(MENAFN – Baystreet.ca) When people hear the word “mushroom,” all sorts of thoughtsare conjured up, mostly those of the psychedelic nature. It’s somewhat akin tothe stigma with cannabis that is being reshaped as people realize the litany ofpositive therapeutic applications. As a result, look what the cannabis industryis exploding into as investors and consumers alike become better educated.
What should jump to mind with mushrooms is the market opportunityat hand underscored by the medicinal benefits of the fungi supported bycenturies of use that have mushrooms as part of early Materia Medica.
The opportunity is not slipping passed The Yield GrowthCorp. (CSE: BOSS)(OTCQB: BOSQF), which is moving quickly to build its footprintin the functional food market with a sidebar for developing new productsutilizing psilocybin, the psychoactive ingredient in “magic” mushrooms. OnTuesday, the company made its latest move to plant its flag in the market,loading up its subsidiary with more formulas in exchange for millions ofdollars in cash and stock.
Mushrooms are Magical (and not just for altering minds)
Mushrooms are complex. They can be life-saving. They can bedelicious. They can be poisonous.
There are about 300 species of mushrooms – some with catchynicknames like Lion’s Mane and Turkey Tails – known to have therapeutic properties.The applications are as diverse as the different types of mushrooms, includingimmunological, anti-inflammatory, anti-microbial, anti-viral andanti-hypertensive to name just a few. The robust therapeutic profile has led tomushroom-based products for diabetes, liver protection, cardiovascular health, boostingthe immune system, cancer (both fighting and preventing) and much, much morethat has pharmaceutical companies active in the space.
A big differentiator between mushrooms and cannabis is thatcannabis prohibition has kept a lid on clinical research. Mushrooms – all thosethat don’t contain psilocybin anyway – are completely legal and have been thesubject of decades of research where new health benefits continue to bediscovered. Historically, the bulk of the research has been conducted in Asia,but in the last 20 years, the Western world and many emerging markets arecatching on, lending to the growing library of evidence that mushrooms are asuperfood with hundreds of medicinal functions.
The growing awareness is integral to Fortune BusinessInsights calling for a ” steepriseduring the forthcoming years” for the functional mushroom market. Thisis part of a broader functional food market that industry analysts at Researchand Markets forecast to grow 8% annually to reach$34.4billionin the next five years.
Apropos, don’t discount the “magic” mushroom variety and itspotential. 2019 has been a big year for psilocybin, with Denver and Oaklandbecoming the first cities to decriminalize psychedelic mushrooms as a push forlegalization gets underway. Fact is that while the federal governmentclassifies cannabis and mushrooms as highly dangerous because of THC andpsilocybin, respectively, clinical and anecdotal evidence supports the oppositeto be true.
Studies show that psilocybin could provide options wheretraditional medicines have failed miserably for things like depression, alcoholaddiction and many psychological disorders. Armed with research and a fresh $17million in capital earmarked for studying psychedelics, the venerable expertsatJohnsHopkinsrecently launched the Center for Psychedelic and ConsciousnessResearch.
Attitudes towards cannabis are changing quickly and, oneday, the first thought about magic mushrooms won’t be someone “tripping onshrooms,” but rather the valuable role they play in healthcare by filling areasof great unmet medical need.
Yield Growth and Flourish Mushroom Labs: The Names toKnow
In the public domain, there is limited competition in themushroom space. Already entrenched incannabisand hempglobally withgrowingsales , Yield Growth recently expanded into mushrooms. After establishingFlourish Mushroom Labs to exclusively focus on the opportunity at hand andacquiringa database of mushroom formulas, Yield Growth has a catalog of recipes coveringcoffee, teas, elixirs, soups and other edibles. As is becoming evident,Flourish moves at light speed, already developing amushroomcoffee formulathat will spearhead the commercial launch of a full productline starting early in 2020.
The scaffolding on which Flourish is being built gotstronger this week by the parent and subsidiary striking a deal for well over100 mushroom concoctions.
“We are positioning Flourish Mushroom Labs to be a keyplayer in the fast growing international functional mushroom market,” saidPenny White, Yield Growth CEO, in today’s news release.
Per the deal, Yield Growth is licensing 126 formulas basedon ancient Ayurvedic medicine to Flourish for use in products infused withfunctional or magic mushrooms non-exclusively for a 50-year term. The formulascover a broad spectrum of consumer goods, including skin care, cosmetics,wellness products, food and beverages. The products will be infused withfunctional mushrooms or psilocybin or psilocin and/or any combination withinlegal parameters of specific jurisdictions.
The license is global, excluding Canada.
For the rights, Flourish is paying Yield Growth$3.0million . $1.8 million is payable in Flourish stock (90 million sharesvalued at 2 cents each) and $1.2 million in cash payable over the next twoyears.
While Flourish is private at the moment, Yield Growth ismoving towards changing that. The parent has already reserved the ticker “MUSH”with the Canadian Securities Exchange in preparation for Flourish entering thepublic domain.
How quickly this happens affects the terms of the licensingdeal. If Flourish is successfully listed on the CSE within 6 months, $200,000will be deducted from the purchase price. If listed between 6-12 months,$400,000 will be deducted.
Watch for Converging Catalysts
There are a lot of moving parts that look to be comingtogether here. Going forward, there is will be a growing awareness about thehealth and wellness benefits of mushrooms. At the same time, Flourish isaligning to launch new mushroom-based products in the coming months and itshould be expected that marketing will help with the consumer educationprocess.
As for the particularly exciting – albeit relatively unknown- segment of psychedelic mushrooms, Flourish will quietly be a leader asregulatory changes are considered and implemented. As all this transpires,Flourish will become the first pure-play focused on mushrooms and that, withoutmentioning all the other corporate dynamics, is reason for investors to lookingforward to 2020 and the decades to come.
Legal Disclaimer/Disclosure: While all information is believed to be reliable,it is not guaranteed by us to be accurate. Individuals should assume that allinformation contained in our article is not trustworthy unless verified bytheir own independent research. Also, because events and circumstancesfrequently do not occur as expected, there will likely be differences betweenany predictions and actual results. Always consult a licensed investmentprofessional before making any investment decision. Be extremely careful,investing in securities carries a high degree of risk; you may likely lose someor all of the investment. Furthermore, it is certainly possible for errors oromissions to take place regarding the profiled company, in communications,writing and/or editing. Nothing in this publication should be considered aspersonalized financial advice. We are not licensed under any securities laws toaddress your particular financial situation. No communication by our employeesto you should be deemed as personalized financial advice. Please consult alicensed financial advisor before making any investment decision. This is apaid advertisement and is neither an offer nor recommendation to buy or sellany security. We hold no investment licenses and are thus neither licensed norqualified to provide investment advice. The content in this article is notprovided to any individual with a view toward their individual circumstances.Baystreet.ca has been paid a fee of forty thousand dollars for The Yield GrowthCorp. advertising from the company. There may be 3rd parties who may haveshares of The Yield Growth Corp. and may liquidate their shares which couldhave a negative effect on the price of the stock. This compensation constitutesa conflict of interest as to our ability to remain objective in ourcommunication regarding the profiled company. Because of this conflict,individuals are strongly encouraged to not use this article as the basis forany investment decision. The owner/operator of Baystreet.ca has purchasedshares of The Yield Growth Corp. through a private placement and does notintend on selling any shares within 72 hours of this updated publication dateafter such point we reserve the right to buy and sell shares in the openmarket, no further notice will be given. By reading this communication, youagree to the terms of this disclaimer, including, but not limited to: releasingBaystreet.ca, its affiliates, assigns and successors from any and allliability, damages, and injury from the information contained in this communication.You further warrant that you are solely responsible for any financial outcomethat may come from your investment decisions.
MENAFN0611201902120000ID1099230299