Astrasana Holding AG is an internationally active company focusing on the cultivation, processing and distribution of cannabis products. In addition to its headquarters in Switzerland, Astrasana also has subsidiaries in the Czech Republic, Germany and Japan.
The latest strategic partnership with the medical technology and pharmaceutical specialist Solumedics AG opens up new market perspectives with regard to the use of medical cannabis products in Switzerland and Europe. For the first time, the import of medical cannabis will be possible.
The Swiss legislation underwent an update on August 01, 2022. According to this, medical cannabis is available after a doctor’s prescription and does not require any further special authorisation from the Federal Office of Public Health. The import and export of corresponding products was also approved and standardised under the supervision of Swissmedic.
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The two partners are pioneers in ensuring the availability of high-quality medical cannabis as an import in Swiss pharmacies, hospitals and care facilities. In pharmacies, the topic of medical cannabis is an area that requires intensive consultation.
Astrasana offers well-founded informative material in this specialist area, support in dealing with prescriptions, active ingredients and products, as well as the ordering process. The company can rely on the expertise of a medical doctor and a pharmacist.
Until now, however, the holding company and its subsidiaries lacked the necessary authorisation to distribute the products regulated by the authorities. This is where Solumedics stepped in. The long-standing pharmaceutical company with a focus on drugs and medical products, applied for the necessary license.
While looking for partners in the supply chain of high-quality raw materials and processed cannabis products, they quickly came across Astrasana.
According to Yves Antoniazzi, CEO of Astrasana Holding, these are the conditions for a match made in heaven: “We are talking about a win-win situation. The liberalisation of the cannabis market creates conditions for committed companies that have done the necessary groundwork.
“Now two companies are coming together that have joint control over all steps from cultivation of the plants to patient care. From our side, in addition to our own customer network, we are primarily contributing extensive know-how in order to offer high-quality raw materials from sustainable production.
“Solumedics, in turn, supports us with the narcotics license to enable the import of medical cannabis for the first time.”
Solumedics AG is also delighted with the collaboration. Reno Löffler, the CEO, knows about the importance of quality and reliability especially in the pharmaceutical business. Cannabis products cannot be obtained from just any grower – only a constant concentration of active ingredients and plant quality allows reproducible processing procedures.
He explained that these play a central role in the approval of medical products: “Pharmacists and doctors must be able to rely on the fact that there are no fluctuations in the efficacy and tolerability of the medicines.
“That’s why we were looking for a partner who imports GMP-certified pharmaceutical raw materials. Together with Astrasana, we can now serve this market.”
