Ron Strider
Well-Known Member
Amy Bufalini said business has been good since she opened her Vandergrift store that sells medicinal products derived from the cannabis plant, but she has hit a few hurdles.
"I've had so much interest," Bufalini said. "I had so much demand that I didn't have the supply."
Bufalini sells oils and creams that contain only a minuscule amount of tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, the chemical in marijuana that causes people to get high. The store has been open since April.
Bufalini doesn't need a license because her store, the first Pennsylvania franchise of Colorado-based Nature's Best CBD, isn't considered a medical marijuana business.
The products are made from cannabidiol, or CBD, which is oil extracted from industrial hemp, a variety of the cannabis plant with a low concentration of the chemical in marijuana. Hemp is grown for industrial use, such as making paper and textiles, and also is used in foods, skin-care products and health supplements.
Bufalini said, shortly after she opened, the bank where she had her business account closed it and her business insurance dropped her because they found out she was selling the products. She said the bank and insurance company told her it was because she was selling marijuana products, but she said her products aren't marijuana and are legal.
It took her a couple of months to get everything back in order.
"It was difficult," she said.
Bufalini said other brands of CBD products may have more THC that is causing concern.
"Those are the ones they should be going after," she said. "Not the ones with no THC at all."
Dr. Antoine Douaihy, professor of psychiatry and medicine at University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, said in an April interview it's not uncommon for people to have trouble understanding the difference between CBD products and medical marijuana products.
"Both of them come from the same plants, just different parts," Douaihy said. "The U.S. laws define the hemp as all parts of any cannabis sativa plant containing no psychoactive properties."
Douaihy said while there has been some medical research that shows the potential benefits of CBDs, it's not enough to be conclusive.
"They definitely will have some medicinal properties, but at the same time we don't have enough studies that show us what these properties (are)," he said. "I'm really hopeful that we will see more studies that can be done to look at these potential substances that could have very much of an impact."
Adding to the confusion may be letters sent in 2016 to eight companies by the federal Food and Drug Administration, warning the companies that the CBD oils they were marketing contained little or none of the oil, according to FDA testing.
Nature's Best CBD was not one of those companies.
Bufalini said she has had people travel from all over the state and as far away as Florida buy her products.
She's seen customers looking for relief from conditions including epilepsy, multiple sclerosis, migraines and Parkinson's disease.
Bufalini said she never realized how many people were suffering from pain and health problems.
She got into the business because she wanted to provide some relief to her son who was diagnosed with muscular dystrophy more than 20 years ago.
Right now, she runs the business alone, but she hopes to hire employees and eventually expand.
"It's very satisfying to be able to help so many people who are trying to take their healthcare seriously and into their own hands," she said.
The popularity of CBD oil is growing, with other companies, including Festa Chiropractic in New Kensington and Glass Gone Wow stores in Monroeville, Cranberry and Robinson offering the oils.
News Moderator: Ron Strider 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: Cannabidiol oil popularity growing at Vandergrift store | TribLIVE
Author: Emily Balser
Contact: Contact Us | TribLIVE
Photo Credit: Amy Bufalini
Website: Home | TribLIVE
"I've had so much interest," Bufalini said. "I had so much demand that I didn't have the supply."
Bufalini sells oils and creams that contain only a minuscule amount of tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, the chemical in marijuana that causes people to get high. The store has been open since April.
Bufalini doesn't need a license because her store, the first Pennsylvania franchise of Colorado-based Nature's Best CBD, isn't considered a medical marijuana business.
The products are made from cannabidiol, or CBD, which is oil extracted from industrial hemp, a variety of the cannabis plant with a low concentration of the chemical in marijuana. Hemp is grown for industrial use, such as making paper and textiles, and also is used in foods, skin-care products and health supplements.
Bufalini said, shortly after she opened, the bank where she had her business account closed it and her business insurance dropped her because they found out she was selling the products. She said the bank and insurance company told her it was because she was selling marijuana products, but she said her products aren't marijuana and are legal.
It took her a couple of months to get everything back in order.
"It was difficult," she said.
Bufalini said other brands of CBD products may have more THC that is causing concern.
"Those are the ones they should be going after," she said. "Not the ones with no THC at all."
Dr. Antoine Douaihy, professor of psychiatry and medicine at University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, said in an April interview it's not uncommon for people to have trouble understanding the difference between CBD products and medical marijuana products.
"Both of them come from the same plants, just different parts," Douaihy said. "The U.S. laws define the hemp as all parts of any cannabis sativa plant containing no psychoactive properties."
Douaihy said while there has been some medical research that shows the potential benefits of CBDs, it's not enough to be conclusive.
"They definitely will have some medicinal properties, but at the same time we don't have enough studies that show us what these properties (are)," he said. "I'm really hopeful that we will see more studies that can be done to look at these potential substances that could have very much of an impact."
Adding to the confusion may be letters sent in 2016 to eight companies by the federal Food and Drug Administration, warning the companies that the CBD oils they were marketing contained little or none of the oil, according to FDA testing.
Nature's Best CBD was not one of those companies.
Bufalini said she has had people travel from all over the state and as far away as Florida buy her products.
She's seen customers looking for relief from conditions including epilepsy, multiple sclerosis, migraines and Parkinson's disease.
Bufalini said she never realized how many people were suffering from pain and health problems.
She got into the business because she wanted to provide some relief to her son who was diagnosed with muscular dystrophy more than 20 years ago.
Right now, she runs the business alone, but she hopes to hire employees and eventually expand.
"It's very satisfying to be able to help so many people who are trying to take their healthcare seriously and into their own hands," she said.
The popularity of CBD oil is growing, with other companies, including Festa Chiropractic in New Kensington and Glass Gone Wow stores in Monroeville, Cranberry and Robinson offering the oils.
News Moderator: Ron Strider 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: Cannabidiol oil popularity growing at Vandergrift store | TribLIVE
Author: Emily Balser
Contact: Contact Us | TribLIVE
Photo Credit: Amy Bufalini
Website: Home | TribLIVE
