Pubdate: Mon, 20 Oct 2014
Source: Chicago Sun-Times (IL)
Copyright: 2014 Sun-Times Media, LLC
Contact: http://mapinc.org/url/5QwXAJWY
Website: http://www.suntimes.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/81
Author: Becky Schlikerman
Page: 8

A POT- POURRI OF OPTIONS

EDITOR'S NOTE: Selling medical marijuana to people with serious 
illnesses soon will be legal in Illinois. The Sun- Times wanted to 
see how the process has been working so far in Colorado, a state 
where it's already legal to sell marijuana to any adult, and focus on 
a business there that wants to win one of the coveted licenses to 
grow marijuana in Illinois.

DENVER- When a customer seeking medical marijuana comes into the 
dispensary on Colfax Street, Jamie Murray wants to know: How do you 
want to feel?

Each type of marijuana has different effects.

"If somebody wants to feel a little bit more stimulated, I'm going to 
point them in the direction of the sativa. If they want to feel a 
little bit more euphoric, I'll go with a hybrid. If they want some 
pain relief or [ feel something] nice and relaxing, I'll send them to 
an indica," said Murray, a "budtender" or a patient consultant at the 
be Mindful dispensary.

"And then I'll let them pop the top and check them out for themselves 
because the nose will know."

It's a concept that may seem unfamiliar to seriously ill people in 
Illinois currently using marijuana to help with symptoms of their 
severe condition. They have few choices and often shady circumstances 
to deal with when they want the product.

But that's soon going to change.

And as Illinois begins to implement its medical marijuana program, 
Denverbased be Mindful, along with its Illinois partners, is working 
hard to get some of the coveted licenses to operate medical marijuana 
dispensaries in the state. The group is one of 214 businesses seeking 
the licenses, of which 60 will be granted statewide, with 13 in Chicago.

The dispensary, marked by a green cross, is on a busy road in 
Denver's Mayfair neighborhood.

On one side of the store are the medical products - smokable buds in 
small glass containers; infused chocolate and gummy bears; tinctures 
and transdermal patches - and it's only available to patients 
approved by Colorado officials.

On the other side is the more expensive recreational marijuana, 
available to anyone 21 and older.

Murray's knowledge goes beyond just type of marijuana - different 
strains offer different relief for patients based on the cannabinoids 
that are in effect.

For instance, cancer patients can use the strain "Head Trip," a 
sativa that acts as a "motivator" and appetite stimulant, he said. 
"Triangle Kush" can help with pain relief.

And for a "midday euphoria," "Sour Diesel and Deep Chunk," a hybrid, 
is what you want, Murray said.

"It's going to start really relaxing but finish in the mind. It has 
the best of both worlds," he said.

For medical marijuana, be Mindful was charging $ 8.62 for a gram in 
early September. An ounce was $ 172.35. Illinois patients will be 
able to buy 2.5 ounces every 14 days, according to state rules.

In the kitchen

Several miles away in a bustling kitchen, chefs are making marijuana 
infused candy like the ones sold in the dispensary.

Joshua Fink, the executive chef at the edible marijuana products 
business, called incredibles, is tasked with creating tasty food 
products that are infused with hash oil or kief, an extraction of the 
THC crystals. THC is one of the psychoactive elements of cannabis. 
The "earthy" tasting product is mixed in with traditional ingredients 
like sugar, cocoa and gelatin to create recreational and medical "edibles."

Here in Illinois, beMindful is partnering with the head of a Chicago- 
area food science company with plans to create tasty food that is 
held to the same standards as non-infused snacks.

The goal of the company is to create products, such as marijuana- 
infused beverages, on a mass scale. They want to sell their food- 
grade products to all 60 dispensaries planned for Illinois.

Just another business on the block

Back on Colfax Street, the dispensary is just one of many businesses 
on the block. It's next door to a hair salon and a Cuban restaurant. 
Around the corner is Emick's Auto Service.

David Emick , who owns the shop and whose family is the dispensary's 
landlord, said the area is safer because of the dispensary and its 
extensive security system, which includes cameras. Illinois 
dispensaries will be required to have cameras and a panic button or 
similar system in case of emergency.

The dispensary, especially since recreational marijuana became legal 
in Colorado, attracts a lot of customers, which can mean more trash 
and noise, Emick said. But it also means some other businesses get 
some of the clientele too.

Initially, though, there were some concerns.

"How is this going to affect my business as far as being adjacent to 
it? How will my clients look at me having a pot shop next door?" Emick said.

"Nobody cares."
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom