Canadian cannabis company Cronos Group Inc. said Friday it has amended its agreement with Ginkgo Bioworks Inc. to accelerate the commercialization of cultured cannabinoids at scale. Cronos has had a research partnership with Ginkgo for several years with the aim of producing rare strains of cannabis that feature some of the 100 different cannabinoids, the compounds in the plant. Under the terms of the new deal, Cronos will issue to Ginkgo up to 14.7 million common shares once Ginkgo can show that certain microorganisms are capable of producing eight target cannabinoids above specified minimum productivity levels. The amended agreement “will enable Cronos Group to commercialize products using cultured cannabinoids ahead of reaching the originally stated productivity targets, while maintaining the incentives to continue to develop towards and achieve the previously agreed upon efficiency and cost goals,” the company said in a statement. It expects to be the first to bring cultured cannabinoid products to market in Canada. Cronos U.S.-listed shares were up 09.4% premarket and have gained 23% in the year to date, while the Cannabis ETF has gained 42% and the S&P 500 has gained 11.6%.
Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.
