California-based Plus Gum continues to make progress with its initial spearmint-flavored cannabis-infused product, now sold as singles and in packages of six, and has unveiled a new flavor, tropical. The company describes its gum, which contains 25mg of THC per piece, as fast-acting, low-calorie and discreet. Forbes interviewed CEO Jake Heimark, who graduated from Brown just five years ago, worked for Facebook and then a startup founded by a teenager before launching his own company.
Heimark described his entry into the industry, which was sparked by the realization of an opportunity, and how his involvement with accelerator Green Labs in Denver helped him to define it more specifically. His approach to delivering oral THC dosing gets around two challenges with edibles, including their typical high-caloric value and the slow onset. His process, which isn’t yet patented but will be soon hopefully, was extremely difficult to develop.
The company moved from Colorado to the larger California market and is in the middle of a seed funding round after having already invested several hundred thousand dollars. The interview includes several other interesting aspects of this rapidly growing cannabis startup.
Read Susan Adams’ “This Facebook Alum’s Gum Startup Is Chewing Off A Piece Of CA’s $2.7B Medicinal Cannabis Market”: http://www.forbes.com/sites/forbestreptalks/2016/06/14/this-facebook-alums-gum-startup-is-chewing-off-a-piece-of-cas-2-7b-medical-cannabis-market
