As the CBD market is booming, full-spectrum CBD companies like Veritas Farms Inc. (OTC: VFRMD) profit, while others explore the alcoholic beverages niche
Whether its drinks, chocolate gummies or beauty products – cannabis provides exciting product innovations that revolutionize traditional categories. According to industry reports and the growth opportunities they offer, it looks very good, especially for the CBD market. According to the market analysis of Brightfield Group, the CBD market in the U.S. alone could reach $22 billion by 2022.
Companies that explore the CBD niche already profit. Veritas Farms Inc. (OTC: VFRMD) that produces and currently distributes eight categories of hemp oil-derived products (dietary supplements, gummies, cosmetics, products for pets), was founded in 2015 and since then has experienced consistent growth. They recorded more than $2.9 million in revenue by Q2 2019, which is a 500% increase in comparison to Q2 2018. Their gross profits have risen by almost 800% up to $1,523,413 in just four years of operations. This has allowed them to reduce liabilities by over $1.3 million which is an impressive achievement.
Veritas Farms owns its own supply chain which allows them to control the quality of the product all the way. They even made it possible for the customers to check the quality status thanks to a QR code packaging they released recently. Veritas’ approach focused around honesty, transparency and delivering high-quality full-spectrum CBD products, which brings tremendous results. They are well on track to be one of the CBD sector’s big success stories.
Other companies carve out the CBD niche even further and focus on the food and beverage sector. The alcoholic beverages industry draws special attention as a few companies have released CBD versions of traditional alcoholic drinks such as wine or vodka.
With the increasing legalization in more and more US states, sales figures for alcohol were predicted to fall. However, a look at the current US market proves the opposite: CBD and THC are also used in the beer, wine and spirits categories. Instead of “either-or”, “both” is the formula for success.
What is exciting is the fact that as legalization expands, the number of consumers trying cannabis for the first time rose by 140 percent in 2018. Among them, baby boomers are the fastest-growing cohort, according to the Eaze State of Cannabis Report.
Industry giants such as Diageo are still cautiously observing this development. “On cannabis, we’re just tracking it, it’s at a very early stage. We’re looking at the sector, it’s nascent and we just want to understand the consumer behavior”, explains Diageo’s Chief Executive Ivan Menezes to the Guardian. In the niche, they are more courageous and prefer new, interesting combinations instead of competition between cannabis and alcohol.
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The pioneer: Wine meets Weed – Rebel Coast Winery
Studies prove it: The market for so-called Mindful Beverages, drinks without alcohol, is on the upswing. Younger consumers, in particular, drink alcohol more consciously and are open to alternatives – even in the evening. The Rebel Coast Winery can be seen as a pioneer among cannabis drinks. The Californian winery already launched a Sauvignon Blanc with THC content for its young target group in the USA in 2018. The special: The alcohol in the wine is removed in advance in order to be mixed with water-soluble THC at Ebbu, a company for the production, research, and analysis of cannabis products from Colorado. The result: a wine that, with 5 milligrams of THC per glass, has a slightly stimulating effect without causing the classic hangover.
The Noble: House of Saka’s Sparkling Rosé
The House of Saka from the Californian Nappa Valley shows that cannabis can not only get high but also perform high-end. The own, sparkling rosé wine is a combination of red and sparkling wine, consisting of a combination of Pinot Noir, Pinot Meunier, and Chardonnay grape varieties.
The alcohol is first extracted and then mixed with an emulsion of THC and CBD. The result is described as a “vitalising, pure and relaxed experience”, which is also vegan. House of Saka is using Millennials with its product, which have a proven preference for rosé in the USA. Saka Wines CEO, Tracey Mason, sees great potential in cannabis for the food and beverage industry. She explains to Forbes magazine the benefits of her water-soluble cannabis formulation, which is much more readily noticed by consumers than edible products such as brownies and the like. The effects of Saka wine could be felt within ten to 15 minutes, but without the risk of the wrong dosage. In spite of all this, the cannabis drink business still needs a sure instinct. Due to California’s regulations on packaging, the products are not declared as wine, but “Sparkling Pink” and “Saka Pink”.
Weedka – vodka with weed flavor
Weedka from Amsterdam was presented at this year’s Wine & Spirits Show in London and stands for an innovative cannabis product from Europe. Unlike the wine examples, it is still a spirit with alcohol, which contains no THC, but the taste of cannabis.
The cannabis oil provides its own flavor and comes from California. The fact that psychoactive substances play no role makes Weedka accessible to the European market. Under the motto “Live The High Life”, the website proposes recipes for “Weedka Mule” or “Skinny Bitch”.
The examples show that the opportunity potential for beverage brands in general and for alcohol brands, in particular, lies in highlighting the social aspects of beverages and moving them into the health & wellness market. With a view to a young consumer group that consciously consumes alcohol or do without it altogether, the beer, wine, and spirits industry can reach a health-oriented target group of wellness enthusiasts above all with cannabidiol, which, unlike THC, does not have the psychoactive effect but is known for numerous health-promoting characteristics. The next generation of alcoholic beverages is free of hangovers and low in calories.
