A promotional appearance by Whoopi Goldberg highlighted the first Cannabis Means Business conference and expo at the Javits Center in New York on June 4-5. The event was formerly called CWCBExpo.
The View host and cannabis entrepreneur came to hype her latest product, Whoop-Tea, which is hemp-derived.
Goldberg's previous efforts in cannabis were Whoopi & Maya and Emma & Clyde. She's hoping her third time will be the charm.
"My whole thing was to find a way to help women get through period cramps," she explained in a discussion with CNBC's Tim Seymour on June 4. "We [Whoopi & Maya] created it because that's what I needed. As it turned out it was great for any kind of muscle issue. We just wanted to create something that made the world better."
About the Whoop-Tea brand, created in association with New Jersey-based Pure Genesis, Goldberg explained:
"I like iced tea. I don't drink alcohol. They said, 'What do you want?' I said, 'I want iced tea.' They made iced tea. You can walk with that can. You can sit on the beach with that can. Nobody's gonna be mad at you if you drop that can 'cause it's not going to break. You must have it chilled. Who drinks warm iced tea? Nobody. You don't want it in a glass, you want it in the can. It's a great everyday drink. It's not too much, it's not too little. It's just right."
Goldberg noted she'll drink six cans containing 10 mg each over a weekend. The beverage is half tea and half lemonade.
"Because it's hemp-derived, people can feel comfortable drinking it. Because people are afraid. They don't quite know how to handle it. When you say hemp, people are more comfortable. No, it's not for your kids. But it is for the 70-year-old who just wants to drink that iced tea in peace. Or the 25-year-old who just wants a great thing in their hands while they're walking trying to pick somebody up. If they are under 18, no."
Goldberg: "When you say hemp, people are more comfortable."
Seymour called the beverage "a door opener into the sector" and referred to 10 mg as a microdose.
"The word 'microdose' scares people," Goldberg added. "It's like you're giving them drugs. That's part of the reason why we're trying to give it a different feel so people will understand what we're saying to them. It's like having a cocktail. But there's no alcohol. If you want a light buzz, this is what you're looking for... this is your drink."
Seymour didn't mention the controversy over hemp-derived beverages.
According to Vicente, "New York and Connecticut have effectively eliminated many hemp beverage products from the market by imposing a strict 1 mg THC limit per serving, rendering most current formulations nonviable. California has gone even further by banning intoxicating hemp products outright, citing concerns over misleading marketing practices, child safety risks, and the absence of adequate product testing regulations. Idaho and Alaska have taken similarly stringent approaches, prohibiting all THC-containing hemp products, including those that comply with federal definitions of hemp under the 2018 Farm Bill."
In Texas, a bill to ban hemp-derived products that utilize a chemical process to create Delta 8 and Delta 9 THC is currently on the governor's desk.
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