With the advent of Canadian legalization of cannabis, the plant and its products have become an important emerging Canadian biotechnology subsector, with substantial economic impacts. The sector involves large companies and small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) focused on cannabis production, harvesting, curing, analyzing, transporting, processing, formulating, and marketing – all of which face scientific and technical challenges across the manufacturing cycle.
Supported by grants totaling $4.7 million from a variety of federal, provincial, and private funders, the five-year Applied Science for the Canadian Cannabis Industry (ASCCI) program is a collection of research projects studying the chemistry, genomics, and uses of cannabis and cannabis products.
The program aims to apply the latest technology to address the most pressing research and development challenges of this new industry, and to help establish Western Canada as a global leader in applied cannabis science.
Funding also provides Langara students the opportunity to use advanced research equipment, build their expertise, and form valuable working relationships with established leaders in the cannabis industry.
