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CBD’s legal status in Canada is complicated. Hemp-derived CBD, the more cost-effective means of obtaining the compound, can only be extracted by licensed cannabis producers, not hemp farmers, and sold only in oil-form.

Linton believes regulatory change regarding hemp-derived CBD, specifically regarding the kinds of products that can contain the compound, will come quickly in Canada.

“When that happens, we have multiple agreements and geographic areas locked-up, and processing methods ready to go,” Linton said.

At least officially, there are no other licensed producers who own hemp farms in Canada. That however, doesn’t necessarily mean Canopy is the only cannabis company with an eye on hemp-derived CBD.

Malik’s Biome Grow recently announced a major supply contract with a hemp-CBD company called CBD Acres, which involves the purchase of 20,000 kilograms of hemp-derived CBD concentrate.

Last September, Aurora Cannabis announced it had acquired Europe’s largest producer and processor of organic hemp, a company called AgroPro, which owns up to 4,000 acres of hemp farms across Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia and Poland. Aurora’s aim is to be involved in the extraction of CBD from hemp, to be used as an ingredient in wellness products, and sold to the European market.

Then there are CBD-only producers, who don’t have a license to grow cannabis, but claim to have the intellectual property and know-how to develop CBD products. Licensed producer WeedMD recently partnered up with Phivida Holdings, a company that calls itself a “premier provider of hemp-based CBD-infused food and beverages” and is listed on the CSE. The joint venture — CanBev — is currently constructing a cannabis-infused beverage production facility in the lead up to Oct. 2019, when cannabis ingestibles are set to become legal.