This bottleneck in genetics (clones and seeds) is good for THC:
Here's the article from Lift:
The other cannabis genetics bottleneck
Along with home growers, new licensed producers are finding it challenging to find a legal supply of seeds or clones that satisfies their needs.
By David Brown
November 29, 2016
While access to legal sources of starting materials is a known issue for patients in Canada, the ability for Health Canada-regulated licensed producers to source seeds and clones is a lesser known issue within the industry.
Early-licensed, established producers have been given access to sources of genetics that those licensed later on, in a more than three-year-old program, haven’t been given the same access to.
When Health Canada introduced the Marihuana for Medical Purposes Regulations (MMPR) in June 2013, it allowed — for the first time in Canada — the commercial retail production and sale of cannabis for medical purposes. Prior to this, medical cannabis in Canada was regulated under the Marihuana Medical Access Regulations (MMAR), but production was limited to personal or designated growers (in August of this year the government replaced the MMPR with the Access to Cannabis for Medical Purposes Regulations (ACMPR).
Up until March 31, 2014, those licensed by Health Canada to produce cannabis could transfer genetics from approved Health Canada producers under the previous MMAR regime. No retail sales were regulated through this regime. Nonetheless, it blossomed into an enormous cottage industry of medical cannabis growers and breeders, giving birth to strains unique to Canada, as well as bringing in genetics from overseas.
Many of the first licensed producers (LPs) sourced their genetics this way, and many of the existing strains available within Canada’s legal medical cannabis regime to authorized patients come from these MMAR sources. Some of these represent unique options developed in part by Canadian growers under Canada’s old MMAR. Two of the early licensed LPs, Tweed and Mettrum, even had a shipment of MMAR genetics seized by RCMP in the final moments of the exemption, in what was described as a miscommunication.
Purple Lightning clones start their journey to flower
Purple Lightning clones start their journey to flower at Broken Coast on Vancouver Island.
In addition to sourcing starting material from these MMAR growers, LP’s could register to import cannabis from overseas sources, but these options were limited and the process can be very complicated.
Health Canada’s rules for importing genetics can be complex, as there are only a handful of countries in the world with a regime that matches these requirements.
For some time, producers were able to source seeds from various companies in the Netherlands. But a recent change in government, say some new producers, has meant the Dutch government won’t authorize exports for any company other than Bedrocan BV. Bedrocan BV has traditionally only supplied genetics for their Canadian partner, Bedrocan Canada.
As the ACMPR grows and more producers are approved for sale, this issue will only become bigger. Consumers can easily buy seeds and even clones online from illegal sources with little delay, but licensed producers are at the mercy of a market with a severe bottleneck that benefits the handful of producers first licensed. For both producers and the patients they supply to be properly served, these gaps need to be addressed. Legalization for non medical purposes will likely present similar challenges.
Marc Ripa, the owner of AB Labs, a licensed producer in Ontario who received their cultivation license on Oct 21, says there needs to be a change in the rules to allow new LPs the same opportunity to source from approved MMAR growers in the same way that the first producers were able to.
“Every company, after going through the process we’ve gone through, should be entitled to obtain those materials” says Ripa.
According to the owner, AB Labs was application number eight and were in pre-license inspection for R&D exemption in June 2013. They were growing under the previous MMAR and could have imported genetics themselves, had they received their license prior to the March 31 2014 deadline. Until they can source genetics, AB Labs will not be able to begin cultivation.
screen-shot-2016-11-28-at-8-12-25-pmRipa says that communication with Health Canada has noticeably improved over the last year and that he expects an update from them that will allow him to source genetics soon. He emphasizes he isn’t complaining. He’s kept his head down, he says, focusing on building an excellent facility over the past two years, but it’s still important for a fair market to give all producers the same opportunities.
Another newer producer who hopes to address this bottleneck is Kelowna’s THC Biomed, licensed for production in February of this year and licensed to sell genetics to other LPs on Oct 17. Jon Miller, the company’s President and CEO, says they expect to have starting materials available for consumers very soon.
The company lists 27 different strains on its website. Miller says his aim is to increase variety and access for patients and producers, not limit.
“We’re ready to supply patients, and patients need to be supplied,” says Miller. “THC Biomed is one of the only companies who has always sought to supply genetics. Other producers talk about proprietary strains and want to keep genetics to themselves, whereas we went in the opposite different direction and have a whole section dedicated to that.”
Propagation Tray filled with clones (cuttings) that will spend 2 weeks here before continuing their journey to becoming production plants
Propagation Tray filled with clones (cuttings) that will spend 2 weeks here before continuing their journey to becoming production plants
Like Ripa and Miller, Jeanette VanderMarel and Scott Skinner also initially applied for a license to produce cannabis from Health Canada in mid 2013. The co-owners of Ontario’s the Green Organic Dutchman received approval to cultivate in August of this year, and approval to transfer genetics to other licensed producers shortly after. VanderMarel, who had grown under the MMAR, was able to work with a producer licensed prior to the deadline to secure her own genetics. In October they received approval to supply genetics to other producers.
Although the last three years have been a considerably arduous waiting game, like Ripa, Skinner notes that the last six months or so have seen a marked improvement in communications from Health Canada.
“We’ve found that things have moved along much quicker since about February of this year once the new government had the ability to organize the Office of Medical Cannabis,” says Skinner. “I think they’ve been much more responsive to our requests, as evidenced by our now being licensed.”
Duncan, BC-based licensed producer United Greeneries has announced they have received an import permit from Health Canada for 1kg of cannabis seeds.
The import permit will allow the company to begin starting the production of rooted clones in their Vancouver Island facility from seed by mid January, says Andreas Gedeon, Managing Director and CEO of MMJ PhytoTech. United Greeneries is the Canadian subsidiary of MMJ-PhytoTech, based in Australia.
Gedeon says United Greeneries wants to specialize in providing starting materials for both consumers as well as other licensed producers. By April 2017, the goal is to have 30 different varieties of rooted clones available for sale. This will allow consumers and retailers access to more variety, he says, and allow producers to outsource propagation entirely, focusing on flower and or oil production.
“Our facility in Duncan is going to be focusing on the production of rooted cuttings, in high volumes, that we will make available to both individuals under the ACMPR as well as to other LPs. For other LPs we will supply high volumes of rooted cuttings on an ongoing production level, so they can completely outsource the propagation of plant material to us.”
Gedeon says the intention is to be able to ship clones overnight, anywhere in Canada, with a consumer price of about $15-20 each, plus taxes, shipping, etc.
Ideally, the government is able to forge a relationship with other legal nations like the Netherlands, Israel, Germany, Uruguay, Columbia, and Australia that will satisfy Health Canada while also satisfying the demands of the market. There are numerous commercial seed companies out there, and much of the problem in licensed producers accessing them is the gap in legality between jurisdictions and nations in the end days of prohibition.
Ideally, the Canadian government can learn from these issues by transitioning formerly illicit products into a regulated regime for the medical market as it moves towards legalizing for a nonmedical market, creating a functional system — a more level playing field, which will certainly be as crucial to establishing a functional nonmedical system as it will be to creating a functional medical one
