There’s a new 20,000-square-foot manufacturing facility in southern British Columbia where one particular product is making a lot of noise.
Psilocybin — better known as magic mushrooms — is grown legally here in a high-tech lab, where cultivators hope to contribute to medical research that suggests these mushrooms could have enormous medical benefits.
“There are a lot of clinical trials going on right now that show the potential of these mushrooms,” Todd Henderson told CTV National News.
Henderson is a master cultivator for a company called Optimi Health. It is one of a handful of Canadian businesses now federally approved to produce, manufacture and export psychedelic mushrooms.
Although there are currently only a few of these businesses, more and more companies are vying to position themselves as certified psilocybin suppliers.
The push comes as scientists increasingly explore its therapeutic benefits, including for treating depression, substance use and end-of-life suffering.
“We’re going to be able to provide that safe supply so researchers can actually dig deeper to see well, let’s see where this goes,” Bill Siprick, CEO of Optimi Health, told CTV National News .
A study published in February found that psilocybin therapy was associated with symptom relief in adults suffering from major depressive disorder for up to a year.
There are currently no approved therapeutic products that contain psilocybin in Canada or elsewhere, according to Health Canada. But in January 2022, Health Canada adjusted its Special Access Program (SAP) to allow doctors to request psilocybin for use in psychotherapy or with other treatment plans, making it easier for doctors to access the restricted drug.
And in April, the first patients in Canada were able to receive psilocybin treatment through SAP for end-of-life anxiety.
Thomas Hartle, one of those patients who received access because of his diagnosis of terminal colon cancer, told CTV News in May that access to this treatment has made a huge difference in his quality of life.
“Improving my mental health has been so night and day that it would be hard to say all the things it has done for me,” he said.
“I still have cancer. I still struggle with what it does physically, but there are days I don’t even think about it. What would you do to have a day where you just feel normal?”
These mind-altering substances are used in a controlled, clinical setting as part of psychotherapy.
Psilocybin, which is the active ingredient in magic mushrooms, enters the body through the same receptors as serotonin, a chemical that acts as a neurotransmitter, carrying messages through the body and acting as a mood stabilizer. Depressed people often have low levels of serotonin, and psychedelics like psilocybin have been found to cause an increase in brain connectivity, allowing these messages to be sent more easily than before.
Some studies show that one or two doses of psilocybin in a therapeutic setting can make significant, long-lasting differences for those with treatment-resistant depressive disorders.
Ciprick said magic mushrooms provide more options for doctors looking to treat a patient.
“What psilocybin offers is a different option for doctors,” he said. “They need a lot of tools in their toolbox, and this gives them another one.”
Although Optimi also grows unregulated mushrooms, its main focus is growing a psychedelic variety for medicinal use and research.
“Anyone who wants to develop a drug to help people — we’re growing for them,” Henderson said.
The company now has an agreement with the IMPACT Clinical Trials Accelerator Program at the University of Calgary to clinically test their psilocybin products and potential health benefits.
And in late June, the company announced it was partnering with a Calgary-based clinical group to supply them with magic mushrooms for psychedelic therapies, provided patients are approved by SAP.
About 2,000 kilograms of dried psilocybin can be produced each month.
While the company is currently working with Canadian researchers, the goal is to eventually share their magic mushrooms globally.
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