The title is no click-bait. Coca-Cola might soon purchase weed. Yes, you read that right. With an eye on the growing market of cannabis and products related to it, the soft drinks giant is looking to ride on the rising trend and sell cannabis-infused drink.
Except that the drink won’t get you high. Sorry to break this down to you. The drink that Coca-Cola is looking to produce would be infused with cannabidiol (CBD) – a non-psychoactive ingredient in marijuana that treats pain but doesn’t get you high.
According to a report by Bloomberg, Coca-Cola is working on a deal with Aurora Cannabis Inc. – a Canadian firm that deals in marijuana. While nothing is finalized yet, Coca-Cola might soon purchase weed to roll out its own cannabis drink.
Once Coca Cola’s interest in the Cannabis industry was made public, the shares of Aurora Cannabis rose by as much as 23%. The surge in value, however, wasn’t just limited to Aurora Cannabis as other firms in the industry, including Tilray Inc, also got a boost.
Cannabis Drinks Market
The soda industry isn’t the best performing industry at the moment, which is primarily why Coca-Cola is willing to enter the cannabis drinks market. In a statement to Bloomberg News, Coca-Cola spokesman Kent Landers said,
“The space is evolving quickly”
It isn’t the only beverage maker to enter this market, though. Cannabis-related ingredients are in trend these days, and most beverage companies are looking to capitalize on it.
In the same report, Bloomberg mentioned that two beer companies – Molson Coors Brewing Co. and Diageo – are already in talks with a few cannabis producers, and may soon strike a deal. Heineken, meanwhile, has already launched a non-alcoholic drink which contains active marijuana ingredients.
Coca-Cola And Drugs
While the news that Coca-Cola might soon purchase weed may come as a surprise to most of you, those familiar with the company’s history would know that it has done something similar before.
The Atlanta-based company’s drinks once contained a significant dose of cocaine in it. When, you ask? Well, more than a century ago. In the late 19th century to be precise.
Also Read: Crazy & Innovative Marketing Tactics Coca-Cola Used Worldwide & Saw Huge Success
Although the company still denies this fact, there are evidences to prove that the drink did contain cocaine at one point in time. Cocaine was legal in the US until 1914, and it was believed then that cocaine had a lot of health benefits. It was used to cure a variety of ailments.
It was only in 1903 when the beverage maker decided to withdraw cocaine from all its beverages after widespread protests from the public.
Coca-Cola Looking For Alternatives
With the implementation of soda taxes in some states of the US, Coca-Cola is looking for alternatives and it has found one in cannabis-drinks.
The ingredient that will be used in the cannabis drink would be cannabidiol, which is already used in a number of places as a food supplement. According to the Economist, it has properties which help with anxiety, chronic pain, and mood disorders.
Over the past decade, Coca-Cola has already expanded its business to produce juice, tea, and mineral water. In August, the company announced a deal to acquire Costa Coffee chain for a record $5.1 billion.
Coca-Cola seems to be in a mood of some experimentation, and the kind of experimentation it is looking for is fancy, to say the least. A cannabis-infused drink. Who would’ve thought of that?
Image Credits: Google Images
Sources: Bloomberg, Quartz, The Economist + more
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