Utah Republican starts CBD research company

A former GOP congressman from Utah has started a CBD company, where the Republican plans to conduct studies on the possible medical benefits of cannabidiol.

Former U.S. Rep. Chris Cannon told the Standard-Examiner he created the company after his state passed a 2017 law expanding cannabis research under the direction of a physician.

“We realized a long time ago that we should be doing something with CBD,” said Cannon, who was in Congress from 1997 to 2009.

The company, Endo-C, is currently surveying about 100 people about their experiences with CBD for pain relief.

Participants buy CBD gelcaps that contain no THC, though company officials say they may study CBD oils containing up to 10% THC, the limit of Utah’s new CBD research law.

The company is looking for additional patients to survey. Survey participation costs $280 a month.

As a previous editor of the Deseret Morning News, Utah’s oldest newspaper, Cannon brings a prominent GOP name to the Utah company. And two of his ancestors represented the Territory of Utah in the U.S. House.

More changes to Utah’s cannabis laws could be coming next year.

A group of patients is circulating a petition to put medical marijuana on the 2018 ballot. The group has until mid-April to turn in roughly 113,000 signatures from registered voters.