Applied DNA moves ahead with forensic tracking of cannabis with TheraCann
The companies announced earlier this year, they had entered into an exclusive licensing deal that grants TheraCann’s subsidiary, ETCH BioTrace, the use of Applied DNA’s CertainT supply chain integrity platform technology within the global legal cannabis and hemp markets.
CertainT platform
Under the terms of the agreement, a $5m up-front licensing fee is payable to Applied DNA over a four-month period beginning on or before April 15, 2019, and completed by August 15, 2019. Agreement.
“The agreement with TheraCann represents further validation of the commercialization of our CertainT technology platform across industries where compliance, control and tracking are essential,” said James Hayward, CEO, Applied DNA.
“Powered by our CertainT platform, TheraCann’s ETCH biotrace system can provide the global legal cannabis and hemp industries the ability to ensure authentication and origin verification for products through the supply chain.”
Pursuant to the agreement, Aplied DNA will be the exclusive supplier of molecular tags (provided as SigNature), molecular tag application systems and molecular tag authentication systems for TheraCann’s ETCH biotrace seed-to-sale-tracking system.
Pre-commercial pilots
“The impact on our balance sheet is beneficial and will allow us to respond to requests for pre-commercial pilots that we have already received," added Hayward.
“We believe the growing demand for legalized cannabis is driving the creation of the industry’s global supply chains and is accelerating the need for solutions to secure and validate them from inception through to consumption, destruction and/or recall.
Jason Warnock, CEO of TheraCann International said it had already received multiple letters of intent from numerous countries wanting to protect their licensed cannabis supply chain, in response to its shared ETCH biotrace platform, and it is anticipating commercial trials for international export opportunities.
Additional information with respect to the TheraCann Agreement was filed via Form 8-K with the Securities and Exchange Commission on April 3, 2019.