Medicinal Cannabis Industry Australia (MCIA) chair Peter Crock and executive officer Patty Holmes are in Canberra this week for a series of meetings with the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA), the Office of Drug Control (ODC), and various government advisors.
Among those on the schedule are incoming TGA head Professor Tony Lawler and manufacturing quality branch head Jenny Burnett, along with advisors to health minister Mark Butler and Warren Entsch, who chairs the cross-party Parliamentary Friends of Medicinal Cannabis Group (PFMCG).
Key topics on the agenda include how MCIA can strengthen its working relationship with the TGA and ODC on licensing and permit processes for domestic cultivators and manufacturers, compliance with TGO93 GMP supplier criteria, the TGA's revised draft advertising guidelines, and plans to host a PFMCG event later in the year.
Separately, the organisation has kicked off a run of networking events and Australian Trade and Market Access Cooperation (ATMAC) workshops across Sydney, Brisbane, and Melbourne.
Holmes said a MCIA board member attended each networking event to share their firsthand experience of the sector with delegates.
At the Sydney event, Bod Science CEO Jo Patterson spoke about the role of clinical trials in the product registration pathway and Bod's journey through a schedule 3 CBD product registration.
In Brisbane, MedReleaf Australia CEO Russell Harding highlighted the central role pharmacists play in connecting patients with the medicinal cannabis pathway.
At the Melbourne session, Cann Group CEO Peter Koetsier spoke to the value of collaboration in the pre-competitive pharmaceutical space and what working collectively can achieve.
The ATMAC project is designed to help the industry build a globally competitive supply chain. Its first phase focuses on identifying key markets beyond Australia, pinpointing priority areas for investigation, and defining the values that underpin the Australian medicinal cannabis industry and its products.
Holmes said the three workshops held so far have drawn cultivators, manufacturers, product sponsors, allied service providers including energy and legal firms, researchers, and patient advocacy groups.
She added: "It was great to catch up with colleagues, but also refreshing to see new faces in the industry."
The next events are scheduled for Adelaide on September 19 and Perth on September 21. To register, click here.
