RALEIGH — Raleigh-based One Better Ventures continued to show how high it is on the hemp industry with a $7 million equity investment in a Vermont hemp farming company that produces organic CBD products, according to a Securities and Exchange Commission filing.
The venture capital firm, which “nurtures and develops consumer brands that have a positive impact on the world,” raised the offering from 29 different investors.
Raleigh startup focusing on cannabis-related product information lands $2M
The investment gave One Better a minority stake in the Hardwick, Vermont-based farm, which currently goes by the name Green Mountain CBD but will change its name to Sunsoil early next year, according to VTDigger.
Last month, One Better invested $2 million in Remedy Review, a new media site launched in Raleigh that focuses on health studies and market developments in the hemp and CBD industry.
CBD, which stands for cannabidiol, is one of the two primary cannabinoids founds in the cannabis plant, with the other being THC, or tetrahydrocannabinol.
Since it is not psychoactive, CBD does not produce the feeling of getting high that is commonly associated with recreational cannabis use. The subtlety of CBD’s effects has led studies to recommend it as treatment for a variety of ailments, from chronic or cancer-related pain to epilepsy.
Green Mountain derives the CBD used in its products from its own farm-grown hemp, which is legal throughout the United States. The company’s website states that its hemp plants are “tough as nails” because of challenges presented by the area’s cold weather and short growing season.
The company sells its CBD, farmed naturally and organically, in the form of chocolate mint flavored oil, capsules and in an edible cream form. Along with changing its name, Green Mountain plans to double both the acreage of its operations and the number of people it employs next year.
The Agricultural Act of 2014 opened the door for states to allow hemp farming, and proponents of CBD and hemp have since projected exponential growth in the industry.
One Better’s past ventures include personal care products company Burt’s Bees, commodity coffee producer Slingshot Coffee Co. and date rape drug-detecting test producer Undercover Colors.
This story is from the North Carolina Business News Wire, a service of UNC-Chapel Hill’s School of Media and Journalism
