New Zealand Medicinal Cannabis Council’s (NZMCC’s) Industry Day was held at the EMA on Monday, October 29, 2025. It brought together patients, physicians, researchers, cultivators and advocates for a day-long program centered around connection. Agenda was to improve links between the various sectors, including prescribing and cultivation. Sessions focused on collaboration and sharing of knowledge.
Carmen Doran, Chair of the NZMCC, opened the event and highlighted connection as an intentional focus for the Council. This is especially true now that the membership of the NZMCC has grown to include clinical practitioners, new cultivators, and the wider system supporting the cannabis industry, such as government, suppliers, and academics. After a Leaders’ Roundtable, regulatory and policy updates were presented before the program split into industry and clinical breakout sessions in the afternoon.
Leaders’ roundtable: the State of Medicinal Cannabis New Zealand
Following a Mihi Whakatau, a Māori welcoming ceremony, the Industry Day began with a Leaders’ Roundtable discussion examining where the medicinal cannabis sector currently stands. The panel brought together senior figures from across healthcare, regulation and business, including Terry Teoh, business growth partner at New Zealand Trade and Enterprise (NZTE); Tara Creaven-Capasso, director of regulatory affairs ANZ at MedReleaf Australia; Paul Naske, CEO at Rua Bioscience, a Māori-founded pharmaceutical company that specializes in the research, development and sale of medicinal cannabis products both domestically and internationally; and Natalie Lowe, CEO of Green Doctors, a New Zealand medicinal cannabis clinic network.
The topic of discussion included the regulatory maturity and patient access. It also covered prescribing patterns, challenges in operating under a heavily regulated industry, as well as how to operate within it. Teoh called the Industry Day “a fantastic connection point” especially given NZMCC’s recent expansion of membership. In addition, he reflected on New Zealand’s attendance at European Medicinal Cannabis Week early in the year. He says that themes which resonated with NZ participants and partners included NZ’s agricultural heritage and its leadership in the field, as well as companies who are responsive and scaleable.
The Roles of the Regulatory Authorities: Responsibilities, Reform and Governance
Tania Jones, from the Medicinal Cannabis Agency, gave a presentation entitled Inside the Regulatory Framework – Roles, Responsibility and Compliance. Jones explained how the Agency supervises New Zealand’s medicinal cannabis system. She walked through the licensing requirements, the compliance obligations, and the responsibilities for operators in cultivation, manufacturing, and supply.
Tara Creaven Capasso, Director of Regulatory Affairs for ANZ at MedReleaf Australia, then presented TGA Consultation Underway In Australia: Implications For The New Zealand Market. Creaven Capasso, who has regulatory experience on both sides of the Tasman Sea, explained what the Therapeutic Goods Administration consultation process was about and how it could affect market alignment, future opportunities and product pathways for New Zealand businesses.
Jacek Kolodziej was the presenter of the last morning session. Dr. Kolodziej is a policy director for New Zealand Drug Foundation. He placed the medicinal cannabis in a wider public health and drugs policy context.
Clinical and Industry Pathways: Afternoon Breakouts
Many delegates moved between the two sessions, as discussion progressed, after lunch.
Treatment Pathway
The clinical stream opened with James Yu, pharmacist and co-founder of Ngā Hua Pharmacy, New Zealand’s leading independent specialist pharmacy focused on medicinal cannabis, who presented The Importance of Terpene Tailoring. Yu used patient cases from his dispensing work to illustrate how different profiles of terpenes and the selection of chemovars can impact treatment outcomes.
The panel was moderated by Rick Acland and titled Cannabis Challenges in Practice. This panel, which included Dr William Parkyn Dr Afram Afram and James Yu, focused on confidence in prescribing cannabis, clinical responsibility as well real barriers to accessibility.
Acland said, “I was very impressed by the knowledge and understanding that delegates had of prescriptions.” Unfortunately, many doctors struggle to comprehend this complex pharmacology with its broad-ranging effects when modulating the Endocannabinoid System. It is hoped that the number of advocates will continue to rise and enhance patient welfare. “There is an understanding of adverse effects which must be taken into consideration.”
Acland also noted agreement among the panel members on professional standards. He says he was “impressed” by the consensus on the importance of adhering to the agreed-upon prescription protocols. The speaker expressed his concern for the future of the regulatory environment and referred to legal expertise in the room. I was impressed to see Adam Holloway in the room, a medically-oriented barrister. There is concern that specific prescribers may get ‘targeted’ by Registration bodies or Colleges in the future.”
Dr Michael Murphy (Medical Advisor at CannaPlus+, Board Member of ANZCCP) presented the ANZCCP prescribing guidelines, an updated on best practice, emerging evidence, and current standards.
Pathways to Industry
The Industry stream focused on Innovation, Sustainability and Long-Term Planning.
Tua Waaku, of Bluelab, opened the path with Research and New Knowledge for Cultivation. She presented findings about light spectrum and plants development. Bluelab’s expertise in developing monitoring and control tools, as well as its experience with growers was used to explore how precise measurement could support consistent outcomes.
Sam Baldwin from the Bioresource Institute then presented Indoor Crops in 30 Years’ Time, which explored how technology advances, resource constraints, and environmental concerns may influence cultivation methods in coming decades.
Karan Tikku, of Genesis Energy, addressed energy concerns in his book Electricity: challenges and opportunities. There he discussed the costs pressures faced by cultivators as well as practical methods to reduce electricity use.
Terry Teoh from New Zealand Trade and Enterprise presented Building an Export-Ready Business. The presentation focused on regulatory readiness and expectations of international markets, scalability and regulatory preparation.
The Early Years of Sector Experience
Rick Acland is retired now from clinical practice but says he’s still closely involved in the medicinal cannabis industry. Since the early 2000s, Dr. Acland has had a close connection with medicinal cannabis.He says that despite being retired, he still feels very connected to the industry. “My experience with medicinal cannabis dates back to the early 2000s. I was a part of the Medicines Assessment Advisory Committee of Ministry of Health.
Acland explains his role as an assessor of Sativex for registration in 2006. He says, “At the last meeting I attended (2006), it was my responsibility to assess Sativex’s registration.” I convinced my committee colleagues that the data was convincing enough to allow it to be approved for MS spasticity. There were a number of sceptics who did take some cajoling to get Sativex ‘across the line’.”
In retrospect, nearly two decades after the meeting took place, he says that his decision has held up. I think our decision is correct and, other than the prohibitive costs of the agent, it has not been a problem in the past 20 years.
Acland also discussed his clinical background. He says that he has worked with pain throughout his medical career and, more recently, spinal cord injury rehab. “Frequently, i noted how many patients experienced symptomatic relief through recreational use.”
He described the changes that came with legal prescribing. “Interestingly, once medicinal cannabis became available through prescription, I was ‘banned’ by one of the organizations I consulted for from having any conversation regarding cannabis,” Acland says. The Pain Society’s negative attitude is concerning to me, most likely due to the opioid crisis in the USA. However, there are increasing evidences that prescription cannabis has reduced opioid consumption.
From a sponsor perspective, Arjun Bhargava, co-founder of innovative beverage brand Terps & Co, says the Industry Day reflected a broader shift in how the sector is thinking about cannabis formulation and patient experience.
Bhargava: “It’s encouraging to see that the terpenes are getting more attention than just THC or CBD.” The importance and impact of terpenes on cannabis is becoming increasingly apparent across the value chain.
The Future
Doran’s most memorable outcome was the connection made across the table. The moment that stood out for me was when I saw groups of people talk together after the lunch break who would not normally meet during their daily work,” says Doran. The ability to bring together cultivators, who select which strains to market and prescribing physicians to hear from patients directly about what works, was extremely powerful.
Doran pointed out that NZMCC also held its AGM in conjunction with Industry Day. The Council elected new board members as a way to reflect their expanded membership. In 2026, NZMCC intends to create working groups focusing on key areas, including patient access and export markets. She says that NZMCC will be focusing on issues affecting the sector at home as well as export markets, patient access and international support.
The NZMCC Industry Day provided the ideal opportunity for collaboration to be the basis for further progress.