country will be huge if we can scale up production using the best available cultivars and cultivation methods, and build solid long-term relationships with the biggest players in Europe.
“From our market development work over the past three years we can see very strong demand in Europe for high-grade cannabis flower.
“This, combined with New Zealand’s reputation for producing high-quality foods and natural products, provides a great platform for us and other Kiwi companies to grow a valuable export-oriented industry.”
Miccio added next steps for Medical Kiwi include securing international Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) certification during 2023, with export sales of dried cannabis flower proceeding in the interim.
