How Blockchain is Revolutionizing the Marijuana Industry

LONDON, May 31, 2018 /PRNewswire/ --

It's no secret - marijuana is big business. With wide-spread legalization expectedly approaching in Canada, and other parts of the world likely to follow, companies are racing to claim their slice of what could be a $63-billion annual global market .

Valuations in most every sector of the industry have exploded. Unfortunately, there's just one ugly problem investors are ignoring. In an industry where a popular cannabis strain could be worth millions or even billions of dollars, growers are struggling to protect their valuable intellectual property. Mentioned in today's commentary includes: 22nd Century Group, Inc. (NYSE: XXII), Intec Pharma Ltd (NASDAQ: NTEC), The Supreme Cannabis Company, Inc. (OTC: SPRWF), MedReleaf Corp (OTC: MEDFF), Aphria Inc (OTC: APHQF).

Fortunately, Vancouver based BLOCKStrain Technology Corp is working on a definitive technology solution. They've introduced the world's first fully integrated and secure Blockchain platform to register and track cannabis IP from genome to sale.

Here are five reasons to pay attention to BLOCKStrain (DNAX trading on the TSX Venture)

1. The Wave to Legalize Marijuana For Widespread Use 
2. Huge Intellectual Property Concerns 
3. Blockchain Technology for Pot 
4. The Search Engine for Cannabis  
5. Major Industry Partners 

The Birth Of A $63-Billion Industry  

This is the start of a global marijuana revolution. By mid-summer, Prime Minister Trudeau is expected to sign legislation legalizing the production and sale of cannabis across Canada.

Medicinal marijuana is already legal in Canada and in 20 U.S. states, and nine additional states - including Colorado, Nevada and California - have legalized it for recreational purposes. Global spending on legal cannabis is expected to spike to $63 billion by 2024. Deloitte predicts the Canadian market alone might be worth $22.6 billion.

This isn't just a North American story either. Germany is poised to be the leader of the European cannabis market, and Italy is expected to be second with $1.2 billion in sales by 2027. In South America, countries like Uruguay have already gone fully legal.

Early stage pot investors have earned stunning returns in the sector. Medical innovators like OWC Pharmaceuticals have shot up as much as 5,324 percent. Growers like Canopy Growth have popped 1,291 percent. But there's a huge problem in the industry that nobody is talking about. And, it's a problem BLOCKStrain (DNAX trading on the TSX Venture) is leading the charge to solve.

A Major Intellectual Property Dilemma 

Up until now, it has been impossible for breeders to secure the rights to their strains. There are some 1,420 individual strains of cannabis grown world-wide. That's a big problem when cannabis plant breeds can vary by yield, fiber and cannabinoid content, flavor and aroma - not to mention dozens of other factors.

Proof of ownership for a specific strain of cannabis is paramount in a multibillion dollar industry. Before now, there was simply no way to do it.

That's not just bad for business. It's also incredibly dangerous for the consumer. With legalization looming, the status quo needs to change.

Regulators in Canada have stated their intention to "establish an efficient, accountable and transparent system for regulatory oversight of the supply chain." This requires the collection and management of a tremendous amount of data.

The industry will need to start tracking factors like pesticide use, quality control, as well as possession limits and serving sizes in order to validate and verify products.

How The Blockchain Will Protect Pot Growers 

BLOCKStrain Technology Corp (DNAX trading on the TSX Venture) is introducing the first blockchain based platform that registers and tracks cannabis IP from genome to sale.

The technology was invented by co-founder Tommy Stephenson. He has been developing enterprise software for Fortune 500 companies for nearly 20 years and previously served as the CTO of California based Ghost Group, Inc. - the largest cannabis software company in the world, with its flagship product Weedmaps.com.

BLOCKStrain will keep an immutable, cryptographically secure record of the entire logistical chain - establishing a single source of truth for cannabis strains and their ownership.

How it works is simple. User groups - including cannabis breeders and growers of all sizes - register by creating an account with BLOCKStrain, which starts the process. They submit seeds, flower and post-extraction product for testing to a registered and approved testing facility, which then submits test results to BLOCKStrain. After verification by the network - a Registration Affidavit is auto-generated and given a unique "BLOCKStrain Address" along with a traceable QR Code. This QR code can be integrated into product packaging.

Producers, patients, consumers and regulators will be able to not only verify the product's quality and authenticity. Growers and breeders will gain the ability to protect their IP. Governments will be able to effortlessly manage regulation, and monitor compliance in real time.

Consumers will finally know what they're really buying. And BLOCKStrain will be central to every single transaction.

The Search Engine Of Cannabis 

According to The Economist, data is now the most valuable commodity on Earth. It's more valuable than oil or gold, and a lot more critical for most businesses.

Google, Facebook and Twitter owe their multi-billion-dollar valuations to it. BLOCKStrain (DNAX trading on the TSX Venture) will eventually have billions of data points on every step of the cannabis logistics chain - from breeders to growers, distributors and consumers.

They'll be the biggest "Big Data" player in the marijuana industry. And, that means huge potential monetization opportunities. The company intends to collect fees on everything from strain registration and certification, to analytics and custom software development on a SaaS model.

Bottom line: by offering a secure API network they've made it easy for testing providers, grow facilities, app and software developers, research groups and major supply chain platforms to build cannabis-centric applications.

Their technology will be at the center of innovation for a potential $63-billion industry. As we speak, BLOCKStrain is already building out their ecosystem.

A Major Lead Client And Investor 

On March 19th, 2018 - WeedMD Inc. announced a strategic investment of $500,000 into BLOCKStrain Technology Corp (DNAX trading on the TSX Venture).

WeedMD is a licensed producer under the Canadian government's Access to Cannabis for Medical Purposes Regulations (ACMPR). It has a 26,000-sq.-ft. indoor facility in Ontario and a second facility under development, with another 610,000-sq.-ft. of capacity.

In addition to its own production, the company has entered into supply agreements and other strategic relationships to expand its capacity. With this deal, WeedMD has become Canada's first licensed producer for medical marijuana to integrate blockchain technology into its ecosystem.

"By utilizing BLOCKStrain, WeedMDcan now expand its library of world-class genetics while building customers' trust," said CEO Robert Galarza.

For BLOCKStrain, the addition of a world-class licensed producer serves as a valuable proof-of-concept for its platform, as well as a source of early funding.

What's Coming Next  

It could be only a matter of weeks before full legalization comes to Canada. And as this catalyst creeps closer, investors should keep their eyes on BLOCKStrain.

BLOCKStrain is the first company to use blockchain technology to tackle the problem of testing and verifying large quantities of cannabis for mass consumption. It has the potential to save producers and distributors a fortune in regulatory compliance costs by simplifying the whole process, all while protecting their valuable intellectual property from infringement.

BLOCKStrain (DNAX trading on the TSX Venture) has the potential to become the backbone of the world's cannabis IT infrastructure - tracking billions of data points in real time. In an era where data is more profitable than oil, that's an incredible business proposition.

 Other companies looking to harness technology to transform their industries:

22nd Century Group, Inc. (NYSE:XXII): A biotechnology company that that develops, markets and licenses genetically modified cannabis, marijuana and hemp. As the green rush picks up pace, there will undoubtedly be growth in this market and large gains for those who find themselves at the front.

Intec Pharma Ltd (NASDAQ:NTEC): Intec is an Israeli based pharmaceutical company that earlier this year announced an early-stage study testing its painkiller made of natural CBD and THC extracts. This kind of marijuana based painkiller will become increasingly popular as full scale legalization takes place.

The Supreme Cannabis Company, Inc. (OTC:SPRWF): Supreme Cannabis is engaged in production and sale of medical marijuana. The Company is focused on the wholesale sector of the medical cannabis market in Canada and operates an approximately 342,000 square foot greenhouse facility located in Kincardine, Ontario.

MedReleaf Corp (OTC:MEDFF): As a licensed producer of cannabis-based pharmaceutical products, MedReleaf Corp has a head start on the coming boom in Canada. Early July has seen a bounce in the stock price, and investors may look to ride it upward from here.

Aphria Inc (OTCQB:APHQF): Aphria Inc is engaged in the production and selling of medicinal marijuana, and while the stock has trended downward since April, the constant profits here suggest there is a lot of upside.

By. Charles Kennedy

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