Tilray (TLRY.T) announced that their wholly-owned German subsidiary Aphria RX GmbH has completed the first successful harvest of medical cannabis cultivated in Germany. The cannabis was delivered to German pharmacies.
The cannabis was cultivated at Tilray’s state-of-the-art 6,000 square meter indoor growing facility in Neumünster, Germany, which conforms to European Good Manufacturing Practices (EU GMP). The distribution was undertaken on behalf of the German Cannabis Agency. Tilray’s collaboration with government agencies and pharmacies shows they have a strong presence and established relationships in the German medical cannabis world.
“Our harvest in Germany represents an important milestone in granting access to high-quality and trustworthy medical cannabis to patients and healthcare professionals in Germany,” stated Denise Faltischek, Tilray’s Head of International and Chief Strategy Officer. “It is a testament to the professionalism and dedication of our team that, despite the challenges of a global pandemic, we remained on track as the first licensed producer to cultivate medical cannabis in Germany. Our achievement would not have been possible without the trust and cooperation of the Federal Institute for Drugs and Medical Devices (BfArM) and the Germany Cannabis Agency, for which we are sincerely grateful.”
As of March 2017, patients with a medical prescription were able to get cannabis, although all of the cannabis sold was imported until now. Tilray notes that there is “growing demand” for medical cannabis and that there are currently “well over 100,000 patients” in Germany.
Tilray has experience achieving milestones in the cannabis world. They were the first to export medical cannabis from Canada and import medical cannabis products into the EU back in 2016.
Establishing a strong foothold in the cannabis sector in Germany at this very early stage could be hugely beneficial down the road. Germany’s Green Party has been slipping lately in the polls, but they still maintain a strong second-place position, and have even been in the lead at times. Although in this case Green refers to the environment, not weed, back on 4/20 the Green’s campaigned for legal cannabis, so they are willing to make legalization an issue only 4 years after medical cannabis was allowed.
“The European Union represents a powerful growth market for us and, among its constituent markets, Germany possesses the greatest potential. We look forward to leveraging our strong medical platform and our multifaceted international operation, which combines in-country cultivation, importation, and large distribution infrastructure, to increase access and availability to high-quality, consistent medical cannabis for all European patients,” commented Irwin D. Simon, Tilray’s CEO.
“Tilray’s achievement in Germany serves as a strong affirmation that we are competitively differentiated by scale and proven execution skills. As a result, we are poised to transform the industry globally with our highly scalable footprint, portfolio of diverse medical cannabis brands, and compelling products that respond to a wide range of patient and consumer needs. The E.U. is central to our worldwide distribution network, and we look forward to accelerating our progress.”
Following the news, Tilray shares are down 85 cents and are currently trading at $20.02.