By Arunima Kumar
(Reuters) – World’s largest pot producer Canopy Growth Corp on Thursday launched a new line of cannabis-infused soft chews and drops for dogs, after its partner and lifestyle guru Martha Stewart’s line of pet treats recorded strong sales last week.
Pot-based products, especially gummy bears, brownies and drinks, were the biggest beneficiaries of a demand windfall for weed companies last year, as COVID-19-related stay-at-home orders limited people’s entertainment options and raised stress.
Canopy and Stewart now eye dominating the market for cannabidiol (CBD) based pet products, estimated to reach worth C$460 million in annual sales by 2023, nearly triple of this year’s forecast of C$170 million by BDS Analytics.
CBD, a non-psychoactive compound derived mainly from hemp, is being researched for various medical applications and is widely advertised to have relaxing properties.
A Canopy Growth spokesperson told Reuters its e-commerce site Shop Canopy has had a record-breaking week, with traffic up in triple-digit percentage since Martha Stewart’s CBD-infused pet products were launched on the platform on Jan 26.
Canopy’s line of treats for dogs, SurityPro, will include soft chews marketed under four different categories — calm, active, multi and healthy aging. The line also includes oil drops in chicken, bacon and peanut butter flavors as well as unflavored drops.
Flavors in the SurityPro range of products will be different from Stewart’s line.
Canopy claims the products help make dogs calmer, improve joint health and flexibility, healthy aging, and enhance physical and mental well-being. The products will be available on Canopy’s e-commerce website and at Direct CBD Online.
(Reporting by Arunima Kumar and Shariq Khan in Bengaluru; editing by Uttaresh.V)
