CBD herbal tea vending machines across France from September onwards

Ferhat Alakocoglu, boss of Weed Paradise, has come up with the idea of marketing CBD in the form of herbal teas. through vending machines. We contacted him last week to ask him a few questions.

Production and legality

Mr. Alakocoglu sources hemp seeds and fibers from Swiss producers, which he then reworks in France to create an infusable powder form with cannabis flavors. The product, guaranteed preservative- and colorant-free, is completely natural. It comes in sachets priced at €2 each, and the shops where the dispensers are located provide the hot water.

For the time being, he only markets a variety of hemp with THC levels below 0.2%, in compliance with the law, but he intends to diversify, always respecting legal limitations. THC and CBD levels will soon be available on the company's website. THC levels are currently around 0.05%, and the idea is to reduce them as much as possible.

As far as legality is concerned, the entrepreneur has taken care to comply with the law in every detail, and has surrounded himself with specialist lawyers. He has contacted the local gendarmerie to assure them of the soundness of his approach, and is due to meet the mayor of Épinal soon on the subject. To avoid any drift, indications are given on the machine and an instruction leaflet accompanies the products.

It's surprising, however, that the product is marketed in an nightclub. With a festive clientele potentially consuming cannabis, we're concerned that the product will be diverted.

Eventually, the plan is to install dispensers in other leisure venues such as bowling alleys and concert halls. Once again, the under-age clientele may pose a problem. Despite the machine's design, which is designed to be out of children's reach, no one can guarantee that a 14 or 16 year-old won't access the product.

Ambitions

In any case, it seems that supply meets demand, since first automated dispensers, set up 10 days ago, were quickly emptied. Ferhat Alakocoglu intends to set up 100 more by the end of August and 240 by September, with the aim of expanding throughout the region and, eventually, throughout France via a franchise system.

Indeed, the boss of Weed Paradise now has a monopoly on automated CBD sales, thanks to the rights protection that places the concept under its intellectual property. However, he is open to partnerships, and merchants wishing to sell their products via his distributors need only contact him. He also plans to open a tea room soon, where he will diversify into the sale of CBD-derived products.