Improving quality of life
Ora Pharm is a health and wellness company developing high-quality, sustainably-produced medicinal cannabis in Waikato, New Zealand.
Our vision is to provide patients, caregivers and doctors with premium plant-based healthcare products that support everyday wellbeing and improve quality of life.
Our founder’s story
Ora Pharm founder Zoe Reece’s passion for sharing the benefits of medicinal cannabis stems from her personal health journey.
Zoe started life battling illness. For years, doctors tried to diagnose her, but the tests kept coming back negative and medications didn’t work.
On the advice of a family friend, Zoe experimented with removing gluten from her diet at age 15. The very next day, her health improved drastically. “I was a completely different person, full of energy.” It was her first experience of taking control of her own health.
In 2013, Zoe started getting painful ear infections that made her dizzy and nauseous. She was later diagnosed as having a cholesteatoma (a noncancerous skin growth in the middle ear), which required several surgeries to remove. She was prescribed common opioids, Oxycodone and Tramadol, for pain relief post-surgery, which had severe side effects.
In 2018, Zoe was experiencing pain in her lower abdomen and was diagnosed with endometriosis. She was working at cannabis start-up Curaleaf in the United States at the time where she got CBD tinctures to help with the pain. It was her first time using a medicinal cannabis product. “My pain just melted away. That’s when I realised that cannabis has true therapeutic potential.”
The next year, Zoe found that the cholesteatoma had re-emerged in her other ear and she needed surgery to remove it. She was afraid of being prescribed opioids again so she asked the doctor about using cannabis post-surgery. Zoe was still sceptical about the therapeutic benefits of cannabis, but was willing to try anything to avoid the side effects of opioids.
Like her gluten free experiment as a teenager, she decided to try cannabis for just one day, starting with four drops of THC oil. “Those four drops gave me more pain relief than opioids with no debilitating side effects.” Her recovery time was significantly reduced and her quality of life greatly improved.
Zoe’s personal experiences with medicinal cannabis - as well as her work in the industry in the United States - motivated her to start Ora Pharm. “I’ve heard countless stories similar to my own. It’s made me very passionate about using Ora Pharm as a vessel to help people take back control of their health and enjoy life to the fullest.”
Welcome to our home
Ora Pharm is located on a beautiful Waikato farm in the agricultural heartland of Aotearoa, New Zealand. Surrounded by market gardens, the property has its own microclimate of optimal growing conditions to ensure high yields year-round.
The nutrient rich soil and mild weather will allow us to cultivate healthy cannabis plants and produce natural therapeutics that are unique to this part of the world.
Our Responsibility To The Land
Ora Pharm’s commitment to supporting health and wellness extends to the whenua (land). We see it as our responsibility to preserve and protect our environment and the planet we call home.
Our facilities are specially designed to reduce energy and water usage. We will be drawing most of our energy from the sun and collecting rainwater from the roofs to help with watering our plants.
Our property has more than an acre of native forest and we have implemented a trapping programme to help control invasive predators and increase native bird populations.
We are exploring ways to incorporate environmentally sustainable practices at all levels of the company, from cultivation to product packaging.
Nature meets science
Ora Pharm is harnessing the natural therapeutic properties of cannabis to develop pharmaceutical-grade healthcare products.
From our state-of-the-art facility in Waikato, New Zealand, we will cultivate, process, and manufacture quality-assured medicinal cannabis using our industry-leading proprietary processes.
We put patients first. All our products will be carefully formulated to support the health of patients suffering from a wide range of conditions.
Our Practices & Standards
Excellence
Innovation
Expertise
From farm to pharmacy
Ora Pharm will use seed-to-sale software to trace each plant at every stage of its lifecycle. This will enable us to uphold the highest quality standards.
But more importantly, it provides patients, caregivers, and doctors with the confidence of knowing that our medicinal cannabis is pure, safe, and handled with care.
Meet Our Team
We’re united by a vision of empowering patients to reclaim their wellness and improve their quality of life.
Zoe Reece
Zoe is a Civil/Structural Engineer and Manager with experience in the mining and construction sectors in New Zealand and Australia, and the cannabis industry in the United States.
She was the Director of Engineering and Project Manager at Curaleaf, the largest cannabis company in the United States, where she learned how to develop and scale a successful cannabis business from end-to-end.
Zoe played a leading role in the company’s expansion by completing the design, planning, build, upgrade and start-up of more than 80 operational facilities in two years.
She was also involved in implementing legislation for Curaleaf in 16 states and helped to prepare license applications for other countries.
Her experience in the cannabis industry is invaluable to the growth and development of Ora Pharm in New Zealand and globally.
Stuart Wilcox
Stuart is an international distribution and operations advisor with extensive experience in the cannabis industry in the United States.
He’s the former COO and SVP of Curaleaf, the largest cannabis operator in the US, and most recently led business expansion efforts in emerging markets.
Stuart brings more than 30 years of agriculture experience, more than 10 years of hydroponic cultivation experience, and 24 years’ experience of processing plants into oils and other value-added products.
Nadia Scott
With more than 20 years of commercial marketing experience in Australasia, Europe and the US, Nadia’s track record of revenue and brand growth is exceptional.
She has played a key role as a member of marketing and executive leadership teams for global industry leaders Adidas, L’Oréal, Bendon, Hallmark, Morphy Richards and most recently Macpac, where she transformed the brand over five years contributing to in excess of $80 million in top line growth.
Nadia brings a strong network, along with the depth of skills and knowledge in strategy, marketing, sales, retail and digital to build a comprehensive platform for growth at Ora Pharm.
Mark Matthews
Mark is a Business Consultant and Advisor with decades of executive-level experience in the healthcare and natural products industries in New Zealand.
Prior to focussing on consulting and advisory roles, he was CEO of Good Health Products New Zealand, Chief Executive Officer at Nutralife New Zealand, Chief Operating Officer at Vitaco New Zealand, and Managing Director of Healtheries New Zealand.
Mark has considerable experience in strategic and business planning, growing revenue, developing export markets, launching new products, and financial management in large companies.
Jason Rogers
Jason is a Professional Director and Investment Specialist with extensive experience working with iwi settlement trusts, private companies and joint ventures.
He currently holds Chairman, Director and Trustee positions on a number of boards for iwi organisations where he’s responsible for managing investments and delivering commercial returns across a wide range of sectors, including forestry, fisheries, and agriculture.
Jason also has a background in finance and management and worked for Top 4 global accounting firm Ernst & Young for five years in Auckland, San Francisco and London.
Karl Reece
Karl has built a career as a Business Manager who excels in building effective teams that are dedicated to continuous improvement and innovation, developing solutions for difficult problems, and driven to achieving results.
Having a strong background in Operations and Maintenance helps him to contribute tangible ideas and develop new strategies that can be embedded easily into the business.
Karl’s previous roles include being an operations manager for LafargeHolcim in Australia and the US.
Dr. Roger Negrete
Dr. Negrete joins Ora Pharm after spending his career researching cannabinoids and how they regulate pain management in Europe. His work has been published in esteemed scientific journals and presented at conferences all over the world.
Dr. Negrete will oversee Ora Pharm’s research programme and develop the educational materials for the company, bridging the gap with medical professionals.
Dr. Warren King
Dr. King is a Senior Research Scientist with AgResearch in Hamilton. He has been an agricultural scientist for more than 25 years, both in Australia and New Zealand.
A recurrent theme throughout his career has been the ecology and management of pastures, including the interaction with the environment.
Key research focuses include understanding the drivers of pasture performance, and identification of the impact of insect pests at a farm scale.
Recent projects include novel and innovative technologies that have the potential to transform the performance of pastoral systems.
He is currently the President of the New Zealand Grassland Association.
Our Founder's Story
Ora Pharm founder Zoe Reece’s passion for sharing the benefits of medicinal cannabis stems from her personal health journey.
Zoe started life battling illness. For years, doctors tried to diagnose her, but the tests kept coming back negative and medications didn’t work.
On the advice of a family friend, Zoe experimented with removing gluten from her diet at age 15. The very next day, her health improved drastically. “I was a completely different person, full of energy.” It was her first experience of taking control of her own health.
In 2013, Zoe started getting painful ear infections that made her dizzy and nauseous. She was later diagnosed as having a cholesteatoma (a noncancerous skin growth in the middle ear), which required several surgeries to remove. She was prescribed common opioids, Oxycodone and Tramadol, for pain relief post-surgery, which had severe side effects.
In 2018, Zoe was experiencing pain in her lower abdomen and was diagnosed with endometriosis. She was working at cannabis start-up Curaleaf in the United States at the time where she got CBD tinctures to help with the pain. It was her first time using a medicinal cannabis product.
“My pain just melted away. That’s when I realised that cannabis has true therapeutic potential.”
The next year, Zoe found that the cholesteatoma had re-emerged in her other ear and she needed surgery to remove it. She was afraid of being prescribed opioids again so she asked the doctor about using cannabis post-surgery. Zoe was still sceptical about the therapeutic benefits of cannabis, but was willing to try anything to avoid the side effects of opioids.
Like her gluten free experiment as a teenager, she decided to try cannabis for just one day, starting with four drops of THC oil. “Those four drops gave me more pain relief than opioids with no debilitating side effects.” Her recovery time was significantly reduced and her quality of life greatly improved.
Zoe’s personal experiences with medicinal cannabis – as well as her work in the industry in the United States – motivated her to start Ora Pharm. “I’ve heard countless stories similar to my own. It’s made me very passionate about using Ora Pharm as a vessel to help people take back control of their health and enjoy life to the fullest.”
Our Home
WELCOME TO OUR HOME
Ora Pharm is located on a beautiful Waikato farm in the agricultural heartland of Aotearoa, New Zealand. Surrounded by market gardens, the property has its own microclimate of optimal growing conditions to ensure high yields year-round.
The nutrient rich soil and mild weather will allow us to cultivate healthy cannabis plants and produce natural therapeutics that are unique to this part of the world.
OUR RESPONSIBILITY TO THE LAND
Ora Pharm’s commitment to supporting health and wellness extends to the whenua (land). We see it as our responsibility to preserve and protect our environment and the planet we call home.
Our facilities are specially designed to reduce energy and water usage. We will be drawing most of our energy from the sun and collecting rainwater from the roofs to help with watering our plants.
Our property has more than an acre of native forest and we have implemented a trapping programme to help control invasive predators and increase native bird populations.
We are exploring ways to incorporate environmentally sustainable practices at all levels of the company, from cultivation to product packaging.
Our Vision
NATURE MEETS SCIENCE
Ora Pharm is harnessing the natural therapeutic properties of cannabis to develop pharmaceutical-grade healthcare products.
From our state-of-the-art facility in Waikato, New Zealand, we will cultivate, process, and manufacture quality-assured medicinal cannabis using our industry-leading proprietary processes.
We put patients first. All our products will be carefully formulated to support the health of patients suffering from a wide range of conditions.
OUR PRACTICES & STANDARDS
Ora Pharm will adopt international agricultural and manufacturing best practices and meet New Zealand Ministry of Health and European Pharmacopoeia quality standards.
EXCELLENCE
Ora Pharm is committed to producing New Zealand’s highest-quality medicinal cannabis products for domestic and export markets.
INNOVATION
We’re investing in research and development to create advanced condition-specific formulations that utilise native New Zealand botanicals.
EXPERTISE
Our expert team has global experience in developing safe, effective medicinal cannabis products from seed to sale.
FROM FARM TO PHARMACY
Ora Pharm will use seed-to-sale software to trace each plant at every stage of its lifecycle. This will enable us to uphold the highest quality standards. But more importantly, it provides patients, caregivers, and doctors with the confidence of knowing that our medicinal cannabis is pure, safe, and handled with care.
Meet Our Team
At the heart of Ora Pharm is a talented team of world-class experts dedicated to developing New Zealand’s finest medicinal cannabis products.
We’re united by a vision of empowering patients to reclaim their wellness and improve their quality of life.
Stay Informed
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