SAN DIEGO, Jan. 22, 2014 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Medical Marijuana, Inc. (OTC:MJNA), a leading cannabis and industrial hemp industry innovator, is pleased to inform shareholders that Company divisions continued to increase revenues significantly. With the close of the fourth quarter of 2013, the Company had a gross income of approximately $8.07 million. The most significant increase in revenue came from direct product sales through HempMedsPX, which increased revenues by over five hundred (500%) percent, or $1.06 million, with a gross income of over $1.31 million. Updates are provided for each of our portfolio companies and investments. New product launches, continued market penetration, product advertising in mainstream media and key business agreements with wholesalers, distributors and resellers of innovative industrial hemp-based cannabidiol (CBD) products are fostering exponential growth.
Medical Marijuana Inc. is proud to announce an update on current events in advance of its official, detailed quarterly and annual reports.
CanChew Biotechnologies – In the United States, CanChew CBD-rich hemp oil gum is available for purchase online. Each piece contains approximately 10 mg of naturally-derived industrial hemp-based cannabidiol (CBD). In the fourth quarter, the Company continued to gain market traction and public awareness while it finalized its clinical development plans. The Company is focusing on establishing celebrity and medical professional endorsements in the near future, as well as developing additional product distribution channels. In addition, CanChew Biotechnologies has established an independent board of directors and management committee.
Canipa Holdings – Established to administer the marketing, sales, and distribution of Medical Marijuana Inc.'s portfolio of products throughout Europe and the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) participant counties. Canipa Holdings has a distribution network of pharmacies, clinics, wellness centers and retail stores in EFTA countries, and plans to offer MJNA's full line of products. The Company continued European expansion by signing additional distributors for HempMedsPX. Canipa Holdings continues to work with government officials on product approval, medical cannabis and industrial hemp approvals in Europe.
The Company has also expanded its operations to include a team dedicated to the Caribbean Islands.
HempMedsPX – HempMedsPX, a corporate portfolio company of Medical Marijuana Inc. and the exclusive master distributor and contracted marketing company for CannaVest Corp. and Medical Marijuana, Inc. , was established to develop online platforms for the marketing and sales of hemp-based consumer products. The Company continues actively acquiring, developing, securing IP, adding additional online properties, and acquiring marketing and brand awareness partners.
In order to meet the growing demand for the cannabidiol (CBD)-rich hemp oil products that HempMedsPX markets, represents and distributes, the Company increased staff in the areas of: outside sales, customer service, software and programming, website development, video production, public relations, compliance and community outreach.
HempMedsPX launched new Cibdex and HempVĀP websites featuring hemp-based cannabidiol (CBD)-rich tincture drops and HempVĀP, the world's first hemp-based CBD vaporizer product. The full line of products that HempMedsPX represents currently includes:
The Company participated in major cannabis industry events and continued its strategic marketing campaigns to increase awareness of CBD-rich hemp oil products in the public. Participating in this aggressive trade show schedule resulted in unprecedented interest in the products that HempMedsPX represents, and propelled the significant increase in revenue in the fourth quarter. Events included:
- Miami Wholesale Expo - Miami, FL: Sept. 30-Oct. 2
- Ohio Rights Group Tour: Oct. 10-20
- Ultimate Women's Expo - Phoenix, AZ: Oct. 19-20
- Champs – Denver, CO: Oct. 22-24
- International Spa Association (ISPA) - Las Vegas NV, Mandalay Bay: Oct. 22-24
- DPA Conference - Denver, CO: Oct. 23-26
- LA Ultimate Women's Expo - Los Angeles, CA: Oct. 26-27
- 2 nd Annual Marijuana Business Conference & Expo - Seattle, WA: Nov 6-8
- San Francisco Green Festival - San Francisco, CA: Nov. 9-10
- Michigan Medical Marijuana Trade Show: Nov. 15-17
- SOHO Natural Products Expo - Orlando FL: Dec. 5-8
- High Times Cannabis Cup - Amsterdam, The Netherlands: Dec. 3
- American Academy of Anti-Aging Medicine (A4M) - Las Vegas, Dec. 12-15
As part of the Company's strategic plan to increase visibility of industrial hemp-based CBD oil products with the public, the Company gained print, online, social media, television and radio coverage throughout the fourth quarter of 2013. To further awareness and brand recognition, Brand Ambassador, Cheryl Shuman, was retained in October, 2013. Awareness creation of the diverse product lines that HempMedsPX represents were featured in mainstream media including:
- BBC
- CNBC
- Geraldo at Large
- Univision
- Fox 31 Denver
- NBC Cincinnati
- Robert Scott Bell radio show (archives available on iTunes, NaturalNews.com and GCN.com)
- Danielle Lin radio show
- Medical Jane (product reviews)
- Ohio Free Press
- THC Connoisseur (product review)
- ERB magazine
- ABC News
HempMedsPX represented the winner of the world-renowned 2013 Seattle High Times Cannabis Cup award , 2013 Amsterdam Cannabis Cup award , and 2013 Michigan Medical Marijuana Conference "Green Cup" contests for Highest (hemp) CBD Concentrate.
Corporate goodwill was extended through the Company's first multi-state community outreach initiative in support of its customers, families and individuals in need. These outreach endeavors are ongoing.
HempMedsPX continues to educate the general public that the CBD -rich hemp oil products that the company represents:
- are available for people of all ages
- are available for animals
- can be purchased directly in all 50 states and in more than 40 countries
The Company is working on finalizing celebrity, medical doctor, and industry endorsements to be announced in the near future. HempMedsPX will also be featured in upcoming documentaries in the coming months.
KannaLife Sciences – KannaLife has spent years in the development of standardization in packaging for cannabis-based products. Standardization of packaging for cannabis-based products is not just a need, but a necessity. The Company looks to set the standard by which the industry will adapt and develop from.
The Company expanded product capabilities, established additional hothouses, and finalized an agreement to access a collection of more than 100,000 extracts from plants, fungi, and bacteria. An agreement with the Natural Product Discovery Institute (NPDI), a division of the Baruch S. Blumberg Institute (BSBI), provides an opportunity for KannaLife Sciences (KannaLife) to access targeted plant species for the identification of novel phytochemicals to treat the diseases of Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE) and Hepatic Encephalopathy (HE). This agreement is in place due to the exclusive license agreement with National Institutes of Health – Office of Technology Transfer (NIH-OTT) for the commercialization of U.S. Patent 6,630,507, "Cannabinoids as Antioxidants and Neuroprotectants" (the "'507 Patent").
Most recently, KannaLife and Salvation Botanicals, Ltd., signed a Memorandum of Understanding centered on the standardization of botanical medicaments and patient wellness in Canada and the United States. Salvation Botanicals, Ltd. is a Canadian provider of high quality and assured botanicals in dried plant and liquid-oral based phyto-extracts. The intended joint venture between KannaLife and Salvation will focus on the expansion of the Salvation Botanicals brand in the United States and the delivery of KannaPak™ & C-Dashboard™ into the Canadian marketplace.
Red Dice Holdings – Dixie Botanicals, a brand of Red Dice Holdings, offers innovative CBD-rich hemp oil products for health conscious consumers. Formulation experts include scientists, clinical herbalists, and nutritionists who work to integrate industrial hemp oil into a variety of beneficial and uniquely effective over-the-counter (OTC) products ranging from dietary supplements to a topical balm. Red Dice Holdings also owns the Dixie Elixirs brand of products, which is one of the most prominent cannabis brands in the world, with over 80 products in 5 product categories and has been featured on 60 Minutes , National Geographic, Fox, ABC News, Fortune Magazine , Vice, The Huffington Post and many other industry and mainstream television and publications.
Wellness Managed Services – The Company finalized a transaction that will allow for staffing and compliance management service contracts to be developed. The company will initially focus on Colorado and Arizona.
"My gratitude goes to our team and loyal shareholders for their continued support. This is an exciting time for the cannabis industry as well as for our company. It has taken years in order to prepare for product development and market positioning in this rapidly growing industry. The products that our team has developed and continues to develop are the first of their kind. We are extremely pleased that these innovative product lines are very well received by the public. As the company grows, we will continue to communicate major announcements to shareholders through news alerts and electronic newsletters," stated Michelle Sides, Chairman and Chief Operating Officer.
About Medical Marijuana, Inc.
Our mission is to be the premier cannabis and hemp industry innovators, leveraging our team of professionals to source, evaluate and purchase value-added companies and products, while allowing them to keep their integrity and entrepreneurial spirit. We strive to create awareness within our industry, develop environmentally-friendly, economically sustainable businesses, while increasing shareholder value. For more information, please visit the company's website at: www.MedicalMarijuanaInc.com
About Dixie Botanicals (a Red Dice Holdings Brand)
Dixie Botanicals offers innovative hemp oil products for health conscious consumers. Our formulation experts include scientists, clinical herbalists and nutritionists, who work to integrate our hemp oil into a variety of beneficial and uniquely effective over-the-counter (OTC) products– both dietary supplements and a topical balm. For more information, please visit the company's website: http://dixiebotanicals.com
About HempMedsPX
HempMedsPX offers mainstream marketing, sales, customer service, and logistics for the cannabis industry. HempMedsPX is a corporate portfolio company of Medical Marijuana, Inc. (OTC Pink:MJNA) and the exclusive master distributor and contracted marketing company for CannaVest Corp. (OTC:CANV) and Medical Marijuana Inc. In addition to handling sales and distribution, HempMedsPX is the communication hub for the Medical Marijuana Inc. portfolio of companies.
About KannaLife Sciences
KannaLife Sciences ("KannaLife"), is a late stage bio-pharmaceutical and phyto-medical technology company. We were created to develop natural, phyto-medical products to be used in health and wellness regimens. We are also involved in the research and development of novel new therapeutic agents to be used as transport carriers for other compounds seeking to break the blood/brain barrier as well as our own compounds to be used for the treatment and prevention of oxidative and neuro-toxic stresses born from a variety of ailments and illnesses. For more information, please visit the company's website at: www.Kannalife.com
About Cheryl Shuman
Cheryl Shuman 's TV reality started at age three with Charles Kuralt. By age seventeen, she had made several television appearances and was offered to appear regularly on The Bob Braun Show on WLWT-TV in Cincinnati, which led to a national recurring segment on PM Magazine . At age twenty-three, Cheryl relocated to Los Angeles to become know as the "Optician to the Stars" and created a new business, Starry Eyes. As CEO of Starry Eyes, Cheryl worked on some of the biggest films, TV, and music properties generating multi-million dollar revenues. This success led to her own show on the QVC network and a mutually rewarding seven-year relationship that included product placement, production and branded entertainment divisions.
In 2006, Shuman was diagnosed with cancer. After years of following failed allopathic medicine treatments, she opted for medical cannabis in the form of raw juice and oils as an alternative. Her success using medical cannabis led her to found the Beverly Hills Cannabis Club. Today, Cheryl is the most visible and recognizable woman in the medical marijuana reform movement, recently receiving the 2013 Activist of the Year Award at Seattle Hempfest. Together Cheryl and Aimee, her daughter and EVP of Cheryl Shuman, Inc., have reached over 100 million viewers worldwide while appearing on such mainstream shows as CNN's Piers Morgan Live, The Katie Couric Show, The View, ABC's 20/20, Good Morning America, Fox Business News and many other media outlets. Cheryl Shuman is represented by agent Mark Itkin with the prestigious William Morris Endeavor Agency in Beverly Hills. For more information, please visit CherylShuman.com . To contact Cheryl Shuman directly, call (310) 779.4797 or Aimee Nicole Shuman, EVP, at (310) 779.1535.
FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION (FDA) DISCLOSURE
These statements have not been evaluated by the FDA and are not intended to diagnose, treat or cure any disease.
FORWARD-LOOKING DISCLAIMER
This press release may contain certain forward-looking statements and information, as defined within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, and is subject to the Safe Harbor created by those sections. This material contains statements about expected future events and/or financial results that are forward-looking in nature and subject to risks and uncertainties. Such forward-looking statements by definition involve risks, uncertainties and other factors, which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of Medical Marijuana, Inc. to be materially different from the statements made herein.
LEGAL DISCLOSURE
Medical Marijuana, Inc. and HempMedsPX do not sell or distribute any products that are in violation of the United States Controlled Substances Act (US.CSA). These companies do grow, sell and distribute hemp-based products and are involved with Federally Legal Distribution of Medical Marijuana-based products within certain international markets. Cannabidiol is a natural constituent of hemp oil.
For further information, please contact: Investor relations contact: Stuart T. Smith SmallCapVoice.Com, Inc. P. 512-267-2430 Corporate Contact: Medical Marijuana, Inc. Toll Free: 888-OTC-MJNA (888-682-6562) www.medicalmarijuanainc.com www.facebook.com/mjnainc
