Clever Leaves Holdings, a leading multinational operator and licensed producer of pharmaceutical-grade cannabinoids, has announced that it signed a four-year supply agreement with the Australian Natural Therapeutics Group (ANTG) to supply CBD isolates and THC oil from its harvesting and processing facilities in Colombia and Portugal.
Under the terms of the agreement, ANTG will purchase a minimum of US$7.8 million worth of product, hoping to get the first commercial shipment by March 2022. This is the largest supply agreement Clever Leaves has signed with an Australian cannabis company, contributing to the Colombian company’s growth, and positioning it as an emerging global leader in the supply of medical cannabis.
“Australia is a rapidly expanding market and increasing product shipments to the contient allows Clever Leaves to further accelerate market growth,” said Andres Fajardo, president and incoming CEO of Clever Leaves. “ANTG’s research approach, pharmaceutical certifications and distribution capabilities are aligned with our mission to produce high-quality medical cannabis to meet the needs of patients,” he said.
“Our principles of quality and purity are at the core of everything we do to deliver excellent results to our patients,” said Matthew Cantelo, CEO of ANTG. “We look forward to bringing Clever Leaves’ high-quality, pharmaceutical-grade raw materials to our growing premium product portfolio, ensuring a continued supply and increased offering of affordable medicines for all of our patients in Australia.”
Medical cannabis is used in Australia to treat thousands of patients annually for conditions such as anxiety, inflammation, seizures and pain control. More than 180,000 Australians have received approval to access medical cannabis through the Therapeutic Goods Administration’s (SAS-B) special access system, and thousands more through a licensed prescriber.
In addition to the increase in medical cannabis registrations, there is also a growing interest in local clinical research, which works to demonstrate the efficacy of the products for many medical conditions. Current areas of research include sleep apnea, post-traumatic stress disorder, cancer, depression, and dementia, among others. Access rates to medical cannabis are expected to continue to rise in 2022.
Both Clever Leaves and ANTG are putting considerable efforts into ensuring that all Australians with medical approval can access affordable, high-quality, certified 100% harvested Colombian medical cannabis.
