So, where’s Tommy Chong been lately? Other than being on Dancing With The Stars a few years back, there’s a good chance you've seen him on his talk show, feeling the Bern, or putting Jeff Sessions on blast on Twitter. But just in case you missed out, his face is what will be greeting you when you bite into your next edible.
With the marijuana industry projected to generate $40 billion by 2020, Chong has entered the market with Chong’s Choice, a company he launched on April 20th of last year. Chong’s products are available in locations across California, Montana, Arizona, Colorado, Oregon, and Washington and include carefully curated marijuana strains, and even a hemp-infused drink called Chongwater.
But it was one bad trip that led Chong to launch a new chocolate edibles line. He was inspired to sell "user-friendly" marijuana edibles after he caught the flu and a friend offered him a weed-laced gummy bear. After Chong nibbled off a corner, nothing happened, so he ate the whole thing and unfortunately got way too stoned. He immediately figured that if this could occur with a seasoned marijuana enthusiast, then it must be happening to other people as well. Chong’s bars will contain 200 milligrams of THC, but feature a 3D design that allows users to split the bar precisely into twenty, 10-milligrams doses. Coming in flavors such as Wake N Bacon, Mellow Milk, Dark Daze, and Crunchy Munchies (each bar features Chong’s face as it’s the company’s logo), they're expected to arrive in select California dispensaries in May.
The 78-year-old just beat cancer for a second time (prostate cancer in 2012 and colorectal cancer in 2015), and is still showing no signs of slowing down. We recently sat down with Chong for a three-part interview, where we discussed getting high with celebrities, what this new chapter of his life is like, and the evolution of marijuana into a “big business.”
Check out part one of our interview with the legendary cannabis icon.
