Cannabis candy maker in Edmonton area hopes to be Willy Wonka of weed

Business hopes to be the Willy Wonka of weed A local company is banking on the appeal of THC-infused edible candies.

EDMONTON — If you like green gummies, the lime-flavoured ones, then a new factory out in Nisku is a little slice of heaven.

These, though, will have an added kick. They are cannabis edibles infused with either CBD or THC, the active chemicals in marijuana — THC for recreational users and the CBD for its health and wellness properties.

Dynaleo believes it can produce more edible gummies than anyone else in Canada, and that there will be a shortfall in the industry of about 85 million of the edibles each year.

They say when their plant hits capacity it could produce 400 million of them a year.

“So that 400 million gummies a year we were talking about , we’re confident could satisfy that gap for Canada in one factory,” says Dynaleo’s Director of People and Culture Kristy Skwaruk.

Dynaleo has just received federal approval to produce the sweet gooey gummies that pack much more than a sugar high. The security and proprietary secrecy of how they do their work is reminiscent of the children’s character Willy Wonka and his factory. But Dynaleo wants to make something clear: their product is for consenting adults only.

“Unlike candy for kids, this is strictly for adult recreational or health use. This is evident even in how we package our product in child resistant bags,” Skwaruk told CTV News during a tour of the facility.

Dynaleo’s Chief Operating Officer Jeff Salzsauler actually comes from the confectionary side of the business, and not the planting, harvesting sales of marijuana.

Salzsauler is a former chef.

He believes all of their flavours, from grape to lime to raspberry, are equal to, or better than conventional well-known candy brands.

“We kind of looked at how we can leverage my previous experience in the food sector and take it in some new and exciting direction. Walking into the cannabis sector, you had a lot of industrialists...but you didn’t have a lot of manufacturing professionals and you certainly didn’t have a lot of food manufacturing professionals,” Salzsauler says.

The company is awaiting government approval for sales and distribution of its product under its own name, as well as becoming a supplier for other cannabis brands across Canada. They hope to have that accreditation by mid-autumn.