Medbox, Inc. announced that the US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has issued a notice of allowance on what company executives describe as the first "Seed-to-Sale" patent the marijuana industry has ever seen. The patent application that was allowed by the USPTO describes a system used to verify the identity of a patient/consumer receiving medication; monitor the dispensing of medication/product to the patient/consumer; monitor the development of the medication/product, including tracking the location from which the seeds are obtained, cultivation and harvesting of the plant, and conversion into medication/product; support a complete biometric chain of custody seed to sale system from cultivation facility to dispensary where dispensing can occur through Medbox's patented "Secure-Safe" technology for added security and transparency. The patent has broad implications in the medical and recreational markets in the United States and will provide substantial opportunities in other countries in need of systems to control and track the distribution of medical marijuana.

The company has engaged a patent litigation expert attorney to file for foreign patent protection in countries the company deems to be relevant, examine enforceability of the allowed claims, discuss weaknesses present within the allowed claims, and file a continuation application strengthening existing claims and adding new ones before the company requests the final patent to be issued.