Went to the FDA office in New York yesterday morning ☀️
What a memorable experience.
A few weeks ago, I received a surprise call from the President of The Central Atlantic States Association of Food & Drug Officials (CASA). She kindly invited me to speak about cannabis business, specifically focusing on cannabis edibles. 🍫
I’ll admit, I hadn’t heard of the organization before, but her passion for bringing cannabis into the conversation was infectious (seriously, I could hear her smile over the phone 📱), and I couldn’t say no.
A whole 45 min (actually went 1hr w/ all the great questions) window.
It didn’t FULLY dawn on me until just a week before the event that I would be speaking in the actual FDA building! Wait, what?! 😅
This was a moment that may be normal to others — but that I’ve dreamed about. 🌙
I've always believed in the importance of integrating federal standards into cannabis businesses now, so that we can avoid arduous retroactive changes later 🔨
I’ve worked hard to help clients implement these standards to the best of my ability (given that I am not a federal official or lawyer) — even when it’s felt like a stretch beyond what many cannabis regulations currently demand.
It was a day dream come true to interact with people who have deep experience in federal regulation, standardization & compliance and be able to share with them the opportunities for us (the cannabis industry) to collaborate with them and learn from them as we work towards being more legitimized. 🖊️
I kept this opportunity to myself leading up to the event. Something about it was special to me, and I didn’t want too many questions or unsolicited opinions 🤷🏼♀️
The positive response I received was incredible and totally unexpected. Everyone was kind, interesting & curious to learn more and see how they could help.
My heart sparkled when one woman said “you sparked my interest in the cannabis space.” 🥹
As I prepared my presentation 👩🏼💻 I considered a MILLION different things to share and directions to go.
It wasn’t until I quieted my mind, finally sat still, and tapped in to my heart to ask what I authentically wanted to share that it started to come together.
⭐️ I had to let go of trying to be perfect and say the perfect things.
⭐️ It wasn’t about being the most dazzling public speaker of all time
⭐️ My focus was on doing my best to add value to the conversation 🫱🏼🫲🏾
Based on the response, I think this was a good step forward in accomplishing that ✅
It was rewarding to share insights and learn from everyone present and it’s a first step to being closer to a seat at this table 📚
A heartfelt ❤️ thank you Christine Testa REHS RS, CPFS for believing in me and giving me this chance to lead the discussion with AFDO. I’m so grateful! And a big shoutout to Darrell Newell for being incredibly helpful and capturing some great moments! 😊
#cannabisindustry #cannabisbusiness #cannabisconsulting Cann Strategy