PA: How will your experience in the Cannabis sector inform your work in exploring psychedelics?

YG: There are likely more differences than similarities between cannabis and psychedelics, but our company NeonMind Biosciences is likely better positioned than most to translate knowledge from one to the other.

For one, our heavy focus on research and development related to extract products translates well to the mushroom industry. We have developed a unique patent-pending extraction technology that was initially created for cannabis, but can be adapted to mushrooms as well. We have submitted a patent application for use with mushrooms, and have already been able to license it to a US group.

With psychedelics, it’s paramount that the industry matures in a way that is safe, and fully compliant with government regulators. Our investment in a leading biotechnology company called Translational Life Sciences will be critical in helping our company create the framework for compliant clinical trials. Their previous work was related to using cannabis to treat many ailments that will also be relevant to psychedelic research, giving us a head start in leading the charge.

PA: How will the psychedelic sector’s impact on people’s lives differ to that of the cannabis industry?

YG: For the most part, psychedelic therapy is related to mental health, where oftentimes cannabis is more relevant to physical health. Through a guided therapy session with the use of certain psychedelics in the right dose, early results have shown that patients are seeing some incredible breakthroughs related to ailments such as PTSD, anxiety and severe depression.

When you think about cannabis, typically products are used to reduce pain through items such as THC topicals that can be applied to injured muscles. One of our product lines, Urban Juve, just released a pain balm that is an excellent example of that.

PA: What would you say to those looking to invest in this nascent space?

YG: I would say that it is still early days, but perhaps not as early as you may think. Decriminalization efforts are spreading, and many clinical trials are well underway. However, many companies in the space will not see revenue for many years to come.

For that reason, we took a slightly different approach than most. We are leaning on our expertise in consumer product development to create mushroom products that utilize the medicinal effects of traditional mushrooms like Reishi, Lions Mane and Chaga. These are all fully legal, and provide health benefits that are more relevant now than ever before. For example, we recently launched a mushroom coffee product that is excellent for boosting immunity. The market for traditional mushroom products is much larger than you may think, is growing rapidly and has minimal competition.

Not only are we excited about these products, but they allow us to create expertise in mushroom extraction techniques and product development.

PA: How will COVID-19 affect your operations (specifically your mushroom-related ones) and, subsequently, your growth?

YG: Our day to day operations have been minimally effected as we were able to easily transition to remote work, and all of our products are available on our e-commerce site. In fact, some of our products have actually been net beneficiaries since the virus outbreak. Our company has hundreds of product formulations, two of which were hand sanitizer formulations. We received expedited approval from Health Canada, and we are beginning a manufacturing run imminently.

Specifically regarding mushrooms, our products have relevant health benefits related to immunity, and even respiratory health, something that is in high consumer demand. For psychedelic mushrooms, we think that exploring new alternatives to traditional pharmaceuticals is more important than ever. Times of crisis are a major source of mental health issues, and we feel that patients deserve to have a variety of treatment options that range from natural to laboratory production.

PA: Things are doom-and-gloom at the moment; what’s one thing you’re excited about?

YG: We have built a company that is dedicated to optimizing individual health and wellness through plant-based science. Now, more than ever we feel that we have built something of value as we create products that are directly beneficial to people in these tough times. It’s not all about the bottom line either. We are giving away many products to those who need it, having just recently sent products to seniors centers in our local community.