From Ice Cream to Weed

Fueled by a desire for righteousness over gains, it could be a winning strategy: Eighty per cent of profits from B3 will go towards Black cannabis entrepreneurs in the cannabis area. Additionally, B3 launched a low-interest loan fund for Black, Indigenous, and people of colour cannabis start-ups.

The grant and loan agendas will be furnished in collaboration with Oregon-based NuLeaf Project, a Black-led non-profit organisation. The remaining 20% is marked for division between the Last Prisoner Project and the Vermont Racial Justice Alliance. 

B3 offers craft cannabis with a more meaningful emphasis on terpenes and quality. To do this, B3 teamed with Eddie Opara of design firm Pentagram to cooperate closely with Cohen to develop a brand framework and packaging for BEN'S BEST BLNZ, prominently emphasising Black artists and designers. The goal is to communicate the company's statement of activism inspired by protest graphics.

"I started BEN'S BEST BLNZ because, for many other people and me, today's pot is just way too strong; when I was in college, the pot we were smoking was about 6% THC. Today's pot averages back 23%." - Ben Cohen.

Cohen considers himself lucky not to need the money, instead deciding to incorporate as a non-profit organisation whose sole purpose is to help right the wrongs of the War on Drugs. "There are lots of people that are motivated by things other than money. Some of us are motivated by justice, Ben continues.

Ben & Jerry's ice cream was launched in 1978 by Cohen and his friend Jerry Greenfield. Over time the brand has famously become engaged with varied advocacy efforts. 

Today, the focus remains on advocacy. For example, despite using cannabis at the same rate, Black individuals have been apprehended at four times the rate of white people, a factor BEN'S BEST BLNZ emphasises on its website. Stressing these inequities is a frequent theme exemplified in packaging typography and art.

BLNZ refers to the combinations of several strains in the company's high-terpene, moderate-THC pre-rolls. That's why you'll also see an additional focus on the markers craft growers value over THC content alone. The cannabis used originates from self-supported craft growers in Vermont. 

The product range includes  Blended SloSmokes containing blended strains rich in terpenes and more moderate levels of THC. "It's the terpenes that make the Music. THC is the volume," says the website. 

Another offering is the terpene-centred, entourage-enhanced Full Spectrum Vapes, available in cartridges or pens utilising live resin extracted from freshly frozen entire plants. The more potent "HiTest Buds" are, the more potent strains.

The goal for Ben's Best was to be honest, and artful and to reflect the product quality alongside the social mission of our brand.

 "The focus on this issue is something that a lot of other brands might mention, but virtually no other brand makes it so prominent"- Ben Cohen.