Medical Cannabis company MMJ PhytoTech (ASX:MMJ) has added to its senior management and advisory personnel Stanislav Sologubov as Chief Executive Officer of Satipharm Switzerland and John Hollister as a strategic pharmaceutical consultant.

The key appointments are in line with MMJ’s intended evolution towards a pharmaceutical business model in which the company plans to commercialise Medical Grade Cannabis and high potential cannabis based therapeutics products to the international market and in line with medical cannabis laws.

Managing Director of MMJ, Andreas Gedeon had the following to say in the announcement to the market:

Swiss scientists have taken a leaf from the pothead recipe book to brew an e-cigarette cannabis liquid for medical use they said Thursday is safer than a joint and better than a pill.

"Therapeutic cannavaping", they argued, should be examined as an alternative to existing treatments which can come in the form of a syrup, pill, mouth spray, skin patch, suppository, or a plain-old spliff.

The team copied an improvised method popular among marijuana afficionados using butane gas to extract and concentrate cannabinoids -- the active, high-causing compounds of cannabis.

A roundup of various movement in cannabis legalization in Europe.

While in the Americas in the last few years we have seen several waves of liberal reforms in countries like the USA, Canada, Chile, and Uruguay, we rarely hear similar news concerning European countries. But cannabis legalization is also winning support slowly in European countries other than the Netherlands Spain and Portugal.

In the UK last month, Liberal Democrat MP Norman Lamb raised a bill for decriminalization of cannabis – a second hearing will take place on May.

Legalisation and acceptance of medical cannabis as a cure or therapy for certain clinical ailments is gaining global traction.

As cities across the globe act to industrialise medical cannabis, several companies have begun to position themselves as first movers in product development and distribution.

MMJ Phytotech (ASX:MMJ) is one such company establishing itself in this space.

MMJ is developing quickly and has identified key priorities moving forward, one is to leverage its offshore operations in Australia by importing CBD capsules from Switzerland which are similar to those currently selling in Europe.

AS THE drug war has rumbled on, with little to show for all the money and violence, its critics have become a more diverse bunch than the hippies and libertarians who first backed drug reform. The latest broadside against prohibition was fired on March 24th by a group of former heads of state and businesspeople, who put forward a sober case for rethinking the international approach to drug control.

The Independent has covered last week’s news of the potential launch of cannabis clubs in four Swiss cities, including Zurich, Basel, Bern and Geneva.

Representatives from the cities met in Bern on Thursday to discuss how to regulate the sale of cannabis, which is illegal to possess in Switzerland.

The 500,000 estimated people who smoke marijuana in Switzerland face serious fines and up to three years in prison.

This system prevents the state from taxing the cannabis sold on the ‘black market’, and creates difficulty for the implementation of proper prevention programs.

In a bid to reassess outdated drug policy, Switzerland is moving to trial cannabis clubs, providing a safe environment for the growth and distribution of marijuana.

There are certain countries here in Europe that are known to be a little more liberal when it comes to cannabis use; one such country is Switzerland. Although illegal in Switzerland, many police forces will turn a blind eye to cannabis, as long as it for personal use and not being used in a blatant manner. Well, things are going one step further, as four cities agree to take part in a project that will see cannabis clubs set up within their borders.

A pilot project for creation of cannabis clubs, where members can use the soft drug without fear of being punished, is being launched in four Swiss cities – Zurich, Basel, Bern and Geneva, local media report.

"The four cities have agreed to include pilot projects on their territory," Sandro Cattacin, sociology professor at the University of Geneva, and Geneva representative in the discussions of the cannabis clubs issue, told broadcaster SRF. 

Four Swiss cities have agreed to launch pilot projects for the creation of cannabis clubs allowing members to use the drug without penalty.

The cities of Zurich, Basel, Bern and Geneva have agreed to participate in the projects, which have been discussed for some time by a municipal working group, broadcaster SRF reported on Friday.

Members of Americans for Safe Access (ASA), KOPAC and Dioscorides Global Holdings (DGH) were joined by the Minister of Health for the Czech Republic recently to announce the establishment of a new research center, the International Cannabis and Cannabinoid Institute (ICCI) – intended to foster evidence-based exploration with a modern scientific approach to refine the therapeutic applicability of cannabis-based medicines in the Czech Republic. ICCI will identify, coordinate and support global research priorities for the advancement of cannabis and cannabinoid treatments through a multidisciplinary evidence based approach that incorporates innovative tools and approaches.