Bringing Medical Marijuana To Latin America: 'Our Mission Is To Solve The Regulatory Puzzle'

The following post was written and/or published as a collaboration between Benzinga’s in-house sponsored content team and a financial partner of Benzinga.

According to an article from Harvard Health Publishing, the most common use for medical marijuana in the United States is pain control - an ailment that affects millions of Americans. Medical marijuana is particularly desirable to help in these cases because it is safer to use than opiates (less addictive and impossible to overdose on). 

Cannabis as a medicinal drug was listed in the United States Pharmacopoeia for the first time in 1850, and was used widely in the U.S. as a patent medicine during the 19th and 20th centuries.

But with the current regulatory hurdles in place, it’s becoming harder for certain regions to utilize the medicinal properties of cannabis.

President & CEO of Verdemed, José Bacellar, asks us all to step outside of what’s happening in the U.S. and to focus on other regions like Latin America.

Verdemed, a Canadian pharmaceutical cannabis company, has made it their mission to bring cannabis-based medications to patients in Latin America. Utilizing the hundreds of scientific-studies backing this eastern medication, Verdemed is bringing what it believes to be cutting-edge medication to doctors and patients in this region.

“Our mission is to solve the regulatory puzzle in all the jurisdictions and be a suitable partner for North American players later,” Bacellar said in a presentation at the Benzinga Cannabis Capital Conference in Miami.

Many regulatory agencies in Latin America have similar regulations to those placed in Canada. Verdemed has recognized this and is working to provide cannabis-based pharmaceuticals that are approved by Health Canada, the European Medicines Agency, and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

“We began as a pharma company because the pharmaceutical laws are stable… as long as you have a pharma-grade product done in a pharmaceutical way you will be able to rest in all jurisdictions.”

Verdemed is also working towards providing its own line of cannabinoid products.

“The purpose of the Colombian operation is to supply only the local markets, we don’t plan to be the lowest cost provider and to export to Europe, it’s just a small operation to eventually come and serve our own products.” 

In order to start selling their own products, creating a brand that consumers trust and are familiar with is a top priority for this cannabis medication company.

“The brand is really valuable because that how clients, that’s how consumers, patients, doctors connect to you. Especially, if you’re selling a generic product like we are — we’re basically doing CBD — so the brand of the company is really critical to establish a long term relationship with patients and doctors.” 

Image sourced by Pixabay
The preceding post was written and/or published as a collaboration between Benzinga’s in-house sponsored content team and a financial partner of Benzinga. Although the piece is not and should not be construed as editorial content, the sponsored content team works to ensure that any and all information contained within is true and accurate to the best of their knowledge and research. This content is for informational purposes only and not intended to be investing advice.