Hemp Moves into Pharmaceuticals... First GMP Groundbreaking in Andong

Groundbreaking for Korea’s First CBD Raw Material Pharmaceutical Plant
Industrialization of Regulatory Free Zone Achievements

The medical hemp industry in South Korea has crossed the threshold into pharmaceutical industrialization for the first time.

Previously limited to research and demonstration phases, the hemp industry is now establishing a full-fledged raw material pharmaceutical production system based in Andong, laying the groundwork for entry into the global market.

Hemp Moves into Pharmaceuticals... First GMP Groundbreaking in Andong

Hemp Special Zone Company NeoKenBio Co., Ltd. Declares Establishment of Raw Material Pharmaceutical GMP Facility

Neoken Bio Co., Ltd. (CEO Ham Jeongyeop), a participating company in the Gyeongbuk Industrial Hemp Regulatory Free Zone, held a groundbreaking ceremony for its hemp CBD raw material pharmaceutical GMP manufacturing facility on December 17 at the Gyeongbuk Bio 2nd General Industrial Complex in Maegok-ri, Pungsan-eup, Andong. The company officially announced the establishment of South Korea’s first infrastructure for the production of medical hemp raw material pharmaceuticals (API).

This groundbreaking event is seen as a symbolic moment marking the transition of the Gyeongbuk Industrial Hemp Regulatory Free Zone, which has been promoted since 2021, from demonstration to industrialization.

Securing the core infrastructure of a GMP manufacturing facility is particularly significant, as it fulfills an essential requirement for the domestic medical hemp industry to enter the global market.

The GMP manufacturing facility that Neoken Bio Co., Ltd. aims to complete by 2027 will have a total floor area of 1,530 square meters. Using industrial hemp with a THC content of less than 0.3% as raw material, the facility will apply microwave-based CBD extraction technology and water-soluble CBD manufacturing technology to produce CBD raw material pharmaceuticals (API). This is the first manufacturing infrastructure in South Korea capable of industrial-scale production of hemp raw material pharmaceuticals.

Until now, the Gyeongbuk Industrial Hemp Regulatory Free Zone had achieved results in cultivation and extraction technology demonstration, but the absence of GMP production facilities had created structural barriers to exporting raw material pharmaceuticals and entering overseas clinical trials. With the construction of this manufacturing facility, a complete industrial ecosystem is expected to be established, encompassing hemp cultivation, extraction, raw material pharmaceutical production, and global export.

Neoken Bio Co., Ltd. is a key participant in the Gyeongbuk Industrial Hemp Regulatory Free Zone and has led the demonstration of the safety and industrialization potential of hemp CBD components. Despite regulatory uncertainties and high initial investment burdens, the company’s decision to directly build a GMP manufacturing facility in the Andong area is regarded as a leading example of transforming the achievements of the regulatory free zone into tangible industrial infrastructure.

Andong City plans to use the groundbreaking of this GMP manufacturing facility as an opportunity to foster the medical hemp industry as a future growth engine in connection with the bio and pharmaceutical industries, and to become a hub city for the hemp-based pharmaceutical industry.

An official from Andong City stated, "This groundbreaking ceremony demonstrates that the Gyeongbuk Industrial Hemp Regulatory Free Zone has moved beyond research and demonstration to the stage of producing tangible industrial results. We will provide full administrative support until the facility is completed and GMP certification is obtained."

Approximately 150 people attended the event, including officials from the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, Gyeongsangbuk-do Province, Andong City, industry, and research institutions. After the groundbreaking ceremony, a Korea-Japan International Conference on Medical Hemp was held, where discussions continued on global industry trends and export potential.

The achievements of the regulatory free zone have materialized not just as numbers and reports, but as a physical "factory." The establishment of the hemp raw material pharmaceutical GMP facility in Andong is becoming a significant turning point in the landscape of South Korea's bio and pharmaceutical industries.