Biopharma MGC Pharmaceuticals (ASX:MXC) has signed UK market leading medicinal cannabis provider LYPHE Group as its distribution partner for the country.
The deal will provide MGC Pharma with direct access to LYPHE Group’s established distribution channels in the growing UK market for medical cannabis products.
“LYPHE has extensive networks and has developed a patient-access and distribution ecosystem which positions the company as the leader in the UK’s rapidly expanding medicinal cannabis network,” MGC Pharma said in a statement.
MGC Pharma has already received its first direct shipment order under the deal for 900 units of its Mercury Pharma medicine, indicating immediate patient demand from the LYPHE sales network.
“The size of this first commercial order from LYPHE is the largest single order for MGC Pharma into the UK to date,” MGC said.
Distribution deal key to MGC tapping UK demand
The company said the distribution deal with LYPHE was a key step in its goal of serving growing patient demand in the UK, which is forecast to be a large market for cannabinoid medicines in the future and valued at €8.8bn ($14.5bn) by 2028.
The UK distribution deal for MGC Pharma allows LYPHE to prescribe and dispense the company’s Mercury Pharma medical cannabis products under LYPHE labels to patients at clinics.
LYPHE currently writes over half of all new prescriptions for medicinal cannabis in the UK, and operates a chain of private clinics for cannabis-based therapies.
Anonymised data on patient-reported outcomes, including efficacy, safety and quality of life, will be provided by LYPHE to MGC Pharma.
Access to 700 UK pharmacies
MGC Pharma has access to 700 UK pharmacies through LYPHE’s recent business collaboration with Eaststone Limited, one of the UK’s leading suppliers of unlicensed medicines.
Based in Northwest England, Eaststone has strong connections to a network of independent pharmacies across the UK, making it an ideal partner for the LYPHE Group and MGC Pharma products.
MGC Pharma is developing affordable standardised phytocannabinoid derived medicines, targeting epilepsy and dementia, for markets in Europe, America and Australia.
The company’s share price rose 4 per cent in Friday trade to 2.5c.