George Anastassov, the CEO of AXIM Biotech, recently spoke to us about the current good manufacturing methods (cGMPs) his company has developed, their significance to the market, and plans for the future.
With the recent approval by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration of the first drug containing cannabidiol (CBD), it is clear that the pharmaceutical industry is poised to join the cannabis rush. However, one big hurdle that pharmaceutical companies must address is the current good manufacturing methods (cGMPs) used to extract and microencapsulate cannabinoid molecules. George Anastassov, the CEO of AXIM Biotech, has been doing research in this area and recently spoke to us about the cGMPs his company has achieved, their significance to the market, and plans for the future.
Your company, AXIM Biotech, has developed proprietary current good manufacturing practices (cGMP) methods to extract and microencapsulate cannabinoid molecules for a variety of pharmaceutical delivery formats from cGMP-produced medicinal cannabis. What led to the development of these cGMP methods?
No pharmaceutical product can be registered by the regulatory agencies (such as the U.S. Food and Drug Administration [FDA] and the European Medicines Agency [EMA]) without verifiable provision of the cGMP processes from start to finish, that is, from cGMP plant material to final active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) to product.
Can you tell us more about the process involved in developing these cGMP methods?
All I can share is that there are fewer (magnitude of x10) steps involved than in procurement of synthetic cannabinoids. Therefore, there are significant cost savings during the manufacturing process.
Can you briefly describe the extraction and microencapsulation processes?
There are two different processes covered by different intellectual properties (IPs) belonging to AXIM.
What are the advantages over the processes you developed compared with other extraction methods?
The advantages include:
What impact do you think your cGMP methods will have in the cannabis market?
Tremendous; currently the only naturally extracted cGMP product on the market.
Does the recent approval of Epidiolex by the FDA have any impact on your future work with cannabinoid cGMPs?
Of course. The demand for cGMP API’s based on cannabinoids will grow exponentially.
What are the next steps in your research/work with cannabinoid cGMP methods?
Develop other cannabinoid molecules and delivery platforms.
Unlock the latest breakthroughs in cannabis science—subscribe now to get expert insights, research, and industry updates delivered to your inbox.
House Budget Bill Amendment Could End Veterans Affairs Medical Cannabis Ban
July 14th 2025The “Big, Beautiful Bill” signed recently into law by President Donald Trump, includes an amendment that may end the medical cannabis ban in the VA which has prevented doctors from recommending the plant to their patients.
Best of the Week: July 4 – July 10, 2025
July 11th 2025Here, we bring you our top five recent articles covering revoking medical cannabis cards in Florida, testing and sampling initiative in Missouri, our mid-year regulations roundup, depenalization ordinance stopped in Texas, and accuracy in THC labeling in flower versus concentrates.