Tweed Marijuana Inc., a licensed supplier of medical marijuana, is teaming up with researchers at the University of Ottawa (U of O) and Ryerson University to develop more reliable medical data about cannabis.
In 2013, Tweed took over the former Hershey chocolate factory in Smiths Falls, where they now grow 25 unique strains of medical marijuana, Tweed’s executive vice-president Mark Zekulin said.
The company then distributes the product directly to patients and doctors.
Researchers involved in the partnership will explore the effects that various strains of medical marijuana have on different ailments, as well as how different growing conditions change the plant, Zekulin said.
The company is working with U of O researchers John Arnason, Cory Harris, and Doug Johnson, as well as Ryerson University professor Lesley Campbell, according to Arnason, who is a U of O biology professor specializing in phytochemistry and plant biodiversity.
A small group of U of O students are also participating in the initiative, Zekulin said.
The U of O team’s research will contribute to a few different areas of study, including the medical field, agriculture, textile and cloth industries, and chemical engineering, Arnason said.
According to Arnason, Johnson will be looking into removing THC from the cannabis plant, while Harris, the study’s lead researcher, is exploring how cannabis can help with anxiety and Type 2 diabetes, Arnason said.
Zekulin said each of the company’s unique strains of marijuana has different healing powers.
According to Tweed’s website, their product is used to relieve “chronic pain, seizures, muscle spasms, nausea and loss of appetite.”
“Some strains, for example, can be used to relieve cancer patients’ pain, or to help them eat. Other strains can help with arthritis or muscle pain,” Zekulin said.
He said Tweed hopes the research partnership will help them discover more benefits of medical marijuana, something that hasn’t always been possible in the past.
“It’s a very new sector we’re in of course,” Zekulin said.
“This sort of stable regulatory environment . . . where you can devote people, space, and money towards research is relatively new.”
Arnason said he’s impressed with the possibility of a profitable business in the area of plant science.
Related articles:
High hopes for the future: The changing landscape of marijuana laws in Canada
