A Vancouver company that develops and brings to market therapeutic pharmaceuticals and nutraceuticals intends to buy another British Columbia company that processes, packages and distributes nutritional organic hemp products.

Pivot Pharmaceuticals Inc. executed a letter of intent to acquire Absorbent Concepts Inc., which prepares and distributes hulled seeds, pressed seed oil and protein powder made from hemp. Absorbent Concepts predicted 2017 revenues of $2 million by the month’s end, a 300 percent increase over a comparable period last year. The purchase price was not disclosed.

“We consider this acquisition to be a strategic initiative to enable market share dominance in the hemp segment of the cannabis industry,” said Pivot CEO Patrick Frankham

in a press release annoucing the acquisition. “The timing of this acquisition is in anticipation of the forthcoming legislative changes in Canada regarding the legal status of cannabidiol (CBD). Accordingly, the recent announcement by the World Anti-Doping Agency that CBD will be removed from its list of banned substances effective Jan. 1, 2018, further solidifies Pivot’s strategy of developing fast-to-market cannabinoid-based products.”

Cannabinoids are a component of marijuana that counter the pyschoactive effects of pot that make users feel high.

ACI intends to submit an application to Health Canada for an authorized dealer’s license, which will allow it to produce and supply CBD oil as well as conduct cannabinoid research and development. Pivot Pharmaceuticals will use CBD produced at ACI’s facility to formulate nutraceutical and pharmaceutical products for therapeutic use. The market for CBDs in the form of functional foods, oils, orals and topicals is expected to show substantial growth, reaching $2.1 billion in consumer sales by 2020, with hemp-based sources accounting for $450 million of sales, according to the release.


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