Cannabis Drinks Expo announces speakers

Cannabis Drinks Expo, a new conference that will assess the “challenges and opportunities” the industry presents to drinks, has revealed its list of speakers.

The inaugural Cannabis Drinks Expo will be held next year

Hosted by Beverage Trade Network, the Cannabis Drinks Expo will take place in San Francisco on 25 July 2019 and will be the first event of its kind.

The exhibition and conference will “give worldwide drinks industry, and North America in particular, the chance to come together and look at ways it can start addressing what has been described as the biggest ever threat to its future”.

The headline speaker for the inaugural event will be Bruce Linton, chairman and CEO of Canopy Growth Corporation – Canada’s largest producer of marijuana. Linton will speak about the “future perspectives” of the industry in North America.

Other speakers at the event include mixologist and journalist Warren Bobrow; Omar Figueroa, founder of the Law Offices of Omar Figueroa and cannabis law expert; and Alex Howe, co-Founder and COO of Rebel Coast Winery.

A key theme of the event will be the crossover appeal of cannabis with the much larger alcoholic drinks industry, as well as the relationship between the US and Canadian cannabis industries.

The speakers will “focus on the political, legal and medical factors behind the rise to prominence of the industry – as well as the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead”.

There will also be a trade show floor, allowing new and up-and-coming cannabis drinks producers, brand owners, distributors and retailers to network.

“We are extremely excited that Bruce Linton will be joining us at the inaugural Cannabis Drinks Expo,” said Sid Patel, founder and CEO of Beverage Trade Network. “His insights about the future of the industry are extremely important and valuable.”

Last week, US drinks group Constellation Brands poured an additional US$4 billion into Canopy Growth Corporation – the largest investment in the cannabis industry to date.

Earlier this year, the largest wine and spirits distributor in North America, Southern Glazer’s Wine & Spirits, created a subsidiary exclusively for the representation of cannabis products in Canada.

The unit, called Great North Distributors, has entered into a partnership with cannabis producer Aphria to distribute its products throughout Canada once recreational cannabis use is legalised.

For more information on the burgeoning legal cannabis sector and its impact on spirits, see our in-depth feature here.