Whoopi eyes Canada for pot-infused creations
TORONTO Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s promise to legalize marijuana has grabbed the attention of many pot entrepreneurs — including Whoopi Goldberg, who’s eyeing Canada as a potential market for her line of cannabis-infused menstrual pain products.
Goldberg’s product line, which includes a THC tincture, a topical body rub, medicated bath salts and cannabis-infused cacao, is available only to medical marijuana patients in California.
But the comedian and talk-show host said she’d like to change that.
“It’s going to take a minute,” Goldberg said Monday, noting that making products available north of the border will require overcoming a number of regulatory hurdles.
“You have to go through lots of different conversations.”
Goldberg founded Whoopi & Maya alongside Maya Elisabeth, a California-based creator of medical cannabis products and the founder of Om Edibles.
In addition to cannabis, many of the products contain herbs and other natural ingredients — such as elderberries, cramp bark and ginger — that promise to alleviate some of the pain and discomfort women have during menstruation.
Goldberg said she was propelled into action when she heard that other celebrities, including Snoop Dogg and Willie Nelson, were entering the cannabis business.
“I said, ‘Is there anybody doing anything for menstrual cramps?’ ” she recalled. “And everyone laughed and said, ‘No, it’s a niche market, no one is going to do that.’ And I said, ‘But the niche market covers half the population.’ ”
The Sister Act star said the product line has been a hit since its launch in April, including with women from outside California who have sampled it while visiting.
“Women who have used the products have lost their minds and said, ‘Why can’t we get it here?’ ” said Goldberg.
Her message is that she’s working on it. But it’s too soon to say when or even if the products may be available in Canada. “We’re just getting our toenails wet,” she said.