Having already created a proprietary technology to infuse cannabis into food and beverage products, Vertosa is looking to solve another problem: making those products taste good.
Last week, the Berkeley, California-based company announced the formation of a strategic partnership with global ingredient solutions provider Döhler to develop ingredient blends to complement its cannabinoid infusions. The deal, which includes investment from Döhler Ventures, gives Vertosa access to Döhler’s products and technologies to “co-develop innovative beverage formulations and proprietary infusion technologies,” according to a press release.
“We’re thrilled to support this collaboration,” said Dr. Sebastian Dreher, U.S. Venture Manager at Döhler Ventures. “The investment reflects the long-term commitment to both the relationship and product categories, being driven by the conviction in Vertosa’s professional management, thought leadership and market momentum.”
Despite the hype around cannabis as an ingredient in CPG, Vertosa CEO Benjamin Larson admitted that his company’s growth ambitions have been limited by the relatively small available market for its liquid emulsion and hemp powder. Getting access to Döhler’s 1,000–person R&D team should help accelerate its ability to take on some specific formulation challenges, such as creating flavors that complement plant-forward products. Being able to quickly test and assess the suitability of new inputs and processes will theoretically accelerate a path to market, Larson explained.
“Because we want to stay ahead of the curve, that’s where the partnership really kind of comes in handy,” he said. “We can kind of map out all those tests that we have learned to do, and maybe run six of them in parallel and realize that of the six new ingredients launched this year, three of them are interesting. That allows us to push R&D on the next three ingredients and see if we can get to something that is perfect for all these things that we’ve been talking about.”
The two companies will also co-develop IP together in the name of being “an even stronger partner” to its B2B clients, Larson added.
Areas for potential improvement range from the obvious (mouthfeel, flavor) to building palatable flavor profiles for high-dose products. Vertosa’s clients have been primarily in beverages – brands such as Cann, Lagunitas, Keef and Calexo – but its infusions can also be used for gummies, hard candies and other food items.
“The more we want to become a mainstream category that wants to leverage all these different opportunities, our ingredients have to become that much more sophisticated and it’s hard for a 20-person company to keep up with the speed of innovation and hopefully acceptance for the cannabis plant,” he said.
However, Larson, an Executive Vice Chair of the National Cannabis Industry Association and board member of the Cannabis Beverage Association, sees drinks as the key to opening the market thanks to its widespread use and acceptance.
“I think the entire industry’s best move is to bet on beverages and kind of let it go alone to create that opportunity of acceptance, and that should ease the opportunity for all the other form factors in cannabis in general,” he said.