Maximum Yield Cannabis USA February/March 2018 | Page 75

There are probably more cannabis laws than there are
cannabis strains, but Elemental Wellness, open since
2010, continues to expand its membership, products, and
services to new levels. For clients not well enough to drive
themselves to the dispensary, Elemental Wellness also
offers delivery services.
“The teenage years of marijuana are over,” says Peterson,
explaining the association of marijuana with hippies,
stoners, tie-dyed T-shirts, and the smell of patchouli are
long gone.
In 2018, now that California legalized the sale of recreation-
al marijuana to people over the age of 21, he says the stigma
surrounding marijuana will soon go up in smoke and become
a distant memory, like prohibition.
There are more than 350 premium products and high-quality
cannabis medicines to choose from at Elemental Wellness.
The menu includes cookies, chocolate bars, lozenges, bath
salts, balms, beverages, concentrates, clones, seeds, and
accessories to help alleviate a variety of health problems
from itchy skin to insomnia. Women will find cannabis-in-
fused feminine care products to relieve PMS and menopause,
while seniors can find relief from sore joints and muscles in a
cartridge containing kush.
Suffering from anxiety or lack of appetite? Try a Blueberry
Bite by Lifted Bite, perfect for small doses. Got a migraine?
Rub some CBD lotion on your temples. Looking for a little
euphoria? Go for the crunchy caramel popcorn.
“Cannabis is an alternative,” says Peterson. “It’s a natural
element that you can add to your life.”
All products contain varying levels of THC, while others
deliver on the CBD. This is where free private consultations
with certified health care professionals at El emental
Wellness come in handy, either on site or via Skype.
Because cannabis has been considered black market
medicine, even 20 years after it was legalized for anyone
with a doctor’s note, Peterson says the vast majority of
people aren’t aware of its benefits or how to use it properly.
myhydrolife.com
E “ ducation is going
to be important...
We want to educate you on how to
consume it in a responsible way.”
“As an industry, we’re way behind,” he says. “Education
is going to be important.” Eventually, Elemental Wellness
hopes to install a museum-style educational kiosk at the
dispensary, but for now, members trust the experts to answer
any questions they might have about medicinal cannabis. All
kinds of information and helpful resources can also be found
on the company’s website.
“We want to educate you on how to consume it in a
responsible way,” says Peterson. “I think dispensaries will
double as classrooms.”
Despite being pushed in 2015 from a business park to the
industrial outskirts of San Jose, alongside a recycling plant
and a gravel yard, as well as competing with illegal delivery
services and confusing laws that change constantly, Elemental
Wellness sees more than 500 members a day and already
has the market mapped out post-Proposition 64. While
the government breaks its back over new packaging and
distribution laws, Peterson says Elemental Wellness is working
on its own brand packaging that appeals to the wider market.
“That’s going to be the journey in the years to come,” he says.
grow. heal. learn. enjoy.
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