Canopy Growth Corporation Responds to Proposed New Cannabis Regulations
SMITHS FALLS, ON, Aug. 11, 2016 /CNW/ – Today the Government of Canada announced that regulations governing medical marijuana would be amended, as expected, by August 24th, 2016, and that the majority of the previously repealed Marihuana Medical Access Regulations (MMAR) would form a part of an interim system, introduced to satisfy the requirements set out by the courts in the truncated timeline the government was given to respond. Canopy Growth Corporation (TSX:CGC) (“Canopy Growth” or “the Company”), parent company of licensed producers Tweed Inc. (“Tweed”), Bedrocan Canada Inc. (“Bedrocan Canada”) and Tweed Farms Inc. (“Tweed Farms”) is pleased to provide the following response to today’s announcement.
For our patients and the 95% of people who don’t abuse the privilege of growing at home, this is positive news. Our Company has openly supported the right of patients to grow at home, and we welcome this new option for patients. Choice is a good thing, and those who wish to grow moderate amounts of cannabis at home for personal consumption should be allowed to do so.
For Tweed and Bedrocan Canada, it truly is business as usual. The reality in Canada today is that patients already have significant choice. Legal or not, many people already choose to grow at home, or to access cannabis through an illegal dispensary. In addition, they can choose from over 30 licensed producers of cannabis.
Since we began three years ago as a start-up business in Smiths Falls, it has been our mission to offer products and services that stand out among these options. Patients have always had choice and we have never taken that for granted.
Today, Canopy Growth is proud to welcome our 20,000th customer to join the Canopy family. As of today, our Company has garnered the trust and support of over 20,000 Canadians, representing more than half of all those who ever joined the MMAR system in its 13 years of existence. We offer our customers a convenient way to access a wide variety of cannabis products produced to the highest quality standards in the world.
We have taken great strides to normalize medical cannabis use through political advocacy, physician education and stakeholder outreach. We’re confident that through our work, we’ve improved access to medical cannabis for tens of thousands of Canadians. We will continue this important work until medical cannabis is fully incorporated into the Canadian healthcare system.
Adhering to the strict quality-assurance regulations developed by Health Canada, Tweed, Tweed Farms and Bedrocan Canada have proven our ability to produce products that provide physicians and patients with peace of mind. We are confident that given the option, our ability to produce world-class products in a cost-effective manner will be the preferred method for the vast majority of Canadians.
So where to now?
While we support a patient’s right to grow at home, the MMAR and the grow-at-home system it represents is not good policy. All of the flaws that existed in 2013 when the government concluded after extensive consultation that the MMAR presented elevated diversion risks, abuse of plant limits, and an inability for law enforcement to know legal from illegal cannabis – still exist today.
While we believe this is a short-term initiative, with a broader overhaul of cannabis policy expected in the coming months, it is still a setback for the advancement of sound cannabis policy and Canada’s global leadership in cannabis regulation.
Though we can’t control government policy, we can control what we do with it. To the extent this short-term opportunity allows us, we want to help customers explore “grow at home” outside their home. We’ll rent you the space, genetics and supplies, and we’ll help you to grow your own plants at our (non-MMPR) facilities. Home grow without your home, only from Tweed.
Make no mistake: in our view, there is no substitute for clean, convenient, quality-assured cannabis at competitive prices. But if you want to grow your own cannabis, Tweed would be proud to assist you in that journey, insofar as the rules allow. Maybe yet another option, from your friends at Tweed.
Here’s to future growth – in a number of ways.
About Canopy Growth Corporation
Canopy Growth Corporation is the first and only federally regulated cannabis producer to be listed on a major stock exchange. The Company owns and operates two of Canada’s leading sellers of medical cannabis, Tweed and Bedrocan Canada, and the largest legal growing facility in the world, Tweed Farms. These companies operate highly regulated production facilities in Ontario, producing world-class cannabis products for Canadians managing serious medical conditions. In three years it has developed a leadership position in the market by establishing a presence on four continents, developing ground breaking physician education programs, and launching EQUAL, the largest clinical cannabis trial in the world.
About Tweed
Tweed is the most recognized marijuana production brand in the world. It has built a large and loyal following by focusing on quality products and meaningful customer relationships. Tweed doesn’t just sell marijuana, it facilitates a conversation about a product we’ve all heard about but haven’t met intimately yet. It is approachable and friendly, yet reliable and trusted.
SOURCE Canopy Growth Corporation
