Different businesses, stakeholders, and attendants gathered at the world’s largest cannabis conference and exposition last week, MJBizCon, were introduced to a new company, Black Buddha Cannabis (BBC). Roz McCarthy, one of the leading advocates in the cannabis non-profit sector, is the founder of the black-owned and social-equity-driven brand.

McCarthy started the cannabis wellness brand after integrating tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and cannabidiol (CBD) as part of her recovery program after suffering a traumatic brain injury that resulted from a car collision. One of the factors that inspired McCarthy to start the brand were Buddhist healing practices, including mantras and chanting, that her therapists and caregiver introduced to her.

The entrepreneur says she created the brand to make the shopping experience more straightforward for first-time consumers who wish to incorporate medical marijuana into their wellness routine. “When I walk into a dispensary, I get overwhelmed with all the product choices and options. I’m not there to get high; I just want to feel better,” McCarthy said in a press release.

The cannabis products from BBC are scheduled to be on store shelves by January 2022, so people will have to wait to light up their joint rolling papers until then. When they do hit the market in less than three months, though, BBC’s first products will be made of the following four profile blends:

• Zen

• Wellness

• Enlightenment

• Creativity 

The profile blends are available in pre-packed chillums containing 0.5 grams of cannabis and sold in packs of three. In the future, BBC hopes to include other products such as pain-relief topical roll-ons, Mix-in-Sips, and teabags.

McCarthy is just one of the latest cannabis enthusiasts investing in social-equity-driven cannabis business. As part of the black-owned business Players Only Holdings, Former NBA icon Chris Webber helped launch a state-of-the-art marijuana cultivation and training facility in Detroit.

Outside of BBC, McCarthy is also the founder and CEO of Minorities for Medical Marijuana (M4MM). M4MM is a non-profit organization established in May 2016 to help advocate, provide outreach, training, and research toward public policy, social reform, wellness, and business in the cannabis industry. One of their goals is to cultivate a culturally inclusive environment within the cannabis world. 

M4MM is just one of many groups focused on providing more opportunities to underrepresented communities. Recently, one of those organizations, The People’s Group, announced funding to promote diversity, equality, and equity in the cannabis industry. With more and more brands launching in the cannabis world, McCarthy and Black Buddha Cannabis hope to provide quality products to genuinely benefit the public.