COOK- John and Heather Chaulklin, of Cook, already had a thriving e-commerce business selling natural health supplements and other items when they purchased the former propane gas building at the corner of East Vermilion Dr. and 1st St. E this past spring.
The Chaulklins opened The Natural Choice in June to make their products accessible regionally to walk-in customers. The self-titled “smoke shop” carries assorted glass pipes, bongs, and vaping products, but also stocks all-natural health and wellness supplements, including a wide array of products containing cannabidiol, or CBD, a non-psychoactive ingredient derived from marijuana.
And when edible gummies and drinks containing another marijuana derivative, THC, became legal in Minnesota on July 1, the Chaulklins hopped on board.
“The gummies that we’ve got right now are five milligrams of THC with a maximum of 50 milligrams per package, according to state law,” John Chaulklin said. “We also have a punch-flavored THC powder that you put in water. We’re adding products here weekly, and we plan on growing this thing as big as we can grow it.”
Chaulklin described the demand for THC products, including those with both THC and CBD, as “fantastic” and said he and Heather are a bit surprised at who’s coming in to buy them.
“We thought it would be a little bit younger crowd, but it’s actually the over-50 crowd,” John said. “Our demographics are probably 90 percent of people over 50. They’re using it for medicinal purposes and a bit recreational. They’re using it for arthritis issues, using it for anxiety issues and restful sleep. They’re coming back and buying more and telling their friends and we haven’t even advertised yet.”
The Chaulklins’ THC products vary in their effects based on the type of THC they contain. Those with sativa-derived THC produce energizing and anxiety-reducing responses, while indica products induce relaxing effects and may also help reduce nausea and pain.
“People are coming and going all day long and we love the testimonials of what’s working, and what’s not. Let me be clear, this isn’t for everybody,” Chaulklin said. “We don’t give medical advice. We’re not licensed to do that. But I like to tell people be cautious, because it’s something new.”
The Chaulklins currently have three primary suppliers for THC edibles and drinks. Minny Grown is a Cannon Falls-based provider that grows and manufactures their products in Minnesota. The Chaulklins get gummies from Texas-based Hometown Hero, a company they chose because they use a portion of their proceeds to support veterans organizations. Hometown Hero made over $100,000 in donations to such groups in 2021.
Their third supplier is a new Tower-area family-based business, HOBOTE, owned by Jim Galonski.
“HOBOTE stands for healing ointment, body oils, and therapeutic edibles,” Galonski said.
While Galonski plans to expand his offerings, THC products are his first entry into the market. His gummy line, Unforgedibles, and a power drink mix, Tranq, are manufactured out of state according to Minnesota legal specifications, and Galonski serves as the distributor.
Galonski has gone through the registration and background checks required by the MN Department of Agriculture to be a CBD farmer, he said, but while establishing that is still an ongoing process, the legalization of THC products in Minnesota provided an alternative to get rolling with HOBATE.
Chaulklin and Galonski both believe in strictly adhering to Minnesota law regarding THC edibles and drinks.
“Everything I do, I’m going to be legal, I’m going to follow Minnesota law,” Galonski said.
“I do my due diligence because we live in this community, we know everybody in this community,” Chaulklin said. “I believe what we’re doing here is good for the community and a good alternative to pharmaceuticals, so we have to do what’s best.”
Lax enforcement
That THC edibles and drinks were made legal in the last legislative session came as a surprise to many Republican legislators who didn’t notice the provision tucked into a larger health and human services bill that was hundreds of pages long.
“They pass these bills, but they don’t read them,” Chaulklin said. “They just vote with the party line. This goes to prove that because nothing was said about it, nobody really knew about it.”
One aspect may have benefited from more scrutiny, and that’s the part of the provision that assigned enforcement authority for THC products and sales to the state Board of Pharmacy, which is set up to license pharmacies and pharmacists. The Board has only 23 employees and wasn’t allocated any additional funds to hire more for the additional tasks of regulating the potency, packaging, and age requirements of the new THC products. Compounding the challenge is the fact that the new law doesn’t require a license to manufacture, distribute or sell THC edibles and drinks, greatly expanding the number of possible sites that would require regulation and enforcement activities.
And apparently, given Chaulklin’s experience thus far, the Board of Pharmacy is overwhelmed, as he hasn’t received even basic guidance about the bill’s provisions.
“I haven’t gotten anything from them, not an email, not anything,” he said. “I do research on my own. We don’t want to be doing anything we shouldn’t be doing.”
But in the absence of a robust enforcement provision, others may not be as conscientious as Chaulklin and Galonski.
“I know that there are some smoke shops that are selling some pretty crazy stuff right now,” Chaulklin said. “It’s concerning because I see other places that don’t care, they’re just in it for a fast buck, and that’s not good for guys like us that really want to do what’s good for the community and do it 100-percent legit.”
Galonski said the Board of Pharmacy needs more resources to ensure that THC products sold throughout the state are in strict accordance with the law.
“There’s no enforcement,” he said.
Chaulklin agrees and added that he would like to see a system of licensing for producers and businesses selling THC products that he believes would eliminate suspect products and level the playing field.
“We don’t even need a license to sell this stuff, which is crazy,” he said. “That doesn’t make any sense to me. You need a license for everything, so why don’t you need a license to sell THC products? They need a license and then they can keep the riff raff down, if you will.”
Both believe the Legislature will dive more deeply into the THC issue in the 2023 session. Chaulklin said he anticipates more regulations and laws, while Galonski believes it’s possible that an additional tax on THC products could be imposed which could significantly erode profit margins. And given the controversy that erupted after the passage of the authorizing bill and some of the unscrupulous practices he’s observed elsewhere, Chaulklin is prepared for another possibility.
“They could shut this down at the next legislative meeting,” he said. “We don’t even know yet. There’s still people who think this is bad.”
But the testimonials from Chaulklin’s customers serve to reinforce his belief in the health benefits of THC products, and since the future is unpredictable, the best thing to do is to stay the course.
“We’ll keep plugging away, we’ll keep adding new products weekly and monthly,” he said. “We’ll see where it goes. It shouldn’t be going away anytime soon.”