Ananda Developments Plc Corporate Update
06 Febbraio 2023 - 10:21AM
UK Regulatory
TIDMANA
6 February 2023
ANANDA DEVELOPMENTS PLC
("Ananda" or the "Company")
Shareholder Update
HIGHLIGHTS
* Test results from 2022 harvested cultivars demonstrate successful growth of
diverse strains
* Pre-qualification letters sent to prospective tenderers for manufacturing
facility construction
* Company believes that genetic breeding programme has commercial potential
Ananda's ambition is to be a leading UK grower and provider of consistent,
high-quality medical cannabis for the UK, and later international, markets.
Ananda's wholly owned subsidiary, DJT Plants Limited ("DJT"), holds a licence
from the Home Office to cultivate >0.2% THC medical cannabis for research at
its site in Lincolnshire. Its current operations are focused on strain
stabilisation, field trials and planning for its commercial medical cannabis
processing facility. These initiatives are in preparation for its intended
applications to the Home Office to grow medical cannabis for commercial
purposes and to the MHRA (Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency)
for the required GMP (Good Manufacturing Practice) certification.
The Directors provide the following update on the Company's activities.
Testing of 2022 harvested cultivars
In late 2022, five of the cultivars grown in DJT's field trials were sent for
detailed testing. The results confirm that DJT has successfully grown high THC,
balanced THC/CBD, and high CBD cultivars. Detailed analysis of average
cannabinoid profiles across a number of plants was conducted, as well as
specific analysis of individual plants selected for their superior agronomic
qualities. This showed variance between different plants of the same
cultivars, which is to be expected and provides support for the Company's
decision to undertake the genetic stabilisation programme. It was interesting
to note the tradeoff between flower mass yield and cannabinoid yield. The
terpene profiles indicate a predominance of myrcene, beta caryophyllene,
limonene and alpha pinene. These are the key terpenes in medical cannabis
cultivars and so results were as expected.
Next steps are to choose a selection of the tested cultivars for the 2023 field
season which will focus on cultivation to GACP (Good Agricultural Collection
Practice) standards as part of the progression to commercial growing. Harvested
flower is an ingredient for a cannabis medicine and so must be cultivated and
harvested as such.
DJT requires an amendment to its Home Office Licence and MHRA licensing to
proceed to commercial cultivation and intends to make relevant applications to
those authorities at the appropriate time.
GMP1 facility
Subject to receipt of the necessary approvals, grown and harvested flower will
be moved to a pharmaceutical grade processing and manufacturing facility on
site. It has been decided to construct the facility under a Design & Build
contract. Pre-qualification letters have been sent to 6 shortlisted companies
for them to present their pharmaceutical construction credentials.
Strain Stabilisation
The Company now believes it has developed a set of protocols to successfully
self-pollinate cannabis and produce enough viable seeds to grow the next
generation of plants, each generation of which will be more genetically
homogenous than the previous one. The Directors consider this to be a
significant achievement with the commercial potential to claim IP (intellectual
property) and sell stable genetics in seed form. The genetic breeding programme
will continue, with the objective of achieving plants with over 98% genetic
similarity by the sixth generation.
The only other known way to achieve this level of genetic stability is to clone
plants, which has its own challenges including:
1. Mother plants' health reduces over time
2. There are genetic changes when repeated cloning is conducted over an
extended period
3. There is a cost of energy, space, and personnel to maintain mothers and
conduct cloning
The advantages of seeds are that they can be easily and inexpensively stored
and require no manipulation or attendant activities whilst not being used. They
also do not suffer from genetic drift, and so are highly suitable as starting
material to grow medical cannabis flower as an active pharmaceutical
ingredient.
Ananda's CEO, Melissa Sturgess commented: "We proceed with confidence. I am
delighted we have assembled a best-in-class team which is committed to our
objectives. In the cannabis industry we often see people move quickly between
jobs and I have wanted to avoid this. All businesses need organisational
stability to succeed, so our team remains our key asset. More widely we
maintain a close watch on medical cannabis demand and the progress of research
into cannabis as a useful medicine. We believe that everything is heading in
the right direction and that we are perfectly positioned. Our plan is 'prove
and scale' thereby reducing risk, reducing the chance of misallocated capital
and getting the best returns for shareholders."
-Ends-
The Directors of the Company accept responsibility for the contents of this
announcement.
ANANDA DEVELOPMENTS PLC +44 (0)7463 686 497
ir@anandadevelopments.com
Chief Executive Officer
Melissa Sturgess
Investor Relations
Jeremy Sturgess-Smith
PETERHOUSE CAPITAL LIMTED +44 (0)20 7469 0930
Corporate Finance
Mark Anwyl
Corporate Broking
Lucy Williams
Duncan Vasey
About Ananda Developments
Ananda is an AQSE-listed medical cannabis company creating UK-based operations
to grow and provide carbon zero, consistent, medical cannabis for the UK and
international markets.
For more information, please visit: https://anandadevelopments.com.
Market Abuse Regulation (MAR) Disclosure
The information contained within this announcement is deemed by the Company to
constitute inside information. Upon the publication of this announcement via a
Regulatory Information Service, this inside information is now considered to be
in the public domain.
END
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