Coca-Cola ‘in talks’ to develop cannabis-infused beverage

Soft drinks giant Coca-Cola may be embarking on the cannabidiol (CBD) wellness trend with the release of a beverage infused with the pharmaceutical ingredient.

CBD can be used for medicinal purposes and is said to aid in various ailments including chronic pain, stress, anxiety and epilepsy. It is non-psychoactive, meaning it is not possible to induce the high found in normal smoking cannabis, which is caused by a compound called THC.

The company is said to be in talks with Canadian producer Aurora Cannabis regarding the development of the new drink.

Canada is preparing to follow in the steps of a number of American states with the legalisation of marijuana and there are already a number of CBD-infused drinks available in the US.

CBD products are slowly making their way into the UK market as earlier this year, Holland and Barrett became the first high street retailer to stock CBD products with the release of the Jacob Hooy CBD oil.

Coca-Cola released a statement neither denying or confirming the claims that it would be producing such a drink. It said: “Along with many others in the beverage industry, we are closely watching the growth of non-psychoactive CBD as an ingredient in functional wellness beverages around the world. The space is evolving quickly. No decisions have been made at this time.”