RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Access to cannabidiol – a medical marijuana derivative – should become easier for Brazilian consumers from July, with the entrance of a new brand in pharmacies.
Until April, only Prati Donaduzzi pharmaceutical company had been authorized by the Brazilian Health Regulatory Agency (ANVISA) to produce and market cannabidiol within the country, but the company Nunature, founded by American and Brazilian entrepreneurs with an eye on the country’s growing market, was also granted authorization.
Since December 2019, ANVISA has authorized companies to apply for authorization to produce and market the marijuana derivative in Brazil. With the only authorization granted, Prati Donaduzzi controlled the market. The next step, expected by these companies, is to be authorized to plant cannabis in Brazil. A bill to permit planting has received a favorable opinion in the Chamber of Deputies.
A 3,000 mg bottle of isolated cannabidiol costs about R$2,300. With the entry of a new player, the trend is for prices to drop.
“The process was rigorous and extensive as it should be and we deserved it, because it required much patience and strength. We did it because we know how important Brazil is. And Brazil is now a kind of spearhead of the cannabis market. Brazil was a little late to this “party”, but now that you are here, we are happy to be the ones to answer the bell for you because our full-spectrum cannabidiol is unique in the market,” Christopher Cowart, Nunature’s vice president of Sales & Marketing, told EXAME in an interview.
ANVISA’s authorization to Nunature includes two products, both with full spectrum (which maintains other of the plant’s natural properties), considered of superior quality to Prati Donaduzzi’s isolated cannabidiol. They are the 17 mg/ml and 34 mg/ml cannabidiol.
Nunature expects its 1,000 mg bottle to cost R$840.00 and the 500 mg bottle to cost R$520. The company will have a distribution center in Baixada Fluminense, part of the metropolitan area of Rio de Janeiro, and has contracts with the Raia Drogasil chain. In the future, it intends to reach 60,000 pharmacies.
“We are well advanced with drugstore chains and national distributors. We want to use the standard pharmaceutical distribution channel. Our product is a “black line” product, so it merits this attention. Today we have a contract with Raia Drogasil, but we are in dialogue with all of them. Demand from the pharmaceutical market has been very high,” explains Bruno Santanna, Nunature’s vice-president of Logistics in Brazil.
Nunature is a company that was designed and built for the Brazilian opportunity that arose with ANVISA’s authorization in late 2019, explains Christopher. The company has a hemp farm (a variety of cannabis containing no psychoactive compounds) in the state of Colorado from which it extracts cannabidiol.
To secure ANVISA’s approval, all technical facilities in the Colorado state laboratory had to conform to high compliance standards and demonstrate high quality. In addition, the product is delivered fully ready to Brazil.
Before the December 2019 authorization, the only way to consume cannabidiol in Brazil was through individual imports, which have been allowed since 2015 and have grown as another market apart from the entry of pharmaceuticals with cannabidiol in pharmacies. In 2020, these imports were simplified and several e-commerces, which operate on a binational basis, have emerged.
Since it is considered a controlled product, cannabidiol bought in pharmacies requires a prescription. Imported cannabidiol, on the other hand, requires a doctor’s prescription and an ANVISA authorization which can be obtained online.
Christopher Cowart explains that the company will also have an educational proposal, since the subject of medical cannabis is still a taboo.
“We will run a full educational process, just like we did in the United States. Everyone seems to know now what CBD is, but they are not sure how it works. So we want to help raise awareness about what the kabinoid (cannabis-derived) system is. What they do and what they don’t do and help dispel some misinformation that exists,” he explains.
In addition to Brazil, which is now entering this market, cannabidiol is legalized in over 40 countries. Research has shown that it is effective in treatments for chronic pain, muscle spasms, convulsions, and anxiety.
The global medical cannabis market is estimated to be worth US$62.7 billion by 2024, which is equivalent to 60% of the projected legal market, which includes recreational use, according to Prohibition Partners.
In Brazil, projections from New Frontier Data suggest that the medicinal market has the potential to generate R$4.7 billion in revenue.
In addition to Prati Donaduzzi and Nunature, which have secured ANVISA’s authorization, other brands, such as the pharmaceutical companies Belcher, Verdemed, and Nunesfarma, are in line for authorization to operate on the shelves of Brazilian pharmacies.