Organic growers from Vancouver Island hope to bag the new federal contract to grow and distribute medical marijuana across Canada with the promise of supplying better, cheaper and different varieties of weed.
Public Works Canada has extended the deadline for bids on the contract currently held by Prairie Plant Systems Inc., which operates a grow operation deep within a mine in northern Manitoba.
No reason for the extension has been given. Companies that hope to win the contract say they are waiting for more information from Ottawa to complete their bids by the new Sept. 29 deadline.
Eric Nash, co-owner of Island Harvest in British Columbia, said he is eager to submit a proposal to supply high-grade strains of sativa and indica marijuana to registered users, some of whom have been unhappy with the quality of the government-approved pot from the mine.
"We want this contract because we know that we can supply a good-quality organic product to patients," said Nash, who has been legally supplying medicinal pot to a few registered users from his provincially inspected organic operation in the Cowichan Valley.
"What we would ideally like to do is gear up strain-specific plants for patients with different medical conditions. Many patients have tried the government product which is just one strain that may work for someone with multiple sclerosis, but it doesn't necessarily work for someone with cancer or HIV-AIDS."
Public Works and Health Canada officials could not immediately be reached for comment.
Various types of marijuana affect people differently. Strains such as sativa can provide pain relief, an energy boost and stimulate appetite but still allow people to function well in everyday activities. Others such as indica have a more intense sedative effect that helps people with intense pain to sleep.
Island Harvest promotes its products on its website with pictures of lush marijuana plants and tasting notes such as "Organically grown pure indica bud. Very resinous and sticky. Sweet taste," or "Organically grown pure sativa tops. Very pungent and aromatic."
The company's bid calls for growing the medical marijuana in a large metal warehouse that would be protected by fences, barbed wire, security cameras and guards. It would charge $4 per gram for the pot - a dollar less than the going federal rate.
Island Harvest will be up against at least one other bid, although others firms have expressed interest.
Saskatoon-based Prairie Plant Systems, which won the first federal contract in 2000 and numerous extensions since then, wants to continue its underground grow operation near Flin Flon, Man. Their contract expires Oct. 31.
Company president Brad Zettl said other bidders are free to pitch whatever they want to Ottawa, but the federal contract is very specific about what type of marijuana is to be produced. Health Canada sets the standards.
Zettl said the emphasis is on producing one strain of marijuana of a consistent strength. Protecting the health of patients is paramount by ensuring that each gram of pot has low levels of microbes and other contaminants.
"This isn't an opportunity for somebody to express their personal convictions or philosophical view about how it should be run. This is strictly (a) ... bid for tender for what is asked," said Zettl, who added his staff are proud of their work and tired of being criticized for the quality of the marijuana they cultivate.
"Those other issues blur the lines between what they think should be and what the government wants. The other issues they are talking about have to be dealt with in some other way."
Some medical marijuana advocates would prefer if Ottawa got out of providing medicinal pot and allowed qualified people to cultivate plants for their own use or for sale through compassion clubs.
The federal government currently designates some people to produce medical marijuana for others, but has indicated it plans to eventually phase out personal use production licences.
Philippe Lucas of the Vancouver Island Compassion Society said it appears that Ottawa's policy is based on meeting the bare legal requirements of supplying medical marijuana as set down in court rulings.
Charlie McKenzie of the Montreal Compassion Club said its members considered submitting a bid for the federal contract but are so fed up with Ottawa that they are lobbying the Quebec government to come up with its own homegrown policy.
"Quebec can do it on its own. We don't need to buy marijuana from a mine shaft in Flin Flon."
Russell Barth, whose wife has a licence to smoke pot to deal with her epilepsy, said he would prefer if users were free to choose their own supply or to grow their own.
"One strain of mine-shaft-grown pot is not going to cut it," Barth said from Nepean, Ont. "Thousands of sick people would be forced to accept the government's shwagg (lousy) pot, or go to the ever more dangerous illegal market."
