• Cannabis flower and derivatives producer Flora Growth Corp. is an established brand builder with a seed-to-supply pipeline of cannabis CPG products from Colombia to North America to Europe and many other destinations around the world
• Flora Growth’s commitment to its premium and mindful consumer packaged goods brand and product portfolio is now being enhanced with the company’s announcement it has opened a pharmaceutical division
• Flora Pharma will concentrate on identifying opportunities for novel treatments in specific medical conditions, using a cost-effective process for establishing drug product safety and efficacy, honoring FDA and NHS regulatory standards

Internationally focused cannabis cultivator and brand builder Flora Growth (NASDAQ: FLGC) has been establishing strategic partnerships, commercial relationships, and infrastructure as part of the company’s growing distribution channels and markets for its premium cannabis consumer packaged goods (“CPG”) products, and on Oct. 6 announced the next stage in its development with the creation of Flora Pharma and the execution of an agreement to begin scientific clinical trials globally.  

Flora Pharma will spearhead Flora Growth’s efforts to run clinical trials and develop therapies for specific disease states and conditions by identifying opportunities within the cannabis industry where “scientific gaps” have yet to respond to those conditions. In tandem with a team of artificial intelligence and machine learning experts, the group will develop a proprietary drug development platform to identify bioactive compounds within the cannabis plant that interact with certain gene targets responsible for specific disease states and conditions, and then launch cost-effective studies in collaboration with academic institutions to comply with the traditional pharmaceutical regulatory route to proving safety and efficacy. 

The Oct. 6 news release noted that Flora Growth has signed an agreement to begin scientific clinical trials on the use of cannabinoids to treat fibromyalgia and chronic pain, with the primary research sites for the global effort located in the United States and the United Kingdom (https://ibn.fm/wnC6O). The announcement also noted that Flora Pharma expects to fast-track traditional FDA and NHS timelines by running phase trials in parallel (in vitro, in vivo, pilot in human, safety/efficacy, etc.), and specified that the Human Pilot Study will be run in coordination with an internationally recognized clinical research group based at the University of Manchester. 

“Our team is incredibly excited to announce our entry into cannabinoid science,” President and CEO Luis Merchan stated. “Since our inception, the Flora team has successfully navigated significant barriers to enable the development, manufacturing, and commercialization of cannabis products in Colombia. Commercial harvests are well underway and it is now that we’re able to turn our attention to what we believe is the long-term future of our industry and to hedge ourselves further against the commoditization of raw cannabis materials.”

The company’s aim is to create novel downstream prescription cannabinoid-based medicines as well as nutraceutical cannabis products, thereby diversifying Flora Growth’s revenue streams while using high margins and low debt to create sustainable, long-term growth. The company recently announced that it achieved $2.1 million in revenues for the first half of the year through June 30 (https://ibn.fm/71QUR). 

Flora Growth has developed its cultivation and processing infrastructure in the favorable Colombian market, including a vertically integrated footprint in a region known for its high-quality agricultural goods, an incredibly skilled labor force, and their team’s innate ability to produce premium cannabis with what the company believes is the lowest cost in the global market at $0.06/gram and 60% lower than its nearest Colombian peer. 

In July, President Ivan Duque solidified the country’s drive toward international cannabis trade by progressing from medicated oil and extract exports to fully lifting a ban on cannabis exports for cannabis used in food, beverage, cosmetics, and textiles markets, as well as pharmaceuticals (https://ibn.fm/Py6d9). 

With an expanding international distribution pipeline and more governments around the world wanting to regulate and participate in the global cannabis market, Flora has plans for its products to find their way all around the world. As a result of Colombia’s northern neighbor Panama recently passing legislation legalizing medical cannabis (https://ibn.fm/8JGxv), Flora most recently announced that it executed an agreement with Panamanian importer and distributor Robust Farms Inc. to supply its premium cannabidiol (“CBD”)-derivative products (https://ibn.fm/30azl). 

“While Flora is focused on its cannabis cultivation and processing operations in Colombia, as well as utilizing those raw materials throughout its premium and mindful global cannabis consumer packaged goods brand and product portfolio, the management team and board of directors has acknowledged and is committed to moving ahead with applied research initiatives in medical cannabis, forming Flora Pharma, in order to become a leader in the discovery, development, manufacturing, and commercialization of novel, phytocannabinoid-based prescription medicines and nutraceutical products to address a broad range of diseases,” the Oct. 6 news release states. 

For more information, visit the company’s website at www.FloraGrowth.ca.

NOTE TO INVESTORS: The latest news and updates relating to FLGC are available in the company’s newsroom at https://ibn.fm/FLGC

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