New Zealand medical cannabis company Helius Therapeutics has been awarded Good Agricultural and Collection Practice (GACP) certification for its facility in East Tamaki, Auckland.
GACP guidelines were developed by the World Health Organization (WHO) nearly twenty years ago as part of an effort to improve the quality of medicinal plants/herbal substances used commercially.
Chief executive of Helius Therapeutics Carmen Doran says the new certification will open more doors for the company in terms of exports.
“Achieving GACP is another key milestone for the Helius team in our journey to full site certification,” said Ms. Doran. “GACP is a well-recognized requirement for medicinal cannabis in many countries.”
Helius also hinted to further announcements concerning its operations after various audits in October.
It’s been quite a positive year for the company. The GACP certification closely follows Helius being the first company to gain NZ Government approval for medicinal cannabis products derived from locally grown plants, which occurred in September.
Helius’s Auckland operations are comprised of an 8,800sqm facility enabling indoor controlled cultivation, analytics, research, manufacturing, logistics, management and bonded distribution under the one roof. The company has been approved to grow more than forty cannabis cultivars, including high-CBD, high-THC, balanced and rare genetics strains.
“Helius is defining the standard for trusted accessible cannabis-based medicines,” stated Ms. Doran. “In additional (sic) to delivering on people’s quality of life at home, Helius is proud to be a key player in New Zealand’s newest and most exciting industry delivering to the world.”
Ms. Doran holds a Masters Degree in Biomedical Engineering from the University of Canterbury. She joined Helius Therapeutics after 10 years with Novartis Pharmaceuticals, then a 6-year stint as General Manager of Siegfried Malta; another pharmaceutical company. Ms. Doran jumped on board with Helius Therapeutics as its COO in 2020, and was appointed CEO in 2021.
Ms. Doran is looking forward another successful year ahead, both on the local and overseas fronts.
“Helius is changing it up a gear, with 2023 seeing more products and more markets being served from our site in New Zealand and that’s incredibly exciting.”
