What happens when you walk straight out of the grow room and hit record?
In this special On the Road episode, I visited Medcan Australia in Southeast Queensland for a behind-the-scenes look at one of the country’s earliest licensed cannabis producers. After the tour, I sat down with co-founder and CCO Gareth Ball for a raw, in-the-moment chat about cultivation, product development, market pressure, and why Australia needs to back its own industry.
From pheno-hunting wins (and fails) to research gaps, global comparisons, and the launch of Medcan’s new cultivar, Velvet Thunder.
Whether you’re a patient, producer, or just passionate about homegrown cannabis, this episode is packed with deep insights, bold ideas, and that signature AusCanna curiosity.
📍Recorded on-site in Southeast Queensland.
👉 Got a Rapid Fire question you want me to ask a guest? Email them to AusCannaReviews@gmail.com. I love including questions from the community!
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In this episode, we cover a lot of topics, including:
* Rapid Fire (2:42)
* Who is Gareth Ball? (10:49)
* The story behind Medcan Australia (12:02)
* From pheno-hunting to products in patients’ hands… What’s the process? (18:15)
* Do pheno hunts ever fail? (28:28)
* There’s more to cannabis than THC, will the education ever catch up? (30:16)
* The importance of gathering research (33:02)
* Canadian market vs Australian market (38:05)
* Buying weed from questionable sources (39:57)
* The price of cannabis around the world (43:20)
* Where is the global cannabis market going? (45:33)
* Supporting Australian-grown cannabis first (46:27)
* What’s next for Medcan? (50:16)
* Exciting times ahead for the local industry (53:50)
* Stigma, politics and legalisation (55:17)
* Life is better with a little bit of cannabis (58:37)
* Our reflections on swapping out pharmaceutical pills for cannabis (59:08)
* Cannabis a first option, not a last option (62:23)
* Gareth’s call to action (64:19)
Show Notes:
Where to Find Gareth Ball:
* Gareth on LinkedIn
* Medcan Australia LinkedIn
* Medcan Australia Website
* Email Gareth@medcanaustralia.com.au
Where to find Christina Mc Mullan:
* @AusCannaReviews on SubStack
* @AusCannaReviews on Instagram
* @AusCannaReviews on Twitter/X
* Email AusCannaReviews@gmail.com
* Buy Me A Coffee/AusCannaPodcast
