made two pounds of cannabutter, not one like the recipe called for. These cookies were moist and fattening, but also very very potent. I didn’t make it to the “wait 45 minutes to an hour and if you don’t feel anything or want to feel it more, have another half” stage. I waited 20 minutes. Needless to say, I was done baking cookies, but not done baking if you know what I mean. The bottom line, I could have used a cooking class of some sort or should have been a little more careful.
Cooking with cannabis isn’t new, and more and more mainstream organizations are starting to embrace this change in our society as cannabis has become legal. Locally, the Toronto area offers quite a few. Some like The Cannabis Cooking Company offers classes on learning to cook cannabis edibles on Fridays and Saturdays for $125 per session, with some recent dates already sold out. The Green Chef is another company offering to assist in making your edible dreams a reality. They offer assistance in obtaining a prescription for medical purposes as well, and guidance from MedReleaf, CannaConnect, and Veteran Affairs Canada. Recently, George Brown College (Toronto) Food Innovation and Research Studio (“FIRSt”), along with Lifford Cannabis Solutions, Dale & LEssmann LLP, Food Starter, and Restaurants Canada have jointly contributed toward the launch of the “Infused Innovations Initiative”. As their press release states, this collaboration brings together a unique fusion of professions to service the food and beverage entrepreneur who is seeking to participate in the cannabis edibles market. Tricia Ryan, Director of FIRSt says, “We are now hearing from numerous clients, almost daily, with an increasing interest in cannabis product development. At FIRSt, we’re able to help clients with professional sourcing, dosing and food safety issues in this burgeoning sector.” A one-day course to start, but perhaps we will be seeing more going forward, at least it sounds like it. After all, the edibles market is expected to be massive.
The global CAGR for cannabis-infused edibles is expected to be about 25% between 2018-2022. With the farm bill being passed recently, this number could explode. In California alone, consumers gobbled up more than $180 million worth of marijuana-infused food and drinks last year, 10% of the state’s cannabis sales, according to Arcview Market Research. The reason for the explosive growth is that as the pot market expands, it’s starting to reach people who don’t want to smoke. Overall the smoking rate among adults is down from 20.6% in 2009 to 16.8% in 2014. Edibles provide a discrete, smoke-free experience. And since they can command higher prices, edibles often account for 25 to 60% of a dispensary’s profits.
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