invezz.com
Danish blockchain platform Vleppo and US-based plant genome biotech firm Allele Group have used blockchain technology powered by Ethereum (ETH) scaling solution Polygon (MATIC) and Komodo Protocol to enable monetization of cannabis plant IP.
Vleppo and Allele reportedly collaborated on the demonstration since January 2021, before announcing Thursday that it’s now possible for cannabis breeders to tap into the power of tokenisation to establish commercial value from digital property tied to their cannabis breeds.
This means other than tapping into cannabis stocks for investment opportunities, interested investors can look to the commercial value of tokenised cannabis IP.
Cannabis IP management via NFTs
With the technology, cannabis IP owners can easily register and record the DNA of a given Cannabis plant on the blockchain, achieving this via non -fungible tokens (NFTs).
This is because the solution leverages Vleppo’s Komodo-powered Contract Management System (CMS) and Allele’s NFT platform built on Polygon. A digital contract tied to an NFT is created, allowing for massive opportunities in monetization.
According to the two companies, the ability to register the DNA of their cannabis strains on the blockchain helps create an enforceable digital contract on Polygon, with breeders able to use the NFTs and an immutable record to enhance IP rights.
Other than the capacity to commercialise their product, breeders will have the benefit of tamper-proof IP protection.
The development is a big boost to the industry, especially given how challenging it can be to handle IP management within the US cannabis market.
“With economic conditions deteriorating and the likelihood of a soft-landing diminishing, businesses need to extract more value from their assets such as IP. Traditionally this has been difficult due to the costs and impact of implementing these sorts of value creation strategies. What Vleppo has just done with Allele demonstrates a low cost and high impact way to monetize assets that are often sitting idle in the business.”
Peter Coco, founder and CEO of Vleppo.
The service will be available for the broader industry by Q4, the two firms said in their joint announcement.