Costa Rica grants the first medical cannabis production license

The first license for the cultivation of medical cannabis in Costa Rica was granted this week by the Minister of Agriculture, Víctor Carvajal, to Azul Wellness, which has a partnership with the North American Merida Capital Holdings and is owned by the Costa Rican Union of Chambers and Associations of Private Business Sector. In addition to this authorization for the cultivation of cannabis for medicinal purposes, eight authorizations have already been issued for the exercise of industrial hemp cultivation in Costa Rica and another company is awaiting authorization for the cultivation of medicinal cannabis.

The cultivation of cannabis for medicinal purposes will advance in Costa Rica, with the first license for the cultivation of cannabis for medicinal purposes to be granted, just over a year ago after the approval of a law that allowed this activity. The Minister of Agriculture, Víctor Carvajal, signed the resolution which authorizes the first medical cannabis project, which will be the responsibility of the company Azul Wellness SA, a company with Costa Rican capital and owned by members of the Costa Rican Union of Chambers and Associations of the Private Business Sector.

Caption of the National Registry of Costa Rica regarding the company Azul Wellness, published by Journalist Amelia Rueda

According to Amelia Rueda, a Costa Rican journalist, Azul Wellness belongs to the family of José Álvaro Jenkins, who is the chairman of the board of directors of the Costa Rican Union of Chambers and Associations of the Private Business Sector. Jenkins, explained to the journalist that Azul Wellness SA was created precisely to enter the medical cannabis market. According to information published by the journalist, the company was incorporated as a public limited company on August 29, 2022, according to the National Register.

The company will develop the cultivation project in an area of ​​800 square meters of greenhouse in the city of Philadelphia, province of Guanacaste (west), detailed the Ministry of Agriculture. On the part of the company Azul Wellness, Jenkins mentioned that it has an agreement with the American company Merida Capital Holdings, a private investment fund with operations mainly in the medical cannabis market and which may, in the future, invest in a laboratory for the transformation of the plant. The company's plan will be to export the plant to other markets, before selling it in Costa Rica, Jenkins said. Amelia Wheel.

To date, the Ministry of Agriculture has issued nine licenses. In addition to the authorization for the cultivation of cannabis for medicinal purposes, eight authorizations have already been issued for the exercise of industrial hemp cultivation. According to the Ministry of Agriculture, an application for a second medical cannabis cultivation by another company, as well as another for the cultivation and processing of hemp, is currently in the licensing process.

Partnership with Merida Capital Holdings

Azul Wellness' partnership with Merida Capital Holdings seems to focus mainly on stages related to transformation and, above all, international business opportunities. This is because the private investment fund focuses on breeding technologies, products and services associated with the evolution of cannabis as an agricultural product, a natural herbal medicine, a constituent of pharmaceutical formulations and a consumer product for adult use.

The portfolio of Merida Capital Holdings fund comprises a portfolio of more than 75 companies in the area, managing more than 317 million dollars through 5 funds and co-investments. It was through the merger between Leafly and Merida Merger Corp, a SPAC (Special Purpose Acquisition Company) of Merida Capital Holdings that Leafly entered the US Nasdaq stock market.

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