As cannabis farmers compete among themselves to see who grows the largest plantation, a cohort of medical scientists are doing double duty to create synthetic CBD – a form that is not extracted from the cannabis plant, but lab-cooked.
Because patients under cannabis prescriptions only need the THC and CBD which scientists can synthesize even without the plant, cultivators may soon be robbed of a major source of income.
And the changes may occur soon because the medical cannabis pharmaceutical industry sees synthetic cannabinoids as a way to reduce the expensive plantation costs and a fast way to pass the FDA approval procedures.
So any first firm becomes the first to come up with a branded CBD compound will gain an advantage in the market, in such a competitive sector
What is synthetic CBD?
It is a purified form of CBD, which is a naturally occurring compound with a less complicated molecular structure that makes it easy to synthesize in a pharmaceutical lab through organic chemistry. It is not grown, biotechnologists produce it in labs.
Just like other forms of medicines that evolved from primitive types to tablets, soon medical marijuana patients won’t need to smoke to gain THC or CBD, instead, they’ll be taking synthetic forms presented as pills.
It happens, the world has evolved from chewing willow tree barks to taking aspirin pills. Penicillin also occurs naturally in mold, but the natural form is no longer on demand since scientists began synthesizing it as of World War II.
So it won’t be shocking if pharmacists, chemists, and chemical experts came together to mass produce synthetic CBD as a solution for a set of diseases.
Why the Pharmaceutical Industry May Shift to Synthetic CBD
The reduced cost of production is the number one factor for pharmaceutical experts. Mass producing CBD by Synthesizing is way cheaper than growing cannabis plants to extract it.
Plus, the sector is betting synthetic forms can easily pass FDA approval process as it won’t be originating from a plant with a questionable legal status.
The marijuana plant has 80 compounds; CBD is just one of them. Unlike THC which it is closely associated with, CBD does not get its users high. However, it has proven to be a helpful remedy for epileptic seizures, one of the main reasons the FDA allowed its medicinal use.
Furthermore, the CBD industry is a booming subsector in the marijuana industry. According to figures by New Frontier Data, sales tripled to $367 million between 2014 and 2017, and the market is expected to hit $1.3 billion come 2022, according to New Frontier Data. With these huge figures, CBD is definitely turning into a favorite spot for most investors.
Wrapping Up
Some Pharma-based companies are already working tirelessly to come up with a patent form of CBD, and if their efforts bear fruit, we may soon see synthetic CBD take over the medical cannabis market.
Author bio: Electronic payments expert Blair Thomas is the co-founder of high-risk payment processing company eMerchantBroker. He’s just as passionate about helping businesses get a CBD Merchant Account as he is with traveling and spending time with his dog Cooper.
