Vantage Hemp’s team of processing biochemists is leading the world in developing novel, plant-based Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (APIs). APIs are the primary components in drugs – providing their therapeutic effects. Extracting APIs like cannabidiol, muscimol, curcumin, and oleandrin from plants while maintaining the highest pharmaceutical manufacturing standards is a meticulous process that ensures the highest quality, efficacy, and safety of products for human and animal use.

Amanita Muscaria – Muscimol
This mushroom contains muscimol, a psychoactive compound. To extract APIs, the mushrooms can be dried and then subjected to an ethanol or water extraction. The mixture is filtered and evaporated, leaving behind the desired compounds. It’s essential to be cautious with Amanita Muscaria due to its toxic compounds and potential hallucinogenic effects.
We are very proud to work closely with innovative and emerging brands like Psyched Wellness. Together with the brilliant scientists at Psyched, our quality and operations teams were able to build a scalable extraction and manufacturing process for their groundbreaking product “Calm”. This amazing product is made from the rare Amanita Muscaria extract muscimol, which is one of Vantage Hemp’s innovative plant-based APIs.

Oleander – Oleandrin
Oleander contains beneficial cardiac glycosides, but it’s also highly toxic if consumed improperly. To extract these compounds, dried oleander leaves can undergo solvent extraction, where solvents like ethanol or methanol are used to dissolve the desired compounds. Afterward, the solvent is evaporated, leaving behind the purified glycosides. It’s vital that the extraction is done meticulously to ensure only the desired amount of compounds is extracted, minimizing toxicity risks.

Tumeric – Curcumin
Derived from the turmeric plant, curcumin is well known for its anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties. To extract curcumin, the roots (rhizomes) of the turmeric plant are cleaned, dried, and ground into a fine powder. Solvents like ethanol or methanol are then used to extract curcumin from this powder. The solvent is evaporated, leaving behind a concentrated curcumin extract. This extract can then be further purified or modified based on the desired application.

Dr. Fossum received her D.V.M. degree in 1982 from Washington State University, completed a surgical residency and Master of Science degree in 1986 from Ohio State University, and received a Ph.D. in Veterinary Immunology from Texas A&M University in 1992. She received Board Certification in Veterinary Surgery in 1987. Learn more about her story.


Is packaging giving you anxiety?
Are you losing sleep over leaky lids or loose labels?
Clients require compliance, a broad range of products, competitive manufacturing cost, and on-time delivery — requirements Vantage consistently meets. As the only North American hemp processor with ICH Q7, WHO GMP, and 21 CFR 210/211 certified facilities, Vantage Hemp contract manufacturing services will put your mind at ease.
Go ‘asset light’ with Vantage Hemp. From 2016 to 2021, our client was one of the leading vertically integrated CBD manufacturers in the United States. With properties in cultivation, extraction, refinement, finished goods manufacturing, branding, and distribution, they expanded rapidly while gaining significant market share. But as competition increased, they needed to focus on winning new customers and delighting consumers.