Moncton-based Organigram hopes to take its cannabis business global

Organigram, the Moncton-based medical cannabis company, is taking its business international, which could mean more jobs in New Brunswick down the road. 

The company has received a licence from Health Canada to export its products.

Organigram said it plans to send its first shipment to Australia next week.

It also recently signed a contract for an equity stake in a German medical cannabis company.

Ray Gracewood, chief commercial officer for Organigram, told Information Morning Moncton the international market presents a "massive" opportunity to grow the company.

While the value of the cannabis market in Canada is estimated at about $7 billion, the European market could be worth up to $36 billion in the next few years, Gracewood said.

He added that the market in Canada is becoming increasingly competitive as companies like Organigram continue to expand.

"It's a huge world out there," Gracewood said. "A lot of other people have really ramped up with the same speed and expansion goals that we have.

"Which means that at some point, the volume supply will catch up with the anticipated demand, especially in the adult [recreational] market, so we're just looking down the road."

More production equals more jobs 

It's hard to determine at this point exactly how much revenue the company could make from exports, Gracewood said.

In any case, the company wants to be ready for any opportunity that arises, he said.

"We're planting seeds and building relationships and understanding what the dynamics of each of these markets are, so when there comes an opportunity for Organigram to enter that market, we'll be ready," he said.

That could mean more jobs for people in New Brunswick, he said.

"I think for us, it's more volume opportunity, which means more production, which means more people," he said, pointing out that the company has expanded from about 40 employees just two years ago to about 260 now.

The company opened a 100,000-square-foot plant this spring, which increased its yield to 22 million grams of cannabis a year.

Another expansion is scheduled to open later this year, which will further increase production capabilities. 

Organigram signed an agreement with the New Brunswick government last fall to be one of its suppliers of recreational marijuana when the substance becomes legal later this year.