NetworkNewsWire
Editorial Coverage: The widening legalization of products based
on psychogenic mushrooms looks set to create a whole new strand of
functional foods and medicines.
- The widening legalization of psilocybin, an active ingredient
in mushrooms, is allowing producers to create new foods, drinks and
medicines.
- Major research institutions and investors are throwing their
weight behind this growing trend.
- Psilocybin has potential as both a mental health medicine and
an ingredient in wellness foods and drinks.
Canadian company Champignon Brands Inc. (CSE: SHRM)
(SHRM
Profile) is one of the first to provide such products
and is securing listings in the United States and Germany as it
sets out to expand its product line. Such products could soon be on
shelves alongside the likes of Beyond Meat Inc. (NASDAQ:
BYND), which provides healthy, plant-based alternatives to
traditional foods and drinks. To do this, mushroom companies will
need to reach retailers such as United Natural Foods Inc.
(NYSE: UNFI) and Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ:
AMZN) subsidiary Whole Foods Market, which cater to
environment- and health-conscious customers. In addition, these
companies will also be looking to get social eateries and cafes
such as Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ: SBUX) to
add to their offerings.
To view an infographic of this editorial, click here.
Make Room for Mushrooms
With the legalization of medical cannabis in many jurisdictions,
regulators and businesses are re-examining which natural drugs are
legally available for consumers. Mushrooms, with their powerful
ability to affect brain chemistry, look set to become the next
major legalization drive in America.
Businesses and investors are moving to make the most of this
space. Like the mushrooms themselves, new companies are springing
up out of fertile ground. These companies aim to provide customers
with the health benefits that mushrooms can bring, while providing
investors with opportunities in this nascent market.
The ‘Shroom Boom
Among these companies is Champignon
Brands Inc. (CSE: SHRM), one of the only public
companies focused entirely on a mushroom-to-market strategy.
Champignon offers consumer packaged goods (CPGs), currently in the
form of a range of teas, that make use of functional mushrooms and,
as such, provides an opportunity for entry-level exposure to the
burgeoning boom in mushroom products.
Champignon is committed to cultivating and distributing
artisanal medical mushrooms and the CPGs derived from those
mushrooms. As a legal market, this is new territory, and Champignon
is a young company. The company recently successfully completed its
initial public offering of more than 18 million common shares at a
price of $0.15 per share for total gross proceeds of more than $2.8
million. The company’s common shares were listed on the Canadian
Securities Exchange beginning February 27, 2020. After being halted
pending completion of the IPO, the common shares resumed trading on
the CSE on March 2, 2020, under the symbol SHRM. The company is
also in the process of securing a listing in Germany as it seeks to
establish an early presence in both North America and Europe.
This broad approach looks to be a savvy strategy for this
emerging presence in the functional mushroom sector. While the
legal cannabis market has become most firmly established in North
America, it is now expanding into other parts of the world, and
companies are rushing to broaden their presence to keep up. Laying
the global groundwork now should position Champignon to make the
most of the high-profile American market while also reaching other
high-value, health-conscious consumers around the world.
Legalizing a Powerful New Medicine
Key to the work of Champignon and other functional mushroom
companies is psilocybin. A naturally occurring chemical, psilocybin
can be found in hundreds of types of mushrooms, providing ‘shrooms
with their psychedelic qualities. While the power of psilocybin has
been well-recognized for decades, its medical potential is now
being fully explored and unlocked.
This mushroom momentum is driven by growing acceptance from
medical professionals and institutions. Thomas Insel, former
director of the U.S. National Institute of Mental Health, and Paul
Summergrad, former head of the American Psychiatric Association,
are both on the board of advisers for Compass Pathways, a leading
psilocybin company. Johns Hopkins, one of America’s most
prestigious research universities, has established a new
psychedelic research center focused on examining the potential of
such chemicals, largely funded
through the efforts of angel investor Tim Ferriss.
Ferriss isn’t the only high-profile investor to have taken an
interest in the tasty fungi. Bruce Linton and Kevin O’Leary are
seed investors in MindMed, while Peter Thiel
has invested in Compass
Pathways. Wild as it might seem to outsiders, Champignon is
working in a field with growing scientific and financial
credibility.
The market available to companies such as Champignon has long
been limited by laws restricting the use and sale of psilocybin
mushrooms and their derivatives. Now those laws are starting to
change.
Denver, Oakland, and most recently Santa Cruz
are among the places that have already decriminalized psilocybin.
Some of the same people who championed those changes are now
involved in wider efforts, with campaigns for decriminalization in
areas such as Oregon and Iowa. In November 2019, Decriminalize
California teamed up with the Beckley Foundation to replicate the
success of decriminalization in Oakland throughout the state of
California. Vermont, Michigan and Washington have also commenced
movements toward legalization.
The case for legalizing shrooms isn’t the same as for cannabis.
While some of the same arguments about health benefits and personal
choice are fielded, psilocybin legalization doesn’t involve the
huge potential tax benefits or the massive implications for the
criminal justice system. Companies such as Champignon aren’t
looking to tap into the same huge painkilling market as THC and CBD
products. Instead, these companies occupy a smaller but still
significant niche focusing on supporting mental health, where it is
believed that psilocybin could create new treatments and
potentially radically improve the lives of sufferers.
Support for legalization isn’t clearly divided along party
lines. Peter Thiel is a Trump ally while a recent attempt to make
research easier was pushed by radical Democrat Alexandria
Ocasio-Cortez. Like hemp farming, this is an industry with
potential to reach across the political divide.
Building a Strategy Around Medicine
As psilocybin legalization grows, so has
R&D, with studies into how to refine and synthesize the
chemical taking place alongside product development. This research
element is a critical part of Champignon’s strategy.
Any company developing products within the health and wellness
sector needs a medicinal IP strategy in order to provide the unique
products and medical advances that make a medical company stand out
— both to customers and investors. Champignon’s plan is to use
laboratory experiments to develop a way of biosynthesizing
psilocybin, with the aim of reaching this milestone marker within
the first three months of experiments. This would allow optimized
and scaled production of pharmaceutical grade psilocybin.
With efficient, large-scale production, the company will be able
to deploy its products in clinical settings, thus staking a serious
claim in the medical market.
Like cannabis, psilocybin products have value not just in the
clinical space but also in the retail one. Functional foods and
beverages are growing in popularity thanks to cannabis and CBD, and
psilocybin provides an opportunity to diversify this $200 billion
sector with new and distinctive products.
Functional drinks such as Champignon’s
Vitality Superteas and its upcoming
mushroom-infused cold brew coffee are a natural entry point for
psilocybin into this sector. Both of these one-of-a-kind product
offerings will reach a broader market and raise awareness of
mushrooms’ emerging potential. Champignon plans to use a mix of
national brick-and-mortar distribution, e-commerce and online
influencer marketing to raise the profile of its products and build
a strong, loyal customer base.
Developing New Plant Products
Many companies are working on innovative ways to use plants for
greater health, among them Beyond Meat Inc. (NASDAQ:
BYND). The company’s meat substitutes are designed not
just to reduce CO2 emissions, thereby protecting the planet, but
also to provide consumers with healthier food options. As with
functional beverages, the company’s innovation has taken a lot of
R&D work to produce, creating products that are strikingly
similar to meat but made entirely out of plant materials.
To reach the large audiences they seek, companies such as Beyond
Meat and Champignon need to get onto the shelves of retailers such
as United Natural Foods Inc. (NYSE: UNFI). As a
food wholesaler with a focus on health and sustainability, United
Natural Foods has repeatedly been
recognized as a top green provider. This distinction draws the
sort of consumer base that is interested in plant-based wellness
and food products.
Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN) has an important
place in this sector, not just because of its status as the world’s
default online retailer but because of its purchase of Whole Foods
Market. Functional foods fit naturally with the organic and whole
foods market, and are often found on the same shelves. Whole Foods
Market stocks functional foods, and its growing network of shops
means that the demand for healthier foods is growing.
Functional foods and beverages also have a place in cafes, and
the likes of Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ: SBUX)
may soon be serving functional beverages alongside the global
staple that is coffee. Starbucks is constantly innovating, developing new drinks to provide variety for its
customers. Champignon’s collaboration with Drip Coffee on a
mushroom-infused cold brew coffee is just one example of how these
products can be combined.
With legalization spreading and investors providing fresh
funding, the ‘shroom boom is set to add another strand to the rich
whole-foods and wellness sector.
For more information on Champignon Brands Inc., visit Champignon
Brands Inc. (CSE: SHRM)
About NetworkNewsWire
NetworkNewsWire
(“NNW”) is a financial news and content distribution company, one
of 40+ brands within the InvestorBrandNetwork (“IBN”), that
provides: (1) access to a network of wire
solutions via NetworkWire to
reach all target markets, industries and demographics in the most
effective manner possible; (2) article and
editorial syndication to 5,000+ news outlets; (3)
enhanced press release solutions to ensure maximum
impact; (4) social media distribution via IBN
millions of social media followers; and (5) a full
array of corporate communications solutions. As a multifaceted
organization with an extensive team of contributing journalists and
writers, NNW is uniquely positioned to best serve private and
public companies that desire to reach a wide audience comprising
investors, consumers, journalists and the general public. By
cutting through the overload of information in today’s market, NNW
brings its clients unparalleled visibility, recognition and brand
awareness. NNW is where news, content and information converge.
To receive SMS text alerts from NetworkNewsWire, text
“STOCKS” to 77948 (U.S. Mobile Phones Only)
For more information, please visit https://www.NetworkNewsWire.com
Please see full terms of use and disclaimers on the
NetworkNewsWire website applicable to all content provided by NNW,
wherever published or re-published: http://NNW.fm/Disclaimer
NetworkNewsWire (NNW)
New York, New York
www.NetworkNewsWire.com
212.418.1217 Office
Editor@NetworkNewsWire.com
NetworkNewsWire is part of the InvestorBrandNetwork
DISCLAIMER: NetworkNewsWire (NNW) is the source of the Article
and content set forth above. References to any issuer other than
the profiled issuer are intended solely to identify industry
participants and do not constitute an endorsement of any issuer and
do not constitute a comparison to the profiled issuer. The
commentary, views and opinions expressed in this release by NNW are
solely those of NNW. Readers of this Article and content agree that
they cannot and will not seek to hold liable NNW for any investment
decisions by their readers or subscribers. NNW is a news
dissemination and financial marketing solutions provider and are
NOT registered broker-dealers/analysts/investment advisers, hold no
investment licenses and may NOT sell, offer to sell or offer to buy
any security.
The Article and content related to the profiled company
represent the personal and subjective views of the Author, and are
subject to change at any time without notice. The information
provided in the Article and the content has been obtained from
sources which the Author believes to be reliable. However, the
Author has not independently verified or otherwise investigated all
such information. None of the Author, NNW, or any of their
respective affiliates, guarantee the accuracy or completeness of
any such information. This Article and content are not, and should
not be regarded as investment advice or as a recommendation
regarding any particular security or course of action; readers are
strongly urged to speak with their own investment advisor and
review all of the profiled issuer’s filings made with the
Securities and Exchange Commission before making any investment
decisions and should understand the risks associated with an
investment in the profiled issuer’s securities, including, but not
limited to, the complete loss of your investment.
NNW HOLDS NO SHARES OF ANY COMPANY NAMED IN THIS RELEASE.
This release contains “forward-looking statements” within the
meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended,
and Section 21E the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended and
such forward-looking statements are made pursuant to the safe
harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act
of 1995. “Forward-looking statements” describe future expectations,
plans, results, or strategies and are generally preceded by words
such as “may”, “future”, “plan” or “planned”, “will” or “should”,
“expected,” “anticipates”, “draft”, “eventually” or “projected”.
You are cautioned that such statements are subject to a multitude
of risks and uncertainties that could cause future circumstances,
events, or results to differ materially from those projected in the
forward-looking statements, including the risks that actual results
may differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking
statements as a result of various factors, and other risks
identified in a company’s annual report on Form 10-K or 10-KSB and
other filings made by such company with the Securities and Exchange
Commission. You should consider these factors in evaluating the
forward-looking statements included herein, and not place undue
reliance on such statements. The forward-looking statements in this
release are made as of the date hereof and NNW undertakes no
obligation to update such statements.
Source:
NetworkNewsWire
Contact:
NetworkNewsWire (NNW)
New York, New York
www.NetworkNewsWire.com
212.418.1217 Office
Editor@NetworkNewsWire.com
Amazon.com (NASDAQ:AMZN)
Historical Stock Chart
From Mar 2024 to Apr 2024
Amazon.com (NASDAQ:AMZN)
Historical Stock Chart
From Apr 2023 to Apr 2024