Press
The long road to researching cannabis
In late 2016, a former Navy SEAL named George Hodgin was in the final months of completing a graduate degree from Stanford Business School and was trying to work out what to do upon its completion. Like many veterans of the US armed services, Hodgin knew plenty of fellow vets suffering from the effects of service-related PTSD. Read more →
For 60 years the DEA has blocked cannabis research in the US
It seems like yet another Orwellian twist on reality. In a country where 200 million people have some legal access to cannabis, where a dozen states have full legal markets, where over 67% of the population supports legal cannabis, the DEA still blocks anyone except growers at one small farm at the University of Mississippi from growing cannabis for research purposes. This means that most US scientists trying to examine how cannabis treats pain, or PTSD or cancer are prohibited from buying or researching the products they need to do their work. Listen to the episode →
Our CEO featured on Driving Force podcast discussing cannabis research
George is currently the founder and CEO of Biopharmaceutical Research Company (BRC). BRC was founded to address the needs of America's scientific community for diverse types of research quality and federally compliant cannabis and to provide USDA-compliant hemp testing. Listen to episode →
One doctor vs. the DEA: Inside the battle to study marijuana in America
Early in Dr. Sue Sisley’s medical career, military veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder told her that smoking marijuana prevented nightmares and helped them sleep. Sisley, a primary care physician and psychiatrist in Scottsdale, Arizona, who has treated vets for two decades, said she was initially skeptical of her patients’ claims, but their families vouched that pot was helping with their symptoms. Read more →
After 4-year delay, DEA will review dozens of requests to grow marijuana for research
After nearly 4 years of what some researchers saw as foot dragging, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) has announced it will evaluate 37 applications to grow marijuana for medical research and proposed new rules for the prospective growers that outline how the cannabis-growing program would work. Read more →
Cultivation framework release by DEA and DOJ
Biopharmaceutical Research Company (“BRC”) lauded the federal government’s efforts to implement regulations to satisfy the requirements of the Controlled Substances Act and several international narcotics treaties. Read more →
BRC featured on Professionally Cannabis podcast
Learn about the current state of play in the US and how George Hodgin, CEO & Founder of BRC is going about changing this for federally licensed cannabinoid researchers. Listen to the episode →
Cannabis for research: The great silence
Since the 1960s there has only ever been one federally licensed farm that grows cannabis for researchers, and it’s at the University of Mississippi. In 2016, the US Drug Enforcement Administration announced that it would license additional growers, and more than thirty entities rushed in from all over the world to apply. Read more →
BRC imports the 1st ever cannabis flower from Latin America
A shipment of medical marijuana from South America has arrived in the United States — and it's all right with the feds. Biopharmaceutical Research Company — a California-based marijuana research lab that is one of 33 DEA applicants to grow Schedule I research marijuana — received a shipment of marijuana grown by Uruguayan-based medical marijuana company Fotmer Life Sciences. Read more →
BRC imports the 1st ever legal cannabis flower from Europe
One of the top advocates for allowing U.S. companies to grow cannabis for research purposes has imported a batch from the Netherlands, saying he had no choice because of the lack of progress at home.
California-based Biopharmaceutical Research Co., founded by former Navy SEAL George Hodgin, legally imported a small quantity of marijuana from Bedrocan International last month to use for scientific analysis with the goal of better understanding the plant. Read more →
BRC and Washington State University to partner to study cannabis
Washington State University researchers and Biopharmaceutical Research Company (BRC) will partner to evaluate cannabis and accelerate the pace of cannabis research. The innovative partnership allows WSU scientists, many of whom are part of the university’s Collaborative for Cannabis Policy, Research and Outreach (CCPRO), greater access to cannabis for research purposes while remaining fully compliant with federal regulations governing cannabis. Read more →
BRC team praises former FDA commissioner’s call for increased cannabis research
Former Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Commissioner Scott Gottlieb has called for increased research into cannabis-derived treatments. Yesterday, the Senate Appropriations Committee issued a report in which it called on regulators to lower the regulatory burden on cannabis research. Read more →
BRC praises DOJ and DEA’s statement to move cannabis production for research forward
The DEA’s announcement that it will process applications to cultivate cannabis for research use is great news for scientists, health care providers, patients, and regulatory authorities. I started BRC with a dream of helping my fellow veterans use cannabis to treat their wartime wounds. Read more →
Addition of Lou Milione and Dr. Charles Schumacher to board of advisors
DEA Registrant Biopharmaceutical Research Company adds Celebrated Surgeon Charles Schumacher and Compliance Expert Louis Milione to Board of Advisors. Read more →
BRC encourages congress to take up cannabis legislation
Congress should urgently take up expansion of cannabis research in the name of veterans health . Read more →
UC Davis partners with DEA approved company to conduct cannabis research
Researchers at the University of California, Davis, have partnered with a federally compliant pharmaceutical company to analyze the chemical and biological profiles of cannabis for the benefit of law enforcement, health care providers and scientific professionals. Read more →
3-Year anniversary of DEA’s policy change and no action
DEA Registrant Biopharmaceutical Research Company Still Awaiting Authorization to Cultivate Cannabis for Research. Read more →
Statement on senator Durbin’s bill
Biopharmaceutical Research Company (BRC) Applauds Continued Congressional Efforts to Expand Cannabis Research. Read more →
Statement on Rep. Harris and Blumenauer bill
George Hodgin, CEO of Biopharmaceutical Research Company, praises bill to reduce barriers to medicinal cannabis research. Read more →