Extractas Bioscience (before called Tasmanian Alkaloids) is the largest
opium poppy
''Papaver somniferum'', commonly known as the opium poppy or breadseed poppy, is a species of flowering plant in the family Papaveraceae. It is the species of plant from which both opium and poppy seeds are derived and is also a valuable ornamen ...
processing company in the Australian state of
Tasmania
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, nickname =
, image_map = Tasmania in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of Tasmania in AustraliaCoordinates:
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdi ...
.
Approximately forty percent of the world's legal opiate crop is grown in Tasmania.
Tasmanian Alkaloids was a subsidiary of the United States pharmaceutical company
Johnson & Johnson
Johnson & Johnson (J&J) is an American multinational corporation founded in 1886 that develops medical devices, pharmaceuticals, and consumer packaged goods. Its common stock is a component of the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the company i ...
,
but was formerly—as of 1980—a subsidiary of
Abbott Laboratories
Abbott Laboratories is an American multinational medical devices and health care company with headquarters in Abbott Park, Illinois, United States. The company was founded by Chicago physician Wallace Calvin Abbott in 1888 to formulate known dr ...
.
The company patented a poppy variety called "Norman" which was stated, in the 1999 ''Tasmanian Alkaloids Poppy Grower’s Bulletin'' to be the first variety lacking
morphine
Morphine is a strong opiate that is found naturally in opium, a dark brown resin in poppies (''Papaver somniferum''). It is mainly used as a analgesic, pain medication, and is also commonly used recreational drug, recreationally, or to make ...
and
codeine
Codeine is an opiate and prodrug of morphine mainly used to treat pain, coughing, and diarrhea. It is also commonly used as a recreational drug. It is found naturally in the sap of the opium poppy, ''Papaver somniferum''. It is typically use ...
, while still containing
thebaine
Thebaine (paramorphine), also known as codeine methyl enol ether, is an opiate alkaloid, its name coming from the Greek Θῆβαι, '' Thēbai'' (Thebes), an ancient city in Upper Egypt. A minor constituent of opium, thebaine is chemically similar ...
and
oripavine
Oripavine is an opioid and the major metabolite of thebaine. It is the parent compound from which a series of semi-synthetic opioids are derived, which includes the compounds etorphine and buprenorphine. Although its analgesic potency is compar ...
. This variety went into commercial production in 1998. The company's processing plant is in
Westbury, a town west of
Launceston in the State's north.
The company is licensed by both the Australian federal and state governments to carry out its opiate processing work.
References
External links
Tasmanian Alkaloids Website
Johnson & Johnson subsidiaries
Companies based in Tasmania
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