045: Serving Up Cannabis Culinary Education with Rachel Burkons

For hospitality professionals, wine and spirits are a lifelong education. You can spend a lifetime learning about grape varietals, terroir, fermentation, and so much more. And in the world of cannabis, we’re just scratching the surface in many ways. You might ask yourself, what does the future of the culinary and hospitality cannabis industries look like? And what are the best ways to teach professionals and customers alike?   To answer these questions, we’re talking to Rachel Burkons. She’s the co-owner of Altered Plates, a cannabis hospitality group focused on onsite consumption. She specializes in CBD/cannabis-related culinary education, events, content creation, brand and product development, and culinary brand activations. She’s also the Executive Director for Crop to Kitchen, a trade organization serving the industry. In this episode, Rachel shares her insight into how this fast-moving industry is rapidly developing, the challenges and innovations that are facing cannabis businesses as the industry continues to grow, and how the “Cali sober” movement is poised to transform substance use in the years to come.  KEY TAKEAWAYS The similarities between wine and spirits education and learning about cannabis–and why both are lifelong journeys. Why a lack of legal, on-premise consumption creates a huge difference between beverage categories and cannabis. How Altered Plates introduces cannabis to customers through meals with cannabis pairings–and why cannabis-infused food is not the company’s focus. Why it’s not yet possible to legally take advantage of the possibilities in pairing cannabis with wine or beer. What on-site business operators will need to be aware of in order to keep their consumers safe. Recent developments in the nascent cannabis beverage segment–and why you’re unlikely to see these products at your local bodega anytime soon. The unique challenges of getting cannabis-infused fresh foods approved for sale. Show Notes For complete show notes, including transcripts, takeaways, and links to all the resources mentioned, visit SoHoExp.com/45 To learn more about the podcast and get access to all episodes, visit: SoHoExp.com/GreenRepeal