Spotlighting the Cannabis Beverage Evidence Gap
At 23rd State, we're convinced that the future of hemp-derived THC beverages will be built on one thing above all else: evidence. So when a trusted voice in the Minnesota cannabis community takes the time to amplify that message, we want to say thank you — clearly and publicly.
We're grateful to Jen Randolph Reise and North Star Cannabis Consulting for featuring our founder, Leah Kollross, in the May 14, 2026 edition of the North Star Cannabis Consulting Newsletter. You can read the full issue, "Minnesota cannabis is onstage at the Convention Center," right here. It captures a Minnesota market that is maturing quickly — and it's a reminder of how much stronger our industry becomes when operators, consultants, and advocates row in the same direction.
A Newsletter That Covers Minnesota Cannabis the Right Way
If you work in or follow the Minnesota cannabis industry, the North Star Cannabis Consulting Newsletter is one of the most useful reads you'll find. Written by attorney and consultant Jen Reise, it does something rare: it covers the business of cannabis with genuine on-the-ground perspective. The May 14 issue was sent live from the floor of the NECANN Minnesota Cannabis Convention at the Minneapolis Convention Center, where Minnesota's newest licensees were sizing up partnerships and the market's next chapter was taking shape in real time.
That single edition tracked the closing days of the Minnesota legislative session, fresh retail and medical sales data from the Office of Cannabis Management, a national retailer expanding its hemp THC beverage footprint into new states, and the opening of the first tribal cannabis consumption lounge in Minnesota. North Star's work goes well beyond reporting, too. Through the North Star Accelerator Program, Jen and her team help brand-new dispensaries, cultivators, manufacturers, and transporters get off the ground and stay compliant in a complex regulatory environment. That kind of capacity-building is exactly what a young market needs to mature responsibly.
It means a great deal to have our founder's work recognized inside a publication that takes the industry — and its responsibilities — so seriously.
The Coverage: Amplifying a Hard Conversation About Evidence
In the newsletter's roundup of national cannabis news, North Star highlighted Leah Kollross's recent op-ed in Marijuana Moment: "The Cannabis Beverage Industry Has an Evidence Problem, With Too Few Companies Submitting Products for Independent Scrutiny." Jen added her own note of support, applauding Leah for raising the issue — and that endorsement carries real weight coming from someone who spends her days advising operators across the entire supply chain.
It would have been easy to scroll past a piece that asks an entire product category to hold itself to a higher standard. Instead, North Star chose to put it in front of an audience of founders, operators, and entrepreneurs — exactly the people who are positioned to act on it. We don't take that for granted.
Why the Cannabis Beverage Evidence Gap Matters
The argument at the heart of Leah's op-ed is straightforward, and it's one we make often: the hemp-derived THC beverage category is growing far faster than the independent evidence base beneath it. Consumers are reaching for infused drinks as a social ritual and, increasingly, as a deliberate alternative to alcohol. Retailers are clearing valuable shelf space. Major chains are expanding their THC beverage assortments into new markets. Yet relatively few brands are willing to submit their products to third-party researchers and let the data speak for itself.
That gap carries real consequences. Without independent validation, "low and slow" dosing claims are just marketing copy. Promises about consistency, onset time, and predictable effect can't be verified by the very people being asked to trust them with an intoxicating product. A consumer switching from a glass of wine to a THC seltzer is making a meaningful decision about their body and their evening — and they deserve more than a label and a leap of faith.
The stakes are not only personal; they're existential for the category. When an industry sells intoxicating products without a strong evidence foundation, it hands ammunition to the critics and regulators who would rather see those products disappear. With a federal ban on intoxicating hemp products scheduled to take effect on November 12, 2026 absent congressional action, credibility is not a nice-to-have for this industry. It is a survival strategy. The brands that can point to real, independent data will be far better positioned to make their case — to lawmakers, to retail buyers, and to the public — than those who can only point to their own marketing.
We think transparency is how the category earns the right to keep growing. Closing the evidence gap protects consumers first and responsible operators second, and those two goals are inseparable.
What "Independent Scrutiny" Actually Means
Submitting a product for independent scrutiny is not the same as commissioning a flattering study. It means handing your formulation to researchers who don't work for you, asking real consumers about their real experiences, and being willing to publish whatever comes back. It means measuring whether a beverage actually performs the way the package claims — not in a single controlled tasting, but across thousands of ordinary moments in people's everyday lives.
That distinction matters because lab conditions and living rooms are very different places. A dose that behaves predictably in a clinical setting still has to prove itself at a backyard barbecue, after a long day, or as part of someone's wind-down routine. Real-world evidence is the only way to know whether a product holds up where it's actually consumed.
How 23rd State Is Helping Close the Gap
Calling for more evidence only carries weight if you're willing to put your own products on the line. That's why 23rd State participated in the MoreBetter Real-World Infused Beverage Study, one of the largest independent looks at how people actually experience cannabis beverages outside of a laboratory.
The study gathered real-world data from more than 5,000 participants across two cohorts and 20 participating brands, measuring how consumers respond to infused drinks in everyday settings rather than tightly controlled clinical conditions. For us, the most important takeaway echoes something we've believed since day one: dose consistency is a behavioral driver of outcomes. When a beverage delivers a reliable, predictable experience every single time, people can pace themselves, know what to expect, and make genuinely informed choices about how much is enough. That reliability is the foundation of harm reduction, and it's what makes the sober-curious, alcohol-alternative lifestyle so many of our customers are embracing a sustainable one rather than a gamble.
This is the standard we hold ourselves to across our entire lineup, from FRESH PRESS — our THC and CBG sparkling pear cider — to Blush Crush Infused Bubbly and our SHAKE infused drops. Two full years of pre-launch research and development went into our formulations before a single can ever reached a customer, and we continue to lean on independent data to validate what we put into the world. Simply put, we'd rather be measured honestly than marketed loudly.
A Shared Minnesota Story
There's a reason this recognition lands close to home. 23rd State takes its name from Minnesota becoming the 23rd state to legalize adult-use cannabis in 2023, and we've built our company right here, in a market that is still writing its own rules. North Star Cannabis Consulting is rooted in that same Minnesota soil, championing local entrepreneurs and helping the businesses around us succeed.
Events like NECANN Minnesota — the inaugural Midwest edition of the conference — show just how quickly this community is coming together. So does the steady drumbeat of progress in North Star's reporting: new dispensaries opening their doors, accelerator members securing startup funding, and operators training their very first employees. None of us are building in isolation. When one Minnesota brand makes the case for higher standards and a respected consultancy amplifies it, the entire ecosystem benefits.
That's the spirit we want to keep paying forward — sharing data, sharing credit, and raising the bar together.
Thank You, North Star Cannabis Consulting
To Jen Reise and the entire North Star Cannabis Consulting team: thank you for the thoughtful coverage, for the platform you've built for Minnesota's cannabis entrepreneurs, and for using your reach to push an important and genuinely uncomfortable conversation forward. The cannabis beverage industry will only earn lasting trust if it's willing to be scrutinized — and we're grateful to be in the company of people who feel the same way.
If you haven't already, read the full May 14 newsletter, "Minnesota cannabis is onstage at the Convention Center," here, and consider subscribing to follow Minnesota's market as it grows. You can also read Leah's full op-ed on the cannabis beverage evidence problem over at Marijuana Moment.
We'll keep doing our part: making beverages worth trusting, backing them with real-world evidence, and showing up for the Minnesota community that made 23rd State possible.
