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With Health Canada’s recent
announcement on the proposed
regulations for cannabis edibles, a lot has been learned about the
requirements for these products including limits on THC, banned or limited
additives, labelling, packaging and stability. Health Canada has also opened a consultation
period on the proposed regulations with feedback accepted until February 20, 2019. Now that this
information is available, the excitement to begin manufacturing has ramped up
and the number one question being asked is “How can we start making edibles now
to prepare for future legalization?”.
The answer: a cannabis research license.
A cannabis research license will allow manufacturers to:
- Conduct research and product development
activities using cannabis including: - Developing recipes for edibles
- Experimenting with different product forms (e.g.
cookies, candies, chocolate) - Optimizing formulations for taste, consistency
and potency - Determining shelf life
Here are some other benefits
of a cannabis research license:
- A research license has fewer application
requirements (no security clearance, no additional personnel, reduced
GPP/physical security requirements, etc..) however, Health Canada reserves the
right to require increased security measures if they believe the quantity of
cannabis to be in possession warrants it - Health Canada has established a separate queue
for research license applications (i.e. they will not be added to the long
queue of cultivation and processing licenses) - Because of fewer application requirements and a
separate queue, a research license can be obtained faster than a processing
license (standard or micro) so that product development can begin sooner
While the products that are
developed under this license cannot be sold, it will allow manufacturers the
opportunity to conduct research and development activities that will result in
the production of high-quality cannabis products.
Some important points to keep
in mind are:
- A processing license (standard or micro) is
still required in order to package and label these products for sale to
consumers, once they are legalized. - No matter what your product is, if it contains
cannabis or a cannabis derivative (CBD or THC), you need a license! - Processing of edible cannabis products at a site
where conventional food products are also being manufactured for sale can only
be done if the edible cannabis products are being produced within a separate
building on the licensed site. If a separate building is not possible, a
separate site for processing of cannabis edibles will be required.
How we can help you
Cannabis License Experts
offers end-to-beyond license solutions for cannabis businesses to meet federal
or provincial regulations. Contact
us today to learn more about cannabis
research licenses. Our dedicated team can license and legalize your
cannabis business and provide you with an Edibles
Safety Plan to help get you started.
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