FoliuMed just shipped the biggest delivery of medical cannabis from Colombia to Australia.
Australia is the second largest medical cannabis market outside North America with over 100,000 patients.
"This is the first of two shipments which allow our customer to supply about 5% of Australian demand at less than half the cost compared to local production," - FoliuMed Founder and CEO, Oliver Zugel.
Affordable medical cannabis has become a big issue for patients who pay over 200 Australian Dollars for a monthly dose, available only under prescription. Unlike in Germany - where cannabis is covered by health insurance - patients "down under" pay for their medicine out of pocket.
"This limits access to medical cannabis to the well-heeled or those willing to take the risk to buy more cheaply from the black market," says Zugel.
"With ideal climatic conditions, our energy consumption is minimal and we grow the plants organically," says FoliuMed co-founder and LATAM CEO Diego Felipe Navarro.
"Our teams in Colombia and Germany have worked for over a year with our customer, the health authorities and the Colombian government to ensure we adhere to the strict quality standards imposed by the Australian drug regulator TGA."
"Given our German operations are EU-GMP certified, we offer Australian importers a full range of affordable solutions compliant with the new regulations," explains Zugel.