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Daily news and analysis about the food tech revolution

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Jelly Belly Creator Launches (and Sells Out of) CBD-Infused Jelly Beans

Ever since I blindly got a vomit-flavored jelly bean from the Bertie Bott’s Every Flavor Beans box, I’ve been pretty wary of the candy.

But that might be about to change. The creator of Jelly Belly, David Klein, has launched a line of jelly beans infused with cannabidiol (CBD), the non-hallucinogenic compound in cannabis (h/t USA Today). The beans come in 38 flavors including many Jelly Belly-inspired favorites, like my personal ride-or-die roasted marshmallow. There are also sour and sugar-free options, and each bean has 10 mg of CBD.

Kelin’s company, Spectrum Confections, sells the jellies in bulk: each order includes a whopping 800 beans, so it’s probably not for the casual candy or CBD lover, unless you’re stocking up for a 4/20-slash-Easter party for the books.

Even if you are, you’re out of luck. All beans are already out of stock, but Spectrum Confections notes on their website that they are still taking orders over phone and email.

Putting CBD into jelly beans is a pretty sweet idea (sorry). Demand for the non-hallucinogenic cannabinoid, which some herald for its healing and relaxation properties, is high.

However, CBD’s rise is somewhat hampered by the fact that the FDA still considers it to be an illegal food ingredient, meaning it’s technically not allowed to be sold in food or drinks. That hasn’t stopped companies from making and selling everything from CBD-infused chocolates to sodas. However, recently New York City health inspectors cracked down on local shops selling food products with cannabidiol, so really it’s just unclear what exactly is allowed and what’s not in the CBD edibles space.

Clearly that lack of clarity isn’t stopping Klein, or his jelly bean-loving customers.

Analyst: Starbucks Could be the First Major Chain to Launch CBD-Infused Drinks (Eventually)

Cannabidiol (CBD) — the non-hallucinogenic ingredient in cannabis meant to promote relaxation — could be headed to your neighborhood Starbucks.

Well, eventually. This week financial services company Cowen released a report predicting the CBD market could be worth $16 billion by 2025. More interestingly, it hinted that Starbuck’s could be one of the first major chains to offer cannabidiol-infused drinks.

In the report, Cowen analyst Andrew Charles noted that Starbuck’s probably wouldn’t adopt CBD in the “near term,” which makes sense since no major chain will put it on their menu until the FDA gives its stamp of approval. However, he went on to write that, should the regulation of CBD change, “we could envision Starbucks ultimately piloting the ingredient.”

That’s pretty theoretical language. Starbuck’s hasn’t made any indication that it’s actually exploring cannabis-infused beverages. In an interview with CNBC, Starbucks CEO Kevin Johnson stated that Starbucks was aware of the edible/drinkable cannabis trend, though it didn’t have any immediate plans to pilot any drinks with THC or CBD.

It seems like the Cowen report called out Starbuck’s less because of any concrete hint from the company and more to illustrate a future in which CBD is so mainstream, it’s available somewhere as ubiquitous as Starbuck’s.

However, it will likely be a while yet before that’s the case. Though CBD-infused beverages have been popping up at local coffee shops and bodegas for some time, the chemical hasn’t been approved as “food-safe” by the FDA (despite its becoming legal with the passage of the Farm Bill in 2018).

Up until recently most CBD edibles sellers have been operating under the radar with little to no consequences. However, last month New York City health inspectors cracked down and put a citywide embargo on selling food or drink infused with CBD. The ban was recently delayed until this summer.

The FDA likely won’t approve CBD as food-safe by then, and some see the NYC crackdown as a bellwether for more restrictions on the sale of cannabidiol-infused food and drinks. But that doesn’t negate the fact that demand for the non-hallucinogenic ingredient is on the rise, thanks in part to celebrity endorsements and the recent “wellness” movement.

We’ve written before that despite all the buzz surrounding CBD beverages, it’ll likely be a while before it’s ready for the mainstream.

“High” Tech: CBD Can Be Made with Genetically Engineered Microbes (AKA Yeast)

When you think of what yeast can do, your mind probably goes to bread or beer. But in a paper published today in Nature, scientists from UC Berkeley announced that they had successfully created the chemical compounds in marijuana — both THC and CBD — from bioengineered microscopic fungi. AKA yeast. (H/t Quartz.)

To do this, the team of scientists extracted THC and CBD genes from cannabis, then implanted them in yeast (specifically Saccharomyces cerevisiae, the same yeast used to brew beer and wine). When the yeast is put into a liquid solution with the sugar galactose and other nutrients it outputs the chemical compounds in marijuana.

Basically, scientists can now grow cannabidiol (CBD) in a lab.

There are a few benefits to this. According to Quartz, producing THC and CBD via genetically engineered yeast is cheaper than extracting the chemicals from hemp or cannabis plants (over 99 percent cheaper, in fact). That means that companies purchasing these chemical compounds to make, say, CBD-infused soda, can pass those savings onto consumers. While CBD products aren’t astronomically expensive right now — a twelve-pack of that CBD soda will set you back fifty bucks — but if they want to reach a larger audience, a cheaper price tag can’t hurt.

Secondly, using this technology scientists can create new cannabinoids, ones that could be tweaked to have specific effects (e.g., high levels of relaxation). Finally, creating THC and CBD in a lab could reduce the surprisingly high environmental footprint of cannabis crop cultivation, both indoors and outdoors. However, as with cultured meat, there is a counter-argument that keeping the lab running requires a level of energy tantamount to just producing the crop the old fashioned way.

Bioengineered yeast is opening doors for scientists to grow all sorts of food ingredients in labs. Perfect Day is using yeast to produce dairy-free milk. Impossible Foods uses genetically engineered yeast to make heme, the molecule that makes their burgers ‘bloody.’ And earlier this week, new company Motif Ingredients launched (with a cool $90 million in funding) to use yeast to create proteins to replace animal products.

This innovation is coming along at an exciting time for CBD. After the passage of the Farm Bill in late 2018 made hemp-derived CBD legal in the U.S., analysts (ourselves included) began predicting that 2019 would be the year of CBD. It’s unclear if CBD derived from genetically engineered yeast — as opposed to hemp — will be legal, and regulators probably won’t tackle that can of worms for a while.

This news got me thinking. I wonder if we’ll see major cannabis and hemp companies pushing back against CBD made in a lab, much as we’ve seen big meat producers take issue with cell-based meat calling itself “meat.”

More immediately, this sort of research could help shed more light on the properties of CBD and maybe even accelerate the process for the FDA to decide if cannabidiol is a food-safe ingredient.

Prima Raises $3.3M to Educate Consumers, Regulators about The Benefits of CBD

Yesterday prima, a wellness brand championing the use of CBD, announced it had closed a seed round of $3.3 million. The round was led by Lerer Hippeau, with participation from Greycroft and other undisclosed investors.

As of now, the website is just an email signup form to request early access to the site. The Santa Monica, CA-based prima plans to launch an education platform to share data and research about CBD and, eventually, sell CBD-infused products. (If you’re not familiar, CBD is short for “cannabidiol,” the non-hallucinogenic chemical compound in cannabis.)

According to Techcrunch, prima will initially peddle beauty and pain-management products. This entry point makes sense. One of prima’s founders, Christopher Gavigan, previously co-founded The Honest Company, a wellness brand which sells nontoxic beauty and household products. Besides beauty products, down the road, prima will add edible products to its lineup, including powders that can be added to everything from coffee to water. Each blend will have a different intended effect, such as sleep, energy, or immunity.

It’s a tumultuous time in the CBD market. The passage of the Farm Bill in late 2018 legalized sales of hemp-derived CBD, but the FDA has yet to approve CBD as GRAS (Generally Recognized As Safe). In other words, it’s not exactly legal to sell food products infused with CBD.

Up until recently, however, regulators seemed to have been turning a blind eye to companies selling things like CBD-infused gummies or skin serums. But the tides may be changing. Just this week, the New York City Health Department issued a ban on CBD in food and beverage items and cracked down on local NYC establishments selling CBD-infused products.

That’s where the platform aspect of prima could really do some good. According to a press release from the company, prima wants to help lead the global transformation from “fear-based cannabis prohibition into a hemp industry fueled by facts, market data, medical research, customer-patient experiences, and evolving legislative solutions.” Essentially, prima want to help de-stigmatize CBD and re-label it as a wellness ingredient, not an intoxicant.

Though they don’t provide any details on how they plan to achieve this mission, there’s one reason that Gavigan can help move the needle on CBD acceptance for one reason: his resume. Gavigan’s past experience at the Honest Company — which built its brand on transparency and ethical, non-toxic products — could give prima a boost not only in terms of media buzz, but also consumer trust. True, his co-founder was Jessica Alba, who did a lot of heavy lifting to give Honest Company its status, but just being associated with the brand will work in Gavigan’s (and prima’s) favor.

On the regulatory side, Gavigan told Fortune that the startup also plans to work with the FDA to push CBD products labeled as a nutritional supplement — though again, he didn’t give any details.

We predicted that 2019 would be a big year for CBD. In fact, over the next three years, the CBD market is expected to grow to as much as $22 billion. However, continued regulatory hurdles and health department crackdowns would put a serious damper on what has the potential to be the next big wellness ingredient. Hopefully prima will be able to use its pedigree to destigmatize CBD for consumers — and maybe even get the FDA to play ball.

Introducing The Spoon Slack Chats! First Topic: CBD

Did you know we have a Spoon Slack channel? No? Well, we do! It’s a place where our community can connect, talk about news and emerging startups, and discuss food tech trends from grocery delivery to robotic restaurants.

We think our Slack channel is a really valuable resource and want to put it to good use. So we’re launching a series of Slack chats, each exploring a dedicated topic or trend that we’re seeing a lot of in the food innovation space.

First up? Cannabidiol, also known as CBD. The buzzed-about ingredient has been making a splash in the health & wellness communities, popping up in everything from beers to candies to dog treats to face creams. And with the passage of the Farm Bill, which legalizes sales of hemp-derived CBD around the country, we’ll likely only see more of this ingredient in 2019.

Our first Slack Chat will be on January 18th, from 10:30 am – 11:30 am PST. We’ll have folks from marijuana edibles company Kiva, hemp elixir company Lumen, and marijuana dose validation startup TraceTrust to help lead the discussion and answer your questions about CBD.

Who’s the target consumer for CBD products? What sort of impact is it having on the culinary landscape? What exactly is CBD, anyway? Mark your calendars and join us on January 18th to find out!

P.S. You have to be signed up for our Slack channel to join. To do so, head here to fill out a quick form.

The Farm Bill Just Passed — What Does That Mean for the CBD Market?

After months of back and forth, Congress voted yesterday to pass the 2018 Farm Bill. The $867 million bill contains lots of wide-reaching legislative measures, like expanded farm subsidies, SNAP revisions, and permanent funding for farmers markets. But perhaps most interestingly, the bill legalizes the production and sale of hemp at a federal level. And where there’s hemp, there’s CBD.

CBD (cannabidiol) is the non-psychoactive ingredient in cannabis. It can be derived either from hemp or straight-up marijuana, two different strains of the same plant (though hemp contains very little THC). Until now, legality of the substance was unclear at best: Though legal to buy in the 47 states where CBD sales are legal, it was still considered a controlled substance by the DEA.

But the passage of the Farm Bill has the potential to rapidly grow the already buzzy CBD market. The bill rewrites the definition of marijuana to exclude industrial hemp, essentially removing hemp-derived CBD from the DEA’s list of controlled substances. It also gives each state the power to decide if it wants to allow the sale of CBD products made from hemp.

There’s clearly a demand for the trendy ingredient, which, its proponents believe, can do everything from reducing inflammation to treating anxiety and depression. As of now, the majority of the roughly $800 million U.S. hemp market is for CBD products. CBD is showing up in beer, gummies, and skincare creams, spurred by media buzz around the substance as the next wellness miracle “drug”. And there’s no sign it’s going to slow down any time soon. The CBD market is projected to hit between $2 billion and $3 billion in sales by 2021.

According to a Consumer Reports interview with Colleen Keahey, the President of the Hemp Industry Association, legalizing hemp in the U.S. could mean “doubling or tripling domestic cultivation within the next year.” Though Ms. Keahey’s job as the President of the Hemp Industry Association means that her predictions should be taken with a grain of salt, I wouldn’t be surprised if it turns out to be justified.

Now it’s up to farmers to meet this growing demand. Since hemp will now be a regular commodity crop, like corn or soybeans, farmers are also able to buy federally subsidized crop insurance and invest in advertising — neither of which they could do before the Farm Bill. Hemp will also be eligible for institutional funds, meaning farmers can grow their farms more quickly and invest in new equipment. Combine these points, and the hemp market is indeed about to experience a boom.

It’s not all rainbows and pots (ha) of gold yet, though. The production and distribution of hemp-derived CBD may now be legal, but that doesn’t mean it will immediately start popping up in more and more consumables. The biggest reason: the FDA still considers CBD to be an illegal food ingredient.

So while farmers can now legally grow hemp across the country to produce CBD, according to the National Law Review, it is “not allowed in food” — though that hasn’t stopped plenty of companies from making CBD-infused products anyway. But until the FDA gives the thumbs-up to CBD, we likely won’t see Big Food brands (like Coca-Cola, who was rumored to be exploring a move into the cannabis drink market) releasing any products with it.

The bill will now head to President Trump’s desk, where he’s expected to sign it. This next year will be a critical test to see if the Farm Bill will indeed be as pivotal for the CBD market as many hope.

The Future of Cannabis Edibles is Wellness, Not Recreation (Podcast)

“The [cannabis edibles] consumer is probably not who you think it is,” said Linda Gilbert, formerly Managing Editor, Consumer Insights cannabis data company BDS Analytics. “The average age of a cannabis consumer is 42. This is not an 18 year old living in his parent’s basement.”

As marijuana legalization expands, so does its consumer base. More and more users of all ages and backgrounds are looking to experiment with this trendy new ingredient — but they’re not necessarily coming to it in order to “get stoned.” Many turn to cannabis as a natural way to take the edge off of anxiety, manage their pain, or just relax. “They’re doing it for more health and wellness reasons than recreational purposes,” emphasized Gilbert.

But unless they’re a historic marijuana user, they don’t necessarily want to smoke something. Instead they’ll turn to edibles. “[There’s a] cultural shift of acceptance,” said Merril Gilbert, founder of cannabis dosage labeling company TraceTrust. And more and more companies — even Big Food companies — are starting to notice.

Scott Riefler, VP of Science for cannabinoid company Tarukino, pointed out that cannabis is rapidly becoming a food ingredient in its own right. “It’s something that can be added to the culinary experience,” he said. In fact, cannabis can be a functional ingredient in everything from wine to chocolates. And as it becomes more widely legalized, its applications (and user base) will spread.

In this conversation from Smart Kitchen Summit 2018, I talk with these three panelists about the burgeoning cannabis edibles market — and where we can expect it to grow from here.

You can listen to the podcast by clicking play below, download here or find it on Apple Podcasts.

Stillwater’s CBD Powder Lets Food Manufacturers Turn “Anything Into an Edible”

If you’re looking to try trend du jour CBD (cannabidiol), the non-hallucinogenic chemical in marijuana, you’ve got a lot of options these days: the trendy ingredient is making its way into sparkling water, beer, candies, and even dog biscuits (okay, you probably won’t try the last one).

Companies big and small are hustling to take advantage of burgeoning consumer demand for CBD. Major beverage corporations like Molson Coors, Lagunitas, and Constellation Brands have all been developing drinks infused with the trendy ingredient. Even Coca-Cola is exploring ways to make use of CBD (though they won’t pull the trigger until the substance is legal throughout the U.S.).

“All of these [Big Food] companies are looking at it or at least talking to people about it,” said Jeremy Goldstein, co-founder and COO of Stillwater Brands, a company that makes cannabis edibles and drinkables. With good reason: Hemp Business Journal estimates that the CBD market is projected to grow by a whopping 700 percent by 2020, hitting $2.1 billion in sales. Greenwave Advisors, an independent research firm focused on the cannabis market, estimates CBD sales will hit almost $3 billion by 2021.

Based in Colorado, Stillwater’s products are targeted at a “new” sort of cannabis edibles consumer: someone who wants to experiment with marijuana in a way that’s safe, predictable, and consistent — and also tastes good. Everyone has had the experience where they ate too much and it “hit them like a ton of bricks,” said Goldstein. Their main product is Ripple, a tasteless, water-soluble powder that lets people turn “anything an edible,” according to Goldstein. By making Ripple water-soluble, Stillwater increased the speed of onset, so consumers will feel its full effects within 15 minutes and can decide whether or not they want to take more.

Stillwater Brands’ gummies and powder.

Thus far, all of Stillwater’s products have had at least some THC (the psychoactive element in cannabis) in them. But starting next year, Stillwater will launch an all-CBD version (less than .3 percent THC) of Ripple’s tasteless, odorless powder. And that’s where Stillwater’s business plan starts to get more interesting — and more complicated.

In order to make a CBD-only product, Goldstein told me they have to use a new facility that’s entirely separate from the one they use to make their products that contain THC. That’s because the regulatory framework is different depending on whether or not an edible contains THC and CBD, or CBD only; products that contain THC can only be made and sold in states where recreational marijuana is legal (as of now, that’s just 10 states plus D.C.), and you can only purchase them from a licensed dispensary.

The legality of CBD-only products, on the other hand, is very murky. The FDA recently approved a purified form of CBD as a treatment for certain seizure disorders, but they haven’t investigated it in a recreational context — which means it’s illegal on a federal level. Nonetheless, plenty of companies still ship CBD products, from fruit beverages to mango-chili chocolates, across state lines. As of now, there haven’t been any legal repercussions for these companies, but some, like Dirty Lemon, are backing away from the space, wary of liability issues.

Stillwater is already selling their water-soluble CBD product wholesale. Their B2B ingredients business, Stillwater Ingredients, currently provides CBD to two major food manufacturers and “five to ten” smaller clients in the U.S. (Goldstein didn’t disclose exact numbers), and also partners with a major Canadian cannabis company.

Like many other companies that make cannabis edibles (or drinkables), Stillwater frames their products as wellness tools — not party drugs. That stance goes double for products with just CBD, which many believe it has anti-inflammatory and calming effects (though it hasn’t yet been tested by the FDA).

Entering the wellness industry is a smart move: the global market is estimated to be around $4.2 trillion. By marketing their edibles as wellness tools, almost like vitamins, Stillwater can also capture a wider range of consumers than traditional “stoners.” According to Goldstein, their target demographic is anyone who might use a sleep aid, struggle with anxiety, or have difficulty focusing at work. In short: pretty much everyone.

If the 2018 Farm Bill, which is reportedly nearing the finish line, passes, Stillwater might soon be serving a lot more of these consumers. The bill would legalize sales of hemp-derived CBD nationwide, opening the floodgates for the cannabidiol market and bringing many more players, wholesale and otherwise, to the table. It could even pave the way for Big Food to release CBD-infused products. Until then, come next year, you can use Stillwater’s Ripple to edible-ize anything your heart desires, from apple juice to zucchini bread.

Despite “High” Interest, CBD-Infused Drinks Not Ready for the Mainstream

Expectations have been riding high for CBD-infused beverages. CBD (cannabidiol), the non-psychoactive ingredient in marijuana that’s meant to promote relaxation and fight inflammation, has been popping up everywhere from beer to chocolate to dog treats.

Lately, CBD has been making an especially big splash in the beverage space. Sparkling water drink Recess, which contains 10 mg of CBD per can, frames itself as a relaxing, focus-inducing drink for the afternoon work slump. Major beverage corporations like Molson Coors, Constellation Brands, and Lagunitas have taken steps to develop drinks infused with CBD. The non-hallucinogenic extract is also showing up in lattés, non-alcoholic wine, and carbonated drinks.

A variety of cannabis-infused edibles.

But the rise of CBD-infused drinks might not be as straight a shot as it seems.

A few months ago rumors circulated that Coca-Cola was in talks with a Canadian marijuana producer to create cannabis-infused beverages. The move was seen as a way for the soda giant, which is trying to diversify its portfolio amidst a decline in soda sales, to tap into the fast-growing market of healthy, low-sugar beverages like tea and kombucha.

However, it seems that for now their cann-ambitions have cooled. A few days ago, the soda giant’s CEO told the Wall Street Journal that the company “won’t use cannabis-derived ingredients in the U.S. or elsewhere until they are legal and there is a scientific consensus that they are safe for daily consumption.”

They’re not the only high-profile company to run up against regulatory challenges for CBD sales. In late June of this year, fancy water startup Dirty Lemon released a product called +cbd. Each bottle contained 20 mg of the non-hallucinogenic cannabis extract, and was aimed at the “wellness” market. Earlier this week, BevNet reported that the company would discontinue sales of their +cbd drinks “until the regulatory framework around hemp-derived CBD is clarified on a federal and state level.”

According to the piece, Dirty Lemon ceased sales of +cbd because the contradictory laws made manufacturing and distribution prohibitively tricky. “Most essential services, such as banks, credit card processors, insurance companies, co-packers and even freight carriers are limiting exposure to the ingredient until clear regulatory guidance has been issued at both the Federal and State level,” he wrote to BevNet. “We’re following the same strategy moving forward.”

Combined, these two pieces of news will likely harsh the mellow of those who thought CBD beverage mania about to hit its heyday. But honestly, anyone who thought that cannabis-infused beverages — hallucinogenic or not — were on the brink of becoming as commonplace as a can of Bud Light was overly optimistic.

As of now, recreational marijuana use is only fully legal in three countries — Canada, Uruguay, and Georgia — plus nine U.S. states and Washington, D.C. It’s still very much illegal at the federal level, and when it comes to CBD the law is pretty murky. The FDA recently approved a purified form of CBD, but only to treat certain seizure disorders. There hasn’t been much research done on the health benefits — or safety — of THC or CBD in a recreational edibles context.

In our panel on cannabis edibles at the Smart Kitchen Summit last month, the speakers pointed out that shipping edibles is a tricky process: they aren’t allowed to cross state lines, even between two states in which marijuana sales are legal. It makes sense that mega-companies like Coca-Cola are hesitant to dip their toe into an industry that isn’t legal across their entire market, or even in Georgia, where their headquarters are based.

Things could change pretty quickly if the 2018 Farm Bill, which would legalize sales of hemp-derived CBD in all 50 states, passes. But no need to bug out: until then, if you want to sip on a CBD beverage you can seek it out at a dispensary (where legal) or order a 6-pack of Recess — which doesn’t seem to have run into the same issues as Dirty Lemon — online.

Food Tech Roundup: CBD, Butterballs and Resy!

With Halloween in the rearview mirror and eggnog now on store shelves, we have officially entered the holiday season.

Dunh-dunh-DUNH!

Fear not, for we at The Spoon are here to help you with your connected cooking this season, whether that’s through cooking tips or… some supplemental help. Speaking of which…

The 411 (420?) on CBD
Derived from cannabis, CBD is all the rage and is being infused into everything from chocolates to beer to water and potentially even Coca-Cola products. Supposedly the wonder substance CBD can supposedly reduce inflammation and help with anxiety.

But does it, though? I mean, really? Or is it just another example of snake oil in a new package?

Vox has put together a pretty great primer on the state of CBD that you should read. Here’s a tasty nugg from that story to pique your interest “CBD is about as poorly regulated and understood as a product this popular can possibly be. It’s not accurate to say that CBD, as a whole, is bullshit. From a medical perspective, it’s promising; recreationally, it’s interesting. But that doesn’t mean the stuff you’re buying works.”

Alexa Adds Butterball Skill
Whether it’s your first or fiftieth time cooking turkey — there’s no shame in getting a little help when you need it. In a move fit for our digital age, in addition to its famous hotline, Butterball now has an Alexa skill to give you guidance with your bird.

As The Takeout writes, using Alexa connects you with an automated assistant to answer basic cooking questions by using just your voice. So your hands can be otherwise elbow-deep in a turkey, or filled with giblets and you can still get the answers you need.

RUMOR: Resy to Aquire Reserve
Eater reports that online reservation platform Resy is set to acquire rival table booker, Reserve for an undisclosed sum of money. The source of the rumor is Chicago restauranteur, Nick Kokonas (owner of Alinea) who also just happens to have his own reservation system called Tock. Kokonas also claims to have looked at a Reserve acquisition earlier this year, but passed on it. Both Resy and Reserve declined to comment.

UPDATE: The New York Times reports that Resy did indeed acquire Reserve. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

For a Fast-Growing Cannabis Edibles Market, Trust is Key

When you’re curious if a food is organic or non-GMO, you look to see if there’s a label. If so, you know the item’s entire supply chain has been examined, tested, and verified by a reliable organization.

TraceTrust is working create the same sort of third-party certification for an emerging food product: cannabis-infused edibles. Started three years ago by Merril Gilbert and Rhiannon Woo, the California-based company came about right as their state was on the cusp of legalizing marijuana. Originally, they wanted to develop an entirely new type of edible: one targeted not at stoners, but a modern consumer who wanted to experiment with cannabis in a way that was subtle, reliable, and regulated.

Their target consumer group was women who wanted to use marijuana to relax or relieve pain, but didn’t want to smoke it or eat something with a heavy, overwhelming cannabis flavor. The two women got a clear, flavorless oil and gave it to pastry chefs to turn into baked goods, but quickly realized a big problem: when mixed into cookies or candies, it was really difficult to gauge potency.

“Unpredictability is the biggest issue facing the edibles market,” Gilbert told me over the phone. So TraceTrust shifted gears and began focusing on dosing. They now work with manufacturers and labs to test each edible and ensure that its advertised doses of CBD (non-psychoactive) and THC (psychoactive) are accurate and consistent. TraceTrust also examines the product’s packaging and consumption instructions to make sure they’re easy to understand. This is especially important for items which contain multiple servings, like a chocolate bar, where each square contains a prescribed cannabis dose.

If a product checks all the boxes, then TraceTrust will give the product a special seal of approval, called A True Dose. Basically, it signifies that the edible is made with reliable strains of marijuana and that each serving will contain exactly the dose it advertises.

A True Dose is currently in beta and will launch nationwide in January 2019. Starting then, manufacturers in any state where marijuana is legal can pay TraceTrust a fee to get their products certified. If they pass, they’ll earn the A True Dose seal to put on their packaging and marketing materials; if not, the TraceTrust team will work with them to correct any issues. “Overall, it’s very similar to non-GMO or any third party seal,” said Gilbert.

Gilbert predicts that as edibles become more widely legalized and, thus, normalized, labels like this will play a much larger role. “Anything that says, ‘We went further, we did more, we care’ is going to win consumers,” she said. They’re hoping that the A True Dose label will become a point of differentiation for brands, so they can charge more if their product sports the seal.

As we’ve written about previously on the Spoon, cannabis is rapidly becoming normalized and de-stigmatized; the same goes for edibles. Gone are the days of stale weed brownies — nowadays, consumers can get their high from a variety of beverages (beer, soda, coffee, even sparkling water), candies, chocolates, and more. Even Big Food and Drink companies are getting in on the game: Molson Coors, Heineken, and even Coca-Cola have all teamed up with cannabis companies to create marijuana-infused beverages.

“We’re beyond the stoner culture now,” said Gilbert. “But what makes people hesitate when it comes to edibles is the unknown.” Hopefully, TraceTrust can help cut through the haze of smoke currently covering cannabis edibles.

Gilbert will be speaking at the Smart Kitchen Summit on a panel entitled “Edible Cannabis: The New Functional Food?” She’ll be joined by Scott Riefler of Tarukino, an innovation group which develops cannabis-infused beverages, and Linda Gilbert of BDS Analytics, who tracks and analyzes the marijuana consumer market. If you’re interested in learning more about the future of edibles, don’t miss it!

Cannabis-Infused Beer is New Hot Edible (Er, Drinkable) Trend

Have you ever wanted to roll your vices together to make one uber-vice? No? Well now you can — sort of.

Companies are capitalizing on marijuana’s march towards widespread legalization by developing new ways to ingest Mary Jane. One method in particular that’s on the rise is cannabis-infused beverages, from beer to soda.

Brewery behemoths have read the writing on the wall, and are scrambling to capitalize on marijuana legalization. The Wall Street Journal reported that Colorado-based beer giant Molson Coors will team up with Canadian marijuana grower The Hydropothecary Corporation to make a non-alcoholic, cannabis-laced drink for the Canadian market. They’re hustling, since Canada will legalize recreational-use pot on October 17th, and marijuana edibles will become legal in 2019.

This move comes a few months after Constellation Brands, the company behind Modelo and Corona beer, took a minority stake in Canadian marijuana producer Cannabis Growth. In June, Heineken-owned Lagunitas teamed up with CannaCraft to make Hi-Fi Hops: two cannabis-infused beverages made with varying levels of THC (the psychoactive chemical in marijuana) and CBD (the relaxing chemical). The inventor of Blue Moon beer partnered with Ebbu to launch a THC-infused beer in Colorado.

Though they might be called “beer,” no cannabis-infused beverages on the market are actually alcoholic. Instead, they’re marketed as an alternative to booze; they’re meant to give the same relaxing effects in social situations, minus the calories and hangover. The majority of these beverages have a relatively low dose of THC, CBD, or both — around 5 grams — which is enough to bring on a buzz for most people, but not so much that you’ll pass out on the sofa after eating an entire box of Girl Scout cookies.

But cannabis beverages aren’t limited to beer (or “beer”). California Dreamin’, a company which makes marijuana-infused sodas in flavors like grapefruit and tangerine, raised $2.3 million in funding this week. Investors include famed startup accelerator Y Combinator and Paul Buchheit, creator of Gmail. The San Francisco-based startup markets its sugar-free, gluten-free wares as a social beverage and “a healthy alternative to beer.”

Seattle’s Cafe Hitchcock Express offers lattés infused with CBD, the non-psychoactive chemical in cannabis. Californian Rebel Coast Winery offers a Sauvignon Blanc which contains THC; their website promises the relaxing effects of alcohol, but with fewer calories and no hangover. Keef makes sparkling beverages with marijuana, which they market as “the go-to social option for people looking for a low-calorie, sugar free alternative to alcoholic beverages and sugary cannabis-infused edibles.”

It’s no surprise that these companies are scrambling to get a piece of the consumable cannabis pie. As we wrote in our piece on edibles earlier this year, cannabis-infused food and drink account for 18% of California’s marijuana sales, according to a Green Market report. Everyone, from emerging startups to CPG giants, is experimenting to figure out how to ride the wave as marijuana becomes legalized in more and more places.

This is especially critical for alcohol-peddling companies, which are experiencing a dip in sales in states where marijuana is legal. A study by Georgia State University in December 2017 found that alcohol consumption dipped by 15% in areas with access to legal marijuana. By developing a pot product of their own, companies hope to capture some of the booming cannabis market — or at least not let it disrupt them quite so much.