The Korean Cannabinoid Association plans to use blockchain technology to carry out some studies on cannabidiol.
The Korean Cannabinoid Association (KCA) announced during a conference last week in Seoul that it will begin clinical studies on cannabidiol (CBD), a constituent drug of cannabis used in chronic neurological disease therapies such as multiple sclerosis. The project will be released in collaboration with Prasm – a decentralized bioinformatic platform that works with AI and blockchain technology.
Kwon Yong-hyun, director of Prasm and president of the KCA, commented on the project:
“Due to the prejudice that hemp is a drug, Korean medical society has been reluctant to conduct any clinical studies that could prove the therapeutic benefits of medical hemp.
We are aware that the majority of the public is concerned about people abusing marijuana if it becomes legalized for medicinal use.”
The Korean Cannabinoid Association, also recognized as the Organization of Legalizing Medical Cannabis in Korea, plans to integrate blockchain-based wearable devices to register biometric data of patients. Thus, it is desirable to create a more efficient system of providing medical prescriptions.
Kwon Yong-hyun mentioned that blockchain or distributed ledge technology was the right choice to track cannabidiol bearing in mind that information can’t be modified after sharing “key data” on the patient’s illness.
“The platform will also be helpful in removing any concerns related to abuse of the treatment as it can keep track of the distribution without any omission,” he added.
Will it be a success?
The KCA hopes the project will be successful, and hence legalize hemp in South Korea. If the authorities approve the proposal, the association will start gathering patients with epilepsy. According to the Ministry of Health and Welfare, in 2015 there were registered more than 137,000 epilepsy patients.
The collaborator, Prasm, operates with its native token dubbed PSM, which is listed on CoinMarketCap.
This is not the first case when DLT is chosen to trail cannabis products. In 2017, tech giant IBM pointed out that a Canadian province was able to sell marijuana using blockchain technology.