CBD Biomanufacturing to Transform Europe's Cannabis Farming

Food and Beverages Tech Review | Tuesday, September 20, 2022

Europe’s cannabis industry is witnessing massive changes due to the integration of biomanufacturing methods and many pharma companies and startups favouring this technique and investing greatly in it.

FREMONT, CA: Cannabidiol, also known as CBD, is the non-psychoactive cannabinoid obtained from the cannabis plant. For uses like pain or anxiety reduction, cognition, acne treatment, or sleep aid, CBD can be found in goods ranging from edible gummy bears to skin oil. More than one million patients with difficult-to-treat epilepsies are presently using the FDA-approved prescription drug Epidiolex, which contains CBD. Scientific articles are proliferating, researching a wide range of potential treatments for conditions including diabetes and arthritis, and finally presenting clinical evidence for some of the benefits that have been long suspected.

Investment in cannabis startups is augmented every year by the amount raised and an increase in the number of deals. Therefore, the CBD industry is entering its golden era, which might become as innovative as aspirin. However, these ingredients have not become widespread compared to the drastic growth observed in the sector. This is because it is slow and expensive to produce and extract the required elements from cannabis plants. Additionally, FDA studies have shown that it is hard to control its dosage.

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With the production of insulin, the usage of biomanufacturing to generate high-value key ingredients came into being. This has now spread to all kinds of compounds, from heme of impossible foods to perfect day’s milk proteins or Geltor’s collagen. Many companies use synthetic biology tools to produce cannabinoids like CBD and CBG (cannabigerol) through precision fermentation. This technique offers high-quality products without the use of pesticides and other chemicals while saving time, money, and resources.

Although the technology and regulations are favourable, they are not processed. The reason is that the production needs specific biomanufacturing facilities, and these infrastructures are not evenly distributed across the world.

Europe’s Possibilities to Lead in CBD Biomanufacturing

Europe has been a pioneer in the food, chemical, and pharmaceutical industries. It is now a global leader in industrial biology and a manufacturing base for global biotech companies.

With initiatives like the Biobased Industries Consortium (BIC), a partnership between the EU and industry, which contributed over 3.7 billion euros and additional investments by the EU is seeking to develop biomanufacturing. Furthermore, the European Court of Justice recently stated that CBD is not a narcotic under European law, and it is regarded as a novel food from 2019 by the European Commission. Therefore, Europe seeks an accurate space to own bio-manufactured CBD for the global supply chain. A huge influx of investors is seen, ranging from early-stage funds to larger VCs, and acquisitions have also started to take place. Moreover, many large pharma organisations are eager to use their strong balance sheets to jump on the bandwagon once successful investors emerge.

Currently, the industry is founded on conventional cannabis farming, and it can only be estimated whether the biomanufacturing method would coexist with or replace it. Businesses believe this is an application where biomanufacturing can excel, just like insulin and the new food-grade precision fermentation industry. In light of the growing concerns about the use of natural resources like land, water, and energy, biomanufacturing methods will be of greater utilisation.

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