The KD Pharma Group is a global contract development manufacturing organization (CDMO) with a strong focus on lipid-based molecules, including omega 3 fatty acids. KD Pharma Group has now expanded its lipid portfolio to include algae derived lipids, cannabinoids, and the synthesis of small molecules.
“We have been an expert on Omega-3 fatty acids for many years, but we have made strategic investments to leverage our technology portfolio in synergistic areas like cannabinoids and other lipids,” says Andrea Holmes, PhD, the Chief Scientific Officer of the KD Pharma Group, and head of the KD Phyto business division.
KD Phyto is a subsidiary of the KD Pharma Group, a new basket for the company to put its eggs in, this time focused on the newly emergent cannabinoid market. The firm has acquired assets to extract and process cannabinoids as a promising business unit functioning within an established pharmaceutical and nutraceutical company.
“We looked at where we should invest and focus our efforts and cannabinoids were an interesting space to enter,” Holmes explains. “It’s a natural lipid, extracted from natural products, upgraded to an active pharmaceutical ingredient (API), and it’s a newly emerging market. We believe this market is in its infancy and will continue to be driven by the vast amount of scientific research being conducted in this area.”
KD Phyto is establishing itself in the sector by focusing at first on two major cannabinoids that have been approved as pharmaceutical and medicinal ingredients- THC and CBD.
“We are very interested in the amazing medicinal properties of cannabinoids that are backed by science, research, and clinical trials,” Holmes says. “There are already some prescribed medicines based on cannabinoids for which off-label application supported by clinical trials can be recommended confirming their wide range of medicinal properties. This will lead to further clinical trials in these conditions and ultimately new pharmaceuticals. So those cannabinoids will be our entry point to the medical market first in the EU. Followed by the rest of the world where legally permitted.”
Following the Science
While the already established data is undeniable, and the ongoing research is even more promising, the truth is that when you think of cannabis, pharmaceutical applications are not the first thing to come to mind.
“It is a new field, and many people still don’t know much about it. They might have heard the word CBD, and associate cannabis with recreational uses, which is a reputation you have to overcome with a professional image of the industry,” Holmes acknowledges. “First of all, I am dedicated to education. It is a challenge to really educate the public, your clients, customers and sometimes even your colleagues because it is a new field. People don’t know as much about cannabinoids as they do about say, aspirin or Ibuprofen. But aside from that, people quickly assume that if you’re in the cannabis industry there’s an association with smoking weed and getting high. That stigma is still there and still prevailing. It will take time to professionalise the industry with key players in the market like KD Phyto. We’re setting the bar really, really high.”
The key to changing these perceptions is to shine a light on the data, the evidence and the research to combat the stigma.
“Science and clinical studies always win,” Holmes says. “People are looking for alternative solutions to the standard pharmaceutical market. They want botanical solutions and people are interested in all kinds of botanical ingredients that have been shown to have clinical efficacy. The way to professionalise the industry is to put the science first, show the data, and get people convinced with the overwhelming clinical evidence there is for treating pain, cancer, nausea, depression, post-traumatic stress syndrome and anxiety, and so much more.”
Holmes is a passionate advocate for the role science can play in changing people’s minds, arguing that the key is to bring experts with academic and clinical careers to the table to talk about the efficacies of cannabinoids.
“You must be passionate about the topic when you speak about it and represent it professionally,” says Holmes. “The more that happens, and the more we publish and talk about this, the more we professionalise the industry and penetrate that stigmatic aura.”
A New Frontier
Being a relatively new area of research does not just mean there are issues around preconceptions, however. It also means you need to draw on a pool of experts that does not yet exist.
“There are not many people in the world right now I consider experts in this,” Holmes tells us. “You can find some really good people in countries and states where it has been legalised for years. These are people who know how to do extraction and isolation, but where this is a newly emerging industry, especially Germany right now, finding talent related to the cannabis industry is challenging.”
There is no easy way around this challenge. If the expertise does not yet exist, you need to build it.
“We train people that are working for KD Phyto, and I have taken this a step further,” Holmes says. “I am training the global KD Pharma Group community, not just KD Phyto. We are penetrating the global market and KD Pharma Group employees all over the world need to be trained.”
To drive home the point, Holmes tells us that right after speaking with us, she will be holding the world’s first global cannabis training webinar. It is open not just to KD Phyto or KD Pharma Group staff, but also to the company’s clients, its customers, and even friends and family are invited to sign up for the training.
“You cannot assume anyone knows anything,” Holmes insists. “You have to start with the basics. What is cannabis? What is marijuana? What is hemp? A lot of people don’t know these things. It is all of our responsibility to learn about it and provide that educational excellence.”
Building this knowledge base will help KD Phyto become the number one authoritative, active global player in the global cannabis market, with full turnkey solutions, serving its customers with technical expertise from concept ideation to the final product. Holmes acknowledges that KD Phyto does not yet have cultivation capabilities, which requires very specialist knowledge, instead relying on specially selected suppliers. It is also focusing on new markets that have not yet become saturated. But it is an active and informed presence across the rest of the supply chain.
“KD Phyto will innovate through cannabinoid science from ingredients to finished productions,” Holmes says. “We have a team of experts that can guide our customers every step of the way. We offer affordable, safe, high-quality plant-inspired ingredients that help create health solutions.”
