Dunbar Pharmaceuticals to Showcase Pharmaceutical-Grade Plant-Derived Dronabinol at expopharm 2026
Dunbar Pharmaceuticals, also known as Dunbar Pharma, is set to participate in expopharm 2026, one of Europe’s leading trade fairs for the pharmacy sector, as the company continues to expand the availability of its plant-derived dronabinol active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) across regulated European markets. The event will take place from September 15 to 17, 2026, at Messe München in Munich, Germany, bringing together pharmacists, pharmaceutical manufacturers, healthcare professionals, suppliers, and other stakeholders from across the European pharmacy industry.
Dunbar Pharma’s participation will provide an opportunity for the company to engage directly with pharmacy professionals and pharmaceutical partners about the importance of API quality, manufacturing consistency, and dependable supply when preparing compounded medicines. The company plans to place particular emphasis on the factors that extend beyond a traditional certificate of analysis (CoA) when determining whether an API can provide reliable performance over the long term.
As Ireland’s first EU Good Manufacturing Practice (EU GMP)-certified manufacturer of plant-derived cannabinoid APIs, Dunbar Pharma has developed a manufacturing and supply model focused on pharmaceutical-grade quality and consistency. The company’s plant-derived dronabinol API is marketed under the trademark WaterClear THC™ and is intended to support regulated pharmaceutical applications and pharmacy compounding.
Focus on API Quality Beyond the Certificate
During expopharm 2026, Dunbar Pharma will highlight its presentation, titled “Quality Beyond the Certificate – What Makes a Reliable Dronabinol API?” The presentation will address the broader considerations pharmacists and pharmaceutical professionals should take into account when evaluating the quality and reliability of an API.
A certificate of analysis is an important component of pharmaceutical quality assurance because it provides analytical information about a particular batch. However, Dunbar Pharma argues that a CoA by itself does not necessarily provide a complete picture of the reliability of an API or its manufacturer.
For pharmacists involved in the preparation of compounded medicines, factors such as standardized manufacturing procedures, consistency between production batches, traceability, validated processes, and the ability of a supplier to maintain long-term availability can also be critical.
Dunbar Pharma’s presentation will therefore explore how a more comprehensive approach to API quality can help pharmacies maintain consistent preparation standards. Reliable raw material and API supply can also play a role in supporting continuity of patient care, particularly where patients depend on individualized compounded medicines.
The company’s participation reflects its broader focus on establishing pharmaceutical-grade cannabinoid ingredients as dependable components of regulated medicine production.
WaterClear THC™ Supports Pharmaceutical Compounding
Dunbar Pharma markets its plant-derived dronabinol API as WaterClear THC™. Dronabinol is a chemically defined cannabinoid that can be used as an active pharmaceutical ingredient in appropriate regulated applications.
According to the company, WaterClear THC™ is manufactured to recognized pharmacopoeia standards and is designed to offer consistent milligram dosing with minimal compositional variability. This distinguishes the API from botanical cannabis preparations, which can contain multiple naturally occurring compounds and may have greater compositional complexity.
For pharmacy compounding, consistency can be particularly important because pharmacists need to accurately measure and incorporate APIs into individualized formulations. A chemically defined API can help support precise dosing and standardized pharmaceutical preparation.
Although dronabinol has historically been manufactured synthetically, Dunbar Pharma uses a proprietary production process based on plant-derived starting materials. The company believes this approach combines the advantages of pharmaceutical manufacturing controls with a plant-derived origin.
Dunbar Pharma to Meet Pharmacy Professionals in Munich
Dunbar Pharma’s founder and CEO, Leah Fletcher, along with members of the company’s team, will be available at Hall A2, Stand A43 throughout expopharm 2026. The team plans to meet with pharmacists, pharmaceutical companies, potential commercial partners, and other stakeholders interested in pharmaceutical-grade cannabinoid APIs.
The event is expected to provide a platform for discussions about the evolving medical cannabis and cannabinoid pharmaceutical markets in Europe. It will also allow Dunbar Pharma to explain its manufacturing capabilities and discuss how its plant-derived dronabinol API can support pharmacy compounding.
In addition to its exhibition presence, Dunbar Pharma will participate in expopharm’s medical cannabis guided tour. The tour will take place daily from 12:20 p.m. to 1:20 p.m. and is designed to provide participants with additional insights into medical cannabis applications within pharmacy practice.
Melanie Dolfen, a pharmacist specializing in medical cannabis and owner of BezirksApotheke Berlin, will join Dunbar Pharma during the guided tour. The discussion will focus on how pharmacists assess API quality and will include practical experience relating to the use of Dunbar Pharma’s dronabinol in pharmacy compounding.
The participation of an experienced pharmacy professional is expected to add a practical perspective to the discussion, particularly regarding the considerations pharmacists face when selecting APIs for individualized preparations.
Expansion Across European Markets
Dunbar Pharma’s appearance at expopharm follows the company’s commercial launch and supply of its plant-derived dronabinol API in Germany. Germany represents one of Europe’s more established markets for dronabinol and medical cannabis products, making the country’s pharmacy sector an important market for pharmaceutical-grade cannabinoid ingredients.
The company has subsequently expanded into the United Kingdom through an agreement with IPS Pharma. Under this arrangement, WaterClear THC™ is available through the UK’s regulated Specials framework.
The agreement enables clinicians and pharmacies to source pharmaceutical-grade, plant-derived dronabinol through IPS Pharma’s established supply network. Entry into the UK market represents another step in Dunbar Pharma’s strategy of expanding access to its API across regulated European pharmaceutical markets.
The company’s expansion into Germany and the UK also creates opportunities to establish relationships with pharmacists and pharmaceutical organizations that are seeking reliable sources of pharmaceutical-grade dronabinol.
EU GMP Manufacturing in Ireland
WaterClear THC™ is manufactured at Dunbar Pharma’s commercial-scale facility in Athlone, Ireland. The facility is EU GMP-certified and operates under the oversight of Ireland’s Health Products Regulatory Authority (HPRA).
EU GMP standards are intended to ensure that medicinal products and pharmaceutical ingredients are consistently manufactured and controlled according to established quality requirements. For API manufacturers, adherence to GMP principles is an important component of maintaining product quality, process control, documentation, and traceability.
Dunbar Pharma says its validated manufacturing process and comprehensive batch traceability are designed to support the consistency and continuity of supply required for regulated pharmaceutical applications.
Commercial-scale manufacturing capabilities are particularly relevant as demand for cannabinoid-based pharmaceutical products develops across Europe. Maintaining reliable production and supply can help pharmaceutical and pharmacy customers plan their procurement and support ongoing patient treatment.
Importance of Consistency in Dronabinol Supply
The pharmaceutical use of cannabinoids requires careful attention to quality, consistency, and dosing. For pharmacists preparing individualized medicines, variability in the active ingredient can create additional challenges. Dunbar Pharma’s approach is centered on providing a chemically defined API that can be manufactured under controlled pharmaceutical conditions.
WaterClear THC™ is produced as a defined active pharmaceutical ingredient rather than as a broad botanical cannabis preparation. The company states that the product is manufactured to recognized pharmacopoeia standards and is designed to provide consistent dosing characteristics.
This focus on consistency is central to Dunbar Pharma’s message at expopharm. The company intends to emphasize that pharmaceutical API quality should be evaluated through a combination of analytical testing, manufacturing controls, reproducibility, traceability, and supply reliability rather than relying exclusively on the results presented in an individual CoA.
For pharmacies and pharmaceutical partners, a dependable supply chain can be just as important as the quality specifications of an individual batch. Consistent access to the API can help reduce supply disruptions and support continuity in the preparation of medicines.
Building New Pharmacy Relationships
Leah Fletcher, founder and CEO of Dunbar Pharma, described expopharm as an important opportunity for the company to meet directly with compounding pharmacists and discuss how pharmaceutical-grade, plant-derived dronabinol can support pharmacy operations and patient care.
The company is also using the event to build new relationships in the German market and strengthen its broader European presence. Having established WaterClear THC™ in Germany and expanded into the UK, Dunbar Pharma is looking to continue developing its network of pharmacy and pharmaceutical partners.
The company’s commercial-scale EU GMP manufacturing operation in Ireland provides the foundation for this expansion. By combining plant-derived starting materials with a controlled pharmaceutical manufacturing process, Dunbar Pharma aims to position WaterClear THC™ as a reliable API option for regulated applications.
Dunbar Pharma’s participation in expopharm 2026 comes at a time when the European medical cannabis and cannabinoid pharmaceutical sectors continue to develop. The company will use the Munich event to communicate its approach to API quality while highlighting the importance of manufacturing consistency and reliable supply.
The company’s focus on WaterClear THC™, its EU GMP-certified manufacturing facility in Ireland, and its expanding presence in Germany and the UK form key elements of its commercial strategy.
Through its presentation, exhibition activities, and participation in the medical cannabis guided tour, Dunbar Pharma will have several opportunities to engage with pharmacists and industry professionals. The company expects these discussions to provide insight into the practical requirements of pharmacy compounding and the role that consistent, pharmaceutical-grade dronabinol can play in individualized medicine preparation.
Attendees interested in meeting the Dunbar Pharma team during expopharm 2026 can visit Hall A2, Stand A43. Meetings can also be arranged by contacting the company at pr@dunbarpharma.ie.
About Dunbar Pharmaceuticals
Dunbar Pharmaceuticals (Mercury Rising Ltd.) is a privately owned Irish pharmaceutical manufacturer and Ireland’s first EU GMP manufacturer of plant-derived cannabinoid active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs). Based in Athlone, Ireland, the company manufactures difficult-to-make, pharmaceutical-grade APIs, including plant-derived dronabinol, to recognised pharmacopoeia standards for regulated pharmaceutical markets, including Germany and the UK.
Built from the ground up as a pharmaceutical manufacturer on Ireland’s world-class pharma platform, Dunbar Pharma operates under the oversight of the Health Products Regulatory Authority (HPRA), with validated processes and full batch traceability supporting dependable supply to licensed partners across Europe.
Dunbar Pharma was founded on a simple observation: medical use of cannabinoids was growing worldwide, but the pharmaceutical infrastructure behind it had not kept pace. The company is closing that gap, building Europe’s pharmaceutical infrastructure for plant-derived cannabinoid medicines by combining EU GMP manufacturing, pharmaceutical quality standards and reliable supply for healthcare partners and patients. The company has been recognised for its growth and innovation, including Emerging Company of the Year at the BioPharmaChem Impact Awards 2026, Product & Manufacturing Start-Up of the Year at the National Start-Up Awards 2025, and the Ambition & Growth Award at the Local Enterprise Office Awards 2026.