NEW YORK – PathogenDx has entered into a partnership with Zef Scientific (ZefSci) to distribute its molecular diagnostics platform for the cannabis, hemp, agriculture, and food safety industries in Canada. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
ZefSci offers products and services from multiple vendors to laboratories in areas such as pharmaceuticals and cannabis testing. The new partnership extends ZefSci's portfolio to include bacterial and fungal testing "through the unique ultra-rapid DNA-based technology offered by PathogenDx," Kevork Kalaydjian, sales director at ZefSci, said in a statement, adding that PathogenDx's proprietary technology "will help Canada set the new standard in bacterial testing."
Milan Patel, CEO and co-Founder of Scottsdale, Arizona-based PathogenDx, noted that the Canadian cannabis market has experienced supply challenges due in part to regulatory mandates that protect patient and recreational consumer safety.
"This partnership will offer Canadian growers, retailers, distributors, and regulators the chance to shorten testing and approval times with greater precision, while getting better and safer products to market faster for Canadian patients and consumers," Patel said.
Cannabis testing labs have increasingly been adopting molecular technologies to meet pathogen testing mandates rather than rely on culture-based methods. In Canada, cannabis was legalized for medicinal and recreational use nationwide last year.