CBD products are becoming more popular in Connecticut, and a store completely dedicated to them has opened in Milford.
“It’s amazing. We’ve had an unbelievable response from the customers and the community here,” said General Manager Clayton Percy.
CBD is short for cannabidiol, a non-intoxicating chemical compound found in the cannabis plant and industrial hemp plants. One customer we spoke with says he uses it for chronic pain.
“I can sleep through the night, the pain is diminished and I actually feel so much better not taking the medication,” said Jeff Cianciolo of Prospect.
While marijuana is also a variety of the cannabis plant, hemp is different. By both federal and state law, hemp cannot contain more than 0.3 percent THC on a dry weight basis. THC is the psychoactive component of marijuana, which gets you "high.”
“We carry Broad Spectrum,” explained Percy. “We choose not to carry any products with any type of THC which is the euphoric end of the marijuana plant.”
Under the Connecticut Department of Agriculture’s Hemp Research Pilot Program, licenses have also been issued to farms to grow hemp.
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The industry is expanding. Another Your CBD Store is opening later this month in Southington.
“I think (the CBD business) is definitely heading up. Like big time,”” said Scott Zabka, president of the “Your CBD Store” franchise scheduled to open June 22 in Southington. “The projections where it’s going to go is pretty incredible.”
One of the owners of the Southington store acknowledged there are people who associate hemp with marijuana but asserts their product is non-intoxicating.
“I think knowledge is power so I just tell people you know, don’t pre-judge us until you start reading about us because we’re so different, unique,” said Amphone Zabka, owner of the Your CBD Store, Southington. “You get the health benefits without getting the high.”
