One California cannabis company is making a very interesting bet and marching to the beat of its own drum: MCTC Holdings Inc (OTCMKTS:MCTC), now doing business as Cannabis Global, Inc. (OTCMKTS:MCTC), may be the only publicly traded name in the broad cannabis, hemp, and CBD sector that is focusing significant resources on establishing serious consumer markets in the so-called “exotic cannabinoids”.
While experts have been looking for development in this direction for several years after the explosive successes in THC and CBD products, no one has been able to master a cost-effective commercial volume production process for the more exotic major cannabinoids: Tetrahydrocannabinolic Acid (THCA), Cannabidiolic Acid (CBDA), Cannabinol (CBN), Cannabigerol (CBG), Cannabichromene (CBC), Tetrahydrocannabivarin (THCV), and Cannabidivarin (CBDV).
Until now, it would appear. MCTC has been working on a process to mass synthesize THCV, with apparent strong success (and multiple new patent filings). Now, it would appear the company is expanding its exotic cannabinoid footprint.
From THCV to CBN
Cannabis Global, Inc. (OTCMKTS:MCTC) just announced the expansion of its Project Varin research and development effort to include Cannabinol (CBN), under the umbrella of patent pending polymeric nanoparticle and nanofiber technologies developed for Tetrahydrocannabivarin (THC-V).
According to its release last week, the first stage of Project Varin produced high load particles of pure THC-V, allowing the Company to now move into production of commercial quantities. As part of this second phase, CBN has been added to the production protocol.
“The addition of CBN to the Project Varin production schedule is an important test of our internally developed technologies,” commented Arman Tabatabaei, CEO of the Company. “We believe the production parameters developed for THC-V will apply to CBN and other manufactured cannabinoids and we will be testing this premise on our currently scheduled manufacturing run. This will be an important test of the flexibility of our manufacturing process and if successful should allow us low cost leadership over a variety of rare cannabinoids.”
Cannabinol, the company notes, is found in trace amounts in hemp plants and is often found in aged hemp. Unlike most cannabinoids, the release goes on to say, CBN does not stem directly from cannabinol (CBN), but occurs as cannabis is exposed to air or ultraviolet light for an extended period of time.
Here’s the key point: While not as rare or as difficult to obtain as THC-V, CBN is still priced at a significant premium to more commonly found cannabinoids, such as CBD. Therefore, the production of high load polymeric nanoparticles based on the Company’s breakthrough technology solutions could yield considerable flexibility and cost savings when it comes to producing new cannabinoid-based products using CBN.
The Vision
Note that CBD has gone from a relatively unknown market worth a few million in sales a decade ago to a global powerhouse projected to do over $25 billion in sales by 2025.
Who’s to say that isn’t going to be the future for THCV or CBN (or any of a number of other exotic cannabinoids that might be next up for MCTC’s R&D team).
We would also note that the company has been very aggressive about formal legal IP steps, with more than a half dozen new patents in the works and under review at the USPTO. The most important point in this story is that the company has apparently developed a process able to make the mass production of pure exotic cannabinoids cost effective. That forms the basis for a licensing revenue model with big possibilities as a consumer market for THCV or CBN starts to get a foothold.
Mr. Tabatabaei continued, “We are committed to maintaining a leadership position in this area that will extend beyond core technologies and into the product arena. A successful test of CBN via our manufacturing processes will allow us to create new CBN products to complement our THC-V tea and coffee line, which is currently in pre-release testing with customers. As we have previously indicated, we believe our manufacturing techniques will yield a low-cost manufacturing position, while also setting the standard for product purity.”
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