Tag: Tilray

According to DAZ online, a German-language, pharmacy-oriented publication, Tilray has had to recall its cannabis extract in the German market because the THC in its products is lower than stated on the packaging.

There is no danger to patients, but the effect of the medication may be reduced.

Pharmacists must destroy the extract they have received if it is on-premises.

According to the company in a statement released via the German Pharmacists’ Medicines Commission (AMK), the initial batch of Tilray THC 10 CBD 10  tested within parameters of a release date. However, a continuous stability test revealed that the THC content was subsequently lower.

There is no danger to humans, however, a different than stated effect could occur when using the affected products.

The Impact On The German Market

This is now the second recall in the German market in the last year. Aurora cannabis also ran into trouble last fall.

At at time when German flower and other products made from the same are finally about to enter the market here, this is an embarrassing flub, but also a reminder that the industry is increasingly regulated across Europe and being fitted into existing pharmaceutical infrastructure and standards.

The industry has come a long way, however, it is clear there is room to grow.

In the meantime, Tilray is left without a strategical import product in the market, and a negative mark in the country’s main pharmaceutical trade zine.

The Good News? Whole Plant Cannabis Extracts Have Arrived

Beyond this temporary setback for perhaps the strongest company in a position to begin competing against dronabinol in its presence in the market (if not yet price), there has been a clear ramp-up in the entire German cannabis market conversation.

With only three firms growing the plant in Germany, it is inevitable that at least a part of this crop, certainly in the future, will be processed into extracts for the medical market.

In the meantime, the most widely available medical grade “cannabinoid extract” with THC in it, is dronabinol, produced both by a German and Israeli company. Both companies are likely to see an uptick in sales as a result of the Tilray fail, not just because of price but sheer availability.

However, it is also clear that this is only a temporary setback for the company as well as the entire medical extract discussion auf Deutschland.

The International Cannabis Business Conference will return to Europe in the spring of 2021. Stay tuned for more news from Europe by following our blog!

By Marguerite Arnold

In one of the more intriguing cross-European canna developments this summer, Tilray announced its first cross-European shipment. The shipment was estimated to be worth more than $3 million and shipped from Portugal to Germany in late August. The German distributor that Tilray is working with is also of note – Cannamedical, the second indie distributor to get an import license (after MedCann GmbH now Spektrum/Canopy).

The announcement comes at an interesting time.

Tilray’s Portuguese plans were announced during the summer of 2017 when the focus on entering the German market was via the cultivation bid process. Tilray was the first company to more or less publically throw in the towel, in other words, as the first news of lawsuits began to trickle out.

The Impact of Warmer Climates And Less Regulation

Tilray is not the first, much less the only, large Canadian cannabis company to essentially plan to outsource EU production somewhere in the region. All of the largest players in the market have established either production sites or partnered with domestic producers to do so in countries around the continent. Spain, Poland, the Czech Republic, Croatia, Greece, Italy, and Macedonia are all in various stages of cultivation, production, and/or extraction.

However, the Portugal play is intriguing on a number of fronts, starting with sovereign drug policy. That is unlikely to be duplicated anywhere else in Europe. However, it places the company in a strategic position to ship product not only to the EU (starting with Germany) but also the UK.

The demands of these two markets will absolutely drive the economics of the industry for the next decade, regardless of niche plays that may be perceived to be sexier, such as Luxembourg, Switzerland, and Greece.

That means no matter how “unregulated” the overall local attitudes are when it comes to cultivation, processing, and production, export markets are highly regulated. Cost control, starting with labor, but also other matters from packaging and labeling to supply chain issues beyond this, are in the room and are unlikely to leave it.

The most recent contretemps over CannTrust in Denmark, including calls for better regulations, also seem to indicate that the writing is on the wall in terms of where the industry is headed.

Ultimately, of course, beyond issues of production cost, there are also bigger problems afoot, starting with the slow acceptance of medical efficacy which will ultimately drive sales. The only solution for that is medical trials, regardless of how exciting the news of recreational reform is in Luxembourg.

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