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In Episode 70 of the Legacies Podcast, host Tom Ritchie sits down with Deepak Anand, Principal of ASDA Consultancy Services and a leading global cannabis regulatory consultant. Deepak shares his journey from co-creating KPU’s university-level cannabis studies curriculum to advising governments on compliance frameworks. They discuss the historical significance of Malta as a European generic pharma hub with a built-in QA infrastructure, the massive expansion of the Australian medical market, and the strict GACP/EU-GMP certification standards that serve as gatekeepers for European exports. Deepak explains why Canadian cannabis quality remains the global benchmark over regional US markets, the future of descheduled and rescheduled cannabinoids, and the massive R&D potential emerging in Southeast Asian countries like India and Thailand, where advanced pharmaceutical expertise is being turned toward cannabis and wellness formulations.
Tom Ritchie Says: All right, welcome to Legacies, everyone! I’m joined this week by Deepak Anand. First, a reminder that Legacies is powered by AVEO, leaders in sustainable vape hardware. Deepak, it is fantastic to see you, man. How have you been?
Deepak Anand Says: Likewise, Tom. Thanks so much for having me on the show. It’s been way too long!
Tom Ritchie Says: You are constantly on the move—consulting in Malta, across Europe, over in Asia. Before we dive into international trade, I want to highlight your foundational role in Canadian cannabis education. When I instructed at Kwantlen Polytechnic University, I didn’t realize you originally designed their pioneering curriculum.
Deepak Anand Says: That goes back to the very early days. Before the program formally launched, I pitched the leadership team at KPU on developing an accredited, university-level cannabis program. They were skeptical initially, but it became the first university-level cannabis credential in the world. I built out that initial framework before passing the torch to you and the team.
Tom Ritchie Says: You are a true industry pioneer. You were active around 2013 and 2014 when the medical MMAR system was being challenged in court by Kirk Tousaw and John Conroy during the Allard case. What originally brought you into cannabis?
Deepak Anand Says: I came directly from the pharmaceutical industry, bringing a strict pharmaceutical regulatory compliance perspective. Watching the federal transition from MMAR to the MMPR framework made me realize the nascent industry desperately needed structured advocacy. That led me to co-found the Canadian National Medical Marijuana Association (CNMMA), the country’s very first formal industry association.
Tom Ritchie Says: That era laid the foundation for everything. Later on, you partnered with Brian Wagner at NHP Compliance to launch Cannabis Compliance Inc. (CCI).
Deepak Anand Says: Exactly. Brian Wagner and I joined forces to build Cannabis Compliance Inc., providing full-service regulatory consulting for prospective licensed producers navigating Health Canada’s rigorous licensing standards.
Tom Ritchie Says: During the CCI years, the sector exploded. What was that experience like on the front lines?
Deepak Anand Says: The sheer volume of incoming licensing applications was staggering. In the beginning, there were only the original 13 licensed producers. Suddenly, there were over 200 corporate applicants in the queue, and the momentum never slowed down. Institutional capital was flooding the sector, and the pressure on our consulting team to deliver bulletproof facility designs and standard operating procedures was immense.
Tom Ritchie Says: In those days, Health Canada operated like an opaque black box. You would submit banker boxes of architectural blueprints and security layouts, hear absolute silence for nine months, and then on a random Friday afternoon, an approval email would drop!
Tom Ritchie Says: Later, you formed Materia Ventures and established operations in Malta. Why did you choose Malta as an international operational hub?
Deepak Anand Says: Malta was one of the earliest sovereign jurisdictions in the European Union to establish a clear, dedicated regulatory framework for medical cannabis. Beyond that, Malta possessed a unique pharmaceutical history. Prior to joining the EU, major multinational pharmaceutical companies frequently neglected to register patents on the island. Consequently, generic drug manufacturers set up shop in Malta to manufacture formulations without patent infringement.
Deepak Anand Says: That historical quirk left Malta with an extraordinary density of EU-GMP certified cleanrooms, qualified persons (QPs), and regulatory analytical laboratories. When you combine that pharmaceutical infrastructure with a progressive government experienced in regulating emerging digital industries, Malta became the ideal strategic jumping-off point for European distribution.
Tom Ritchie Says: Beyond Europe, Australia emerged as an enormous export destination. What sparked their medical boom?
Deepak Anand Says: Around 2018, Australia established an accessible medical cannabis access scheme. Unlike the United Kingdom’s heavily restrictive medical framework, Australian physicians embraced cannabis prescribing, triggering exponential patient growth and surging import demand. Tilray led the charge by securing one of the industry’s first European Union Good Manufacturing Practice (EU-GMP) certifications at their Nanaimo facility, audited through Portugal, which opened the international floodgates.
Tom Ritchie Says: Did Canada depart from its medical roots too quickly when federal adult-use legalization arrived in 2018?
Deepak Anand Says: It’s a nuanced public policy dilemma. On one hand, Canada achieved something monumental: we remain the only G7 nation with a fully legal, commercial adult-use cannabis framework. That is a historic policy accomplishment. However, did recreational legalization occur on the backs of medical patients? Absolutely. In the commercial gold rush, institutional LPs neglected dedicated medical patients who fought for federal access in the Supreme Court.
Deepak Anand Says: But the pendulum is swinging back. Major producers like Aurora and Canopy have refocused heavily on dedicated medical portals. We are also seeing clinical biotech innovators entering the space—such as the Luod sublingual CBD lozenge—bringing pharmaceutical precision, pharmacokinetic data, and advanced delivery formats to medical practitioners.
Tom Ritchie Says: How do we separate functional wellness from traditional recreational consumption to unlock a broader consumer demographic?
Deepak Anand Says: Canadian legalization was heavily optimized for the high-THC consumer seeking maximum potency at the lowest cost per gram. But sending an elderly grandmother seeking non-intoxicating CBD for osteoarthritis into a recreational dispensary surrounded by high-potency vape carts and shatter is a major barrier. She doesn’t want an intoxicating head high; she wants professional healthcare guidance regarding sleep, inflammation, and potential prescription drug interactions.
Deepak Anand Says: The ultimate market expansion will occur when Health Canada permits low-risk, non-intoxicating cannabinoids like CBD and CBG to be sold as Natural Health Products on traditional pharmacy shelves at Shoppers Drug Mart, backed by educated pharmacists. That non-intoxicating wellness segment represents a massive, underserved demographic.
Tom Ritchie Says: As a global consultant, how does international perception of Canadian cannabis hold up?
Deepak Anand Says: Despite domestic complaints and early regulatory missteps, Canadian cannabis is recognized worldwide as the gold standard of pharmaceutical-grade quality. If an international distributor needs consistent, GMP-certified gummies, standardized softgels, or clean, heavy-metal-tested flower, Canada is one of only two countries capable of executing at commercial scale. California may have cultural hype, but federal illegality prevents US operators from exporting compliant commercial inventory.
Tom Ritchie Says: Where is investment capital flowing into the sector today?
Deepak Anand Says: We have transitioned away from retail investor stock hype into strategic enterprise capital. Look at British American Tobacco’s ongoing investments into Organigram. Major global consumer packaged goods, tobacco, and beverage conglomerates are watching alcohol consumption decline among younger demographics and strategically acquiring cannabis stakes.
Deepak Anand Says: These enterprise strategics introduce rigorous quality controls. They demand pharmacokinetic bioavailability studies, double-blind clinical trials, and proven consumer safety data. Canada provides the sole federally legal sandbox where multinational conglomerates can conduct that research compliantly.
Tom Ritchie Says: You travel extensively throughout Asia. Which international regions represent the next major wave?
Deepak Anand Says: Asian markets represent an extraordinary frontier. I am actively consulting across India, Thailand, Sri Lanka, and Bhutan. Dense population centers across Asia face surging rates of insomnia, anxiety, and metabolic stress, creating immense therapeutic demand. Furthermore, India already manufactures the vast majority of global generic pharmaceuticals and conducts extensive clinical trials. Connecting Asian drug manufacturing capabilities to cannabinoid therapeutics will revolutionize the sector.
Tom Ritchie Says: Will emerging international markets follow the North American model of smoking flower first?
Deepak Anand Says: Definitely not. In many jurisdictions, cultural stigma surrounding smoking is insurmountable. Look at France’s medical cannabis pilot program: combustible flower was deliberately excluded in favor of oral extracts and sublingual sprays. Japan recently opened up for CBD formulations, including a major beverage collaboration with a Coca-Cola partner, while enforcing strict zero-tolerance limits on THC. Emerging markets will lead with pharmaceutical capsules, tablets, and functional beverages.
Tom Ritchie Says: What is behind the recent controversy surrounding German medical cannabis and telemedicine?
Deepak Anand Says: Following Germany’s medical reclassification in April 2024, the government permitted telemedicine access without sufficient regulatory guardrails. Inevitably, opportunistic bad actors deployed offshore European doctors to issue prescriptions after cursory 90-second questionnaires. The incoming German government is establishing stricter clinical oversight to protect authentic patient care.
Deepak Anand Says: This is not the end of telemedicine. Poland underwent a similar regulatory crackdown: when online prescription mills were curtailed, operators opened physical clinics, and legitimate patient enrollment surged. Regulation stabilizes mature markets.
Tom Ritchie Says: How are other key European markets performing?
Deepak Anand Says: Italy has cracked down on synthetic cannabinoids like Delta-8 and HHC while expanding legitimate medical imports through major pharmaceutical distributors, with Tilray actively supplying that channel. Poland is another extraordinary market: patient enrollment is climbing rapidly, but the Polish government requires an extensive 9-to-12-month pharmaceutical dossier registration process.
Deepak Anand Says: Because the barrier to entry is so high, wholesale margins are exceptionally healthy. Major Canadian producers wholesale medical flower into Poland at roughly €9 per gram, which retails to patients at €14 per gram. Operators who master pharmaceutical compliance enjoy robust economics.
Tom Ritchie Says: Are international markets immune to the price compression that hit Canada?
Deepak Anand Says: Absolutely not. Supply and demand dictate market pricing everywhere. Germany and the UK are already experiencing wholesale margin compression. Furthermore, European GMP standards enforce strict shelf-life expiry dates based on formal stability testing. In Canada, aged inventory can sit in vaults for years, but in Europe, expired product cannot legally be sold, forcing distressed suppliers into fire-sale liquidations.
Tom Ritchie Says: In Israel, Canadian producers faced geopolitical disruption and controversial anti-dumping investigations, proving that export channels can shift overnight.
Tom Ritchie Says: When a Canadian licensed producer approaches you saying, ‘Deepak, get my flower into Germany,’ what is your immediate response?
Deepak Anand Says: My very first question is: ‘Why?’ Why do you want to enter Germany? Out of hundreds of Canadian LPs, only a small fraction possess the operational consistency and regulatory infrastructure required for international trade. The era of receiving exorbitant wholesale prices overseas is over.
Deepak Anand Says: If you cultivate craft flower that naturally meets stringent microbial specifications without irradiation, and you can reliably deliver 100-to-200 kilogram lots monthly, Germany makes sense. If you are an outdoor grower sitting on surplus biomass with elevated microbials, you will not survive European import testing.
Tom Ritchie Says: How does Canada’s definition of cannabis quality differ from the global standard?
Deepak Anand Says: Domestically, Canadian consumers define quality by high THC percentages, dense bag appeal, and pungent terpene aromas. Internationally, quality is defined by total microbial count, absence of heavy metals, validated pesticide screening, and certified shelf-life stability. Furthermore, regulatory requirements vary by country: Germany requires a nine-month waiting process for irradiated flower, prioritizing clean non-irradiated flower, whereas the UK and Australia mandate irradiation.
Tom Ritchie Says: How does international brand marketing compare to Canada’s strict Section 17 advertising restrictions?
Deepak Anand Says: Attending the Mary Jane Berlin expo was eye-opening. Drawing 50,000 to 60,000 attendees daily, the festival celebrated cannabis culture, brand lifestyle, and music with major global brands like Cookies, Tyson, and Sluggers. Germany proved that sensible marketing and public brand visibility do not undermine public safety. Canada has over-indexed on prohibition-era censorship, which hampers legitimate consumer education.
Tom Ritchie Says: Before reaching out to you for international market entry, what homework must an operator complete?
Deepak Anand Says: Bring validated Certificates of Analysis (COAs) from accredited laboratories spanning multiple consecutive harvest batches. We need empirical data demonstrating consistent potency, terpene profiles, heavy metals, and ultra-low microbial counts. Without verified analytical data, exploring international trade is impossible.
Tom Ritchie Says: Deepak, your regulatory clarity, global vision, and objective wisdom continue to elevate the entire sector. Thank you for sharing your playbook on Legacies!
Deepak Anand Says: Thanks so much, Tom. It was an absolute pleasure catching up!
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Principal
Deepak Anand is a globally recognized cannabis consultant, policy expert, and Principal of ASDA Consultancy Services.
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Strategic Consultancy
ASDA Consultancy Services is a leading international cannabis and hemp strategic advisory firm based in British Columbia, Canada. Founded and...
Learn More About Partner ↗Deepak Anand explains that prior to joining the EU, Malta did not enforce generic drug patent restrictions, attracting major pharmaceutical companies. This established a robust, local Quality Assurance (QA) and regulatory testing workforce that the government successfully leveraged to regulate medical cannabis.
EU-GMP (Good Manufacturing Practice) is the gold standard for pharmaceutical quality. Most medical jurisdictions (such as Germany and Australia) require that any imported cannabis products meet EU-GMP standards, creating a high regulatory barrier that Canadian LPs have spent millions to achieve.
Deepak notes that in countries like France and parts of Asia, the social stigma surrounding smoking flower interferes with the medical conversation. To counter this, regulators focus exclusively on traditional pharmaceutical formats like capsules, tablets, and sublingual oils.
