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I was never a huge CBD user, that was until my anxiety started to creep in before bedtime. I am generally cautious when it comes to taking sleep supplements, because sleep is a pretty sacred and automated process you don’t want to mess with if you don’t absolutely have to. I’ve had the privilege of speaking with experts who work in the realm of sleep, to better understand what actually works and what’s a little more hocus pocus. That being said, one thing that always reigned supreme in the ranks of people I spoke to was: hemp-derived CBD products.
“Simple Sabotage” — The CIA’s Guide for “Rascally Spies”
America’s WWII advice for citizen saboteurs included telegram tampering and giving bad directions.The CBD market can be confusing and is oversaturated. Brands come out of the woodwork on social media and all seem to be selling some kind of cannabis-related product — whether it be CBD, THC or an even blend of those things. But what do the labels actually mean?
Understanding the offshoots of cannabis can be a little dizzying, so let me explain. The TLDR is that every weed-related product comes from different kinds of cannabis plants. In each cannabis plant you’ll have a certain amount of CBD (cannabidiol) and THC (tetrahydrocannabinol). THC is what gets you high, whereas CBD isn’t as psychoactive — it has more of an overall relaxing effect.
Cannabis plants have a naturally occurring high percentage of THC in them, however in the U.S. for-sale cannabis products cannot legally contain more than 0.3% THC, according to the FDA. So when that label was imposed on producers botanists and green thumbs alike found a way to grow cannabis plants that contained less THC and more CBD, so that the plant could be harvested, turned into what we would called hemp-derived CBD products, and exist within federal regulatory guidelines. Products outside of that THC threshold are not federally-legal but may have different state-enforced regulations.
Now that that’s out of the way, lets return to our charted course. Me plus anxiety plus bad sleep equals popping CBD gummies. No, not ones from a random instagram ad that popped up on my feed or from any street dispensary — ones I got come from Cornbread Hemp. Cornbread Hemp is an e-commerce company that manufactures and distributes full-spectrum hemp-derived CBD products. They’re a company whose products I’ve been testing for weeks and can confidently say I love — so let’s dive into meeting the founders behind Cornbread Hemp, the brands identity and the products they’re selling.
The Masterminds + Their Mission
Cornbread Hemp co-founders Eric Zipperle and Jim Higdon stress the fact that they entered the CBD market in an attempt to connect with both the plant and their consumers in a way they saw lacking. After a career in journalism covering the cannabis industry in Kentucky, Higdon joined forces with his cousin Zipperle, who was wrapping up his MBA at the time, and started Cornbread Hemp in 2018
Upon entering the market Higdon explained that other competitors “weren’t connecting to the plant. They weren’t connecting to the history of the plant. Everything was very, arm’s length. It’s CBD, it’s hemp.” He added that “nothing in the packaging or the or the labels or logos had anything to do with cannabis or the story of cannabis in America.”
The importance Higdon and Zipperle place on connecting to their consumers shines through in their product development and marketing. They relied on their combined hemp knowledge to display true “authenticity and authority” when establishing themselves in the CBD space. By putting faces to the names behind Cornbread Hemp, Higdon and Zipperle made themselves accessible to their customers as founders who care and believe in what they are selling.
Something else that sets them apart? They straddle the line between premium CBD products and emphasizing the presence of THC.
When the CBD market began to expand, a lot of premium brands were scared to incorporate THC into their products and marketing because it had become such a dirty word, explained Higdon and Zipperle. They added that they wanted to break that stigma and felt that customers deserved to know exactly what they were taking. In an effort to forge trust with their consumers their packaging displays both THC and CBD milligrams — information they felt was missing in competitors packaging.
The founders also place an emphasis on adult-centric premium packaging and note that competitors often use bright inviting colors, creating something more targeted towards teens and young adults.
Their Products
I’ve been able to test out two main products for the last few months that I can say have worked consistently well for me. The first being their CBD Sleep gummies, which I take 30 minutes before bed if when I know I really need a good nights sleep. Their sleep gummies contain 25mg of CBD, 1mg of THC along with a slew of other sleep-enhancing products like lavender, chamomile and valerian root. If I’ve had a stressful day and know that it’s going to bring on a bout of insomnia, I take one of these and fall asleep at ease and stay asleep.
The second product I’ve been testing out are the Cornbread Hemp Berry Gummies. I’ve used these more to unwind at the end of the week and are a great option for people who are looking to find CBD products that promote relaxation and wellness. The one’s I’ve been using also contain 25mg of CBD and 1mg of THC, but they have other options for people who are looking for something stronger. Their maximum strength products contain 100mg of CBD and 4mg of THC.
I’ve linked the two products I’ve been testing from Cornbread Hemp down below, but you can shop their entire selection of products here.
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