Coca-Cola is contemplating a move into the cannabis drink industry as sales of traditional soda products lag, according to a report Monday from Canadian financial channel BNN Bloomberg.
“We are closely watching the growth of non-psychoactive CBD as an ingredient in functional wellness beverages around the world,” Coca-Cola spokesman Kent Landers wrote in an emailed statement to Bloomberg News. “The space is evolving quickly. No decisions have been made at this time.”
The drink company is reportedly in talks with Aurora Cannabis, Inc., a Canada-based marijuana producer that has expressed interest in entering the infused-beverage market.
CBD, short for cannabidiol, is the non-psychoactive ingredient in marijuana that is used for medicinal purposes such as treating chronic pain, anxiety, and epilepsy. While marijuana remains illegal at the federal level in the U.S., there is growing approval for use of CBD to treat pain.
Aurora Cannabis, Canada’s third-largest pot company, saw its stock shares jump 23 percent on Monday after reports of their potential collaboration with Coca-Cola. A deal would mark the first entry of a nonalcoholic beverage company into the market for cannabis products.
The beer brewer Corona has announced that it will spend $3.8 billion to increase its stake in another Canada marijuana production company, Canopy Growth Corp, while Guinness is in the midst of discussions with at least three Canadian cannabis producers, according to a report last month from BNN Bloomberg.
The move toward cannabis-infused drinks comes as Coca-Cola and other drink companies look to diversify their products as sales of traditional merchandise decrease. Coca-Cola acquired Costa Coffee for $5.1 billion in August, and the company has also expanded into juice, mineral water, and tea beverages over the past decade.
