Piauhy, a cannabis company born in Brazil, plans to invest $5 million in Portugal
Piauhy is a medicinal cannabis company originating from São Paulo, with a CEO from Brasília, and was named after the old spelling of a northeastern state. However, it does not generate any revenue in Brazil. The company has actually grown in Uruguay, where it was a pioneer in setting up a certified pharmaceutical laboratory for the production of cannabis-based medicines. In the neighboring country, there are more than 40 direct employees. Now, the group is preparing an investment plan of $5 million in the cities of Évora and Aveiro, in Portugal.
"Today, can you set up a medicinal cannabis company in Brazil? The answer is no!" questions Eduardo Sampaio, the group's president (photo). "This is a regulated industry, so the day Anvisa allows an industry to be established here, we will. We will be first in line," guarantees the businessman, who was not thrilled with Anvisa's proposal presented on June 11 and lamented that he cannot invest these resources in his own country.
The consumption of therapeutic marijuana became legal in Portugal in February. According to Sampaio, fundraising for investment in the European country is happening in a much more favorable environment than 5 years ago when he started in this field in South America. There is more understanding and less skepticism from investors, he notes. He says there are entrepreneurs creating investment funds and others directly investing in specific projects, such as the Portuguese operation.
"From the entrepreneur's point of view, and not from the family that needs this, the guy has already gone to Miami, to California. He has read in the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, and Forbes that this is working. That there are companies thriving."
Hemp Processing and Biosynthetic Route
Piauhy intends to build three business units in Portugal, the main one being the production of cannabis medicines from the laboratory in Évora. The focus will be on medicines for the control of refractory epilepsy. The second unit, in the city of Aveiro, will concentrate on hemp processing, a variety of cannabis with high cannabidiol (CBD) content and almost no tetrahydrocannabinol (THC, the psychoactive principle of the plant). The goal, according to Sampaio, is to produce seeds rich in CBD, from 10% to 15%, and very low concentrations of THC, something less than 0.5%.
"The demand for CBD to make cosmetics, beverages, ice creams, cappuccinos has grown significantly. Consequently, hemp seeds have been developed that have a high concentration of CBD. Up until 20 years ago, anyone you found planting hemp was basically for the textile industry, for fiber."
Finally, the last arm of the group is the artificial production of cannabinoids, the so-called "biosynthetic route." As Eduardo Sampaio explained, it is biotechnology similar to that which chemically developed insulin, a substance previously extracted from pigs.
"It is about manufacturing cannabinoids, not from the plant, but from bacteria, algae, etc. (...) There are some synthetic molecules that have been created in the last 10 years that are similar to cannabinoids and have a similar effect on our neuroreceptors. In a way that is not original to the plant, I will produce the same phytocannabinoids, THC, CBD, CBN, CBG."
Is Piauhy a Brazilian Group?
The president is Brazilian, but the group has partners from various nationalities: from Italy, Argentina, Portugal, France, Uruguay, and, in the future, the United States. The professionals range from entrepreneurs to engineers and neuroscientists.
"It is Brazilian, but it is also international. We don't only have Brazilian partners and we are not investing in Brazil. It may make more sense to say it is an international group of Brazilian origin," explains Sampaio.
The CEO of Piauhy also reveals the origin of the name that named the company. "Piauí has become a 'cool' thing. You have the Piauí Magazine, with all its tradition. The state of Piauí is also doing well, it has that thing of being a less favored state but is gaining more projection than its own size. And finally: my mother is from Piauí. So it all came together!".
Photo credit: Piauhy/disclosure