Delta 9 Cannabis has filed patents in Canada and the U.S. for decontamination equipment that could be used in the fight against COVID-19. 

Branded as ‘decontamination pods’, or ‘D-pods,’ the company has retrofitted shipping containers with heat and ultraviolet light technologies. Once medical equipment is placed inside the pod, the combination of light and heat kills the virus.

John Arbuthnot, the CEO of Delta 9, said the technology could be a “game changer” and allow hospitals and care-facilities to decontaminate large amounts of PPE and other equipment in two-hour cycles, freeing up inventories and potentially preventing exposure to the virus. 

The idea was born out of the company’s Grow Pod system. The self-contained growing units, which are stackable and scalable, were designed to prevent the spread of crop-killing contaminants like powdery mildew. Delta 9 has produced and installed more than 500 grow pods since 2017. 

The company is manufacturing the D-Pods in Winnipeg and through a newly incorporated and partially owned subsidiary, Blue Horseshoe Manufacturing Inc. They believe they can produce up to 20 D-Pods per month and will begin taking orders next week. The D-Pods sell for approximately $250,000 per unit. 

The company says the units have been tested and validated by an independent and accredited third party lab, BioScision Pharma Inc.

Additionally, Delta 9 is working on developing transport units that can be used to store and distribute vaccines.