‍

We are adapting our brand around the concept of the chemovar (the individual batch-based product) as opposed to the cultivar (generalized strain-based product) in an effort to deliver more effective products that serve consumers a cannabis solution that can improve their lives.  

Cannabis is misunderstood. It's been illegal and there hasn't been proper research on the effects of different cannabis compounds. A lot of compounds have been 'bred away' as growers have focused on breeding strains that yield more weight, do better in certain climates, or have higher delta-9 potencies, for example.

While this 'hybrid movement' in cannabis genetics has likely led to more cannabis and more THC, there are negative externalities as well...some of the cannabis compounds (cannabinoids and terpenes) that are present in original cannabis strains/genetics have been made essentially extinct within popular modern strains. The success of medicinal cannabis/our ability to enable predictable effects/experiences of cannabis is partly tied to uncovering these 'minor cannabinoids' and terpenes, then understanding their effects and synergies with other cannabis compounds.

These are over 100 'minor cannabinoids' and hundreds of terpenes, many of which are just being uncovered. Importantly, some of these 'now extinct' compounds may have profound medicinal effects, either when consumed directly or when combined with other compounds. The cannabis available to consumers today is dominated by hybrid strains that have consistent compounds, which is why we hear the same popular cannabinoids and terpenes all the time (i.e D9-THC and Myrcene). Logically, this means that consumers aren't getting the potential medicinal benefit from the current products available to them.

Enter the LIVE GOLD Project.

We like to compare cannabis strains to sports teams, and in this analogy, the different players on a team are the different compounds in a batch of cannabis flower or a vape cartridge formula.

The reason some strains give you an effect A, and others give an effect B, is because they have different sets and ratios of cannabis compounds. Different cannabis compounds work differently depending on who they're surrounded by and how they’re delivered...this is very similar to how some sports players play better when they're surrounded by other players or when they get better equipment. It's common for a player to go to a different team and have drastically better (or worse) results. Is the same the case with cannabis compounds? That's what we're looking to find out.

So, if certain cannabis compounds work well with each other - like how certain teams (cough, New England Patriots) have players (cough, Tom Brady, cough, Samuel Slater, cough, Devin McCourty) that work well with each other, then we (the growers, processors) are like the GMs of sports teams, and it's our job to try and assemble rosters (a flower strain, a vape formula, etc) that's going to win games (deliver targeted experiences/effects to consumers). It’s also our job to highlight the compounds in each product, the way sports teams categorize the statistics of their players, so fans can get a snapshot of performance and what to expect if they go to a game.  

How do we do this? We test different formulas, dose sizes, and delivery methods across a range of end users, and catalog the results. We identify formulas and genetics that have synergies...combinations (A+B+C) of chemical parts that deliver an enhanced outcome (like pain relief or relaxation) vs other similar combinations (A+B) or (A+C) or (A+B+D). We look for synergies between compounds - where the whole is greater than the sum of the parts. If you're a Patriots fan, you know that Sam Slater's raw football talent (read: potency) is less than the net boost (winningness) he has brought to the Patriots over the last 10 years or so.

We think there's an opportunity to build formulas like Bill Belicik builds rosters, and to build delivery methods like Nike develops cleats and other equipment. If we can, consumers will be the beneficiaries. Especially if the outcome of our work equals enhanced medicinal effects and increased predictability of effects.  

We're starting by doing chemovar mapping for our products and providing our consumers/end users with as many useful statistics as we can about a particular LIVE batch / product. We've invested in cannabinoid and terpene testing technology so we can produce this information and make it available to end users as quickly as possible. Over time, we''ll see patterns and consistencies between formula statistics (I.e the presence of over 3% of CBC in a cartridge formulas containing over 80% D9 THC and over 5% Terpinolene, vs the same cartridge formula with 3% CBG instead of CBC) and the effects you get from using those products. Then we’ll be able to offer a statistic like WAR (Wins Above Replacement), which is used in baseball as to sum up a player's total contributions to his team, in terms of runs produced. We’ll create a similar statistic that sums a cannabis compound’s effects (i.e. pain relief) to an end user. We’ll call it EAR -  ‘Effects Above Replacement”

Over time, we’d like to be able to develop cannabis statistics like those used in sabermetrics (mostly baseball stats). One of particular interest is Wins Above Replacement. WAR Baseball has a statistic called Wins Above Replacement.

We've also launched response forms for our products. Starting with LIVE GOLD Cartridges, consumers have access to response forms accessible through the QR codes on our packaging. We ask. everyone to give as much feedback on their experiences as possible, and we will be awarding the top 10 most prolific sharers of information each month with free LIVE apparel (any two items for the top 10 participants).

While the fact that cannabis is misunderstood by producers and consumers alike is unfortunate in some ways, it's actually quite exciting for us, because it means we have an opportunity to build out the LIVE platform in a way that we believe will flesh out some really important questions that relate to the predictability of cannabis experiences and effects, something that could benefit not just our company, but the entire industry dramatically.

Someday in the near future, we should be able to answer a question like: 'what happens (from an effects standpoint) when you add 3% CBD-A to a formula vs the same formula with 0% CBD-A?'

That's what we are working on here at LIVE. Cartridges are ideal for 'adapting compounds' - it's easier to mix distillates than breed plants - and so the LIVE GOLD Cartridge Chemovar Project has been born...But don't be surprised if the packaging and process for all of our products go this way, as we think it makes sense to apply Chemovar Mapping and Cannabis Statistics to all of the products created within the LIVE Platform.

‍