Recent testing shows cannabis strain with 35 per cent THC virtually stink-free.

Canadian company CannabCo. Pharmaceutical Corp. (CannabCo.) has high hopes for the future with Tuesday announcement that it has used its proprietary technology to slash the smell of a high-THC strain.

Calling it an industry first, CannabCo. views slashing odour as opening the door for cannabis use in settings where weed may not currently be welcome while also reducing “impact on others sensitive to the pungent odour of cannabis.”

The technology “lets you smoke when you want, where you want, without notice or disturbing others that are cannabis sensitive,” adds the company website.

CannabCo. reports that it has developed and tested multiple strains, ranging from less than 0.3 per cent for the smokeable hemp market to the newly announced strain featuring 35 per cent THC.

That tops the highest THC dry flower offering through the Ontario Cannabis Store by three per cent, the company claims.

But the company is not done, with CannabCo. CEO Mark Pellicane reporting in a statement that multiple strains in the high 30s are in the works.

“With the demand for high-THC strains, it made sense to target the same in odourless variants,” Pellicane reports, adding the company is also working on market-specific strains with targeted THC levels and cannabinoid profiles.

CannabCo reports it has received its “Confirmation of Readiness” from Health Canada to become a licensed producer. It is currently building out its pilot facility in the Brampton area.

Two years ago, the company announced plans to work on an odourless strain that might be more appealing to new weed users. At the time, Novak noted that “cannabis by its nature, when burnt, typically causes coughing and is very heavy when inhaled, which is especially true for new users.”

A lack of smell and taste was also on the mind of Canadian cannabis cultivator Zenabis, which has since been acquired by Hexo Corp., two years ago.

According to Buzzfeed, survey results released in 2019 showed that just over half of U.S. citizen polled thought the smell of weed in public has become a problem. That percentage was even higher in Canada, which green lit recreational cannabis the previous year, where three in five people gave the skunky smell in public the thumbs down.

And this past summer, a Leger Research poll commissioned by Action on Smoking & Health found 63 per cent of surveyed Canadians would like to see all smoking, including weed, banned from national, provincial and municipal parks.