One company that’s paying attention to JD Farms is Whole Foods Market Inc. According to one of its senior global grocery buyers, David Lafferty, “shoppers are seeking out hemp products more than ever, thanks to both product innovation and the increased promotion of hemp’s nutritional benefits by food brands.” JD Farms has teamed with Satur Farms—the Long Island-based supplier of gourmet greens and vegetables—on a baby greens mix of kale and hemp that will be available at Whole Foods throughout the Northeast by the end of July. The salad’s sharp leaves are vaguely reminiscent of pot and have a similar sharp, almost minty flavor. Co-owner Paulette Satur describes the flavor as “lemony,” and is optimistic about the project. “We decided it fits in well with kale in terms of texture and its being chockablock with health benefits. And we’re the first to offer baby hemp leaves in the U.S., which is exciting.” Of the slight, physical resemblance hemp shares with pot leaves, Satur jokes, “Maybe this is a good way to get older kids to eat their vegetables.”
Another partnership, with Brooklyn-based Sfoglini, has resulted in charcoal-colored, nutty-tasting dried pasta in shapes like tubular Hemp Zucca and Hemp Radiators, which are available at sfoglini.com.
“As we researched hemp food products, the majority of it was as a base ingredient for shakes and smoothies,” says Dolgin. “We believe the next iteration of the hemp market is to go into snack foods, to give it wider penetration into households,” he says. “We’re looking at products like ice cream and beer. We already have a pretty broad product portfolio, and we want to get even more innovative.”
This article was provided by Bloomberg News.