Grower Stories #111: Chirag Sadana

Tia Moskalenko
Tia Moskalenko

Tia Moskalenko, author of the AskGrowers blog, brings a unique blend of content to her readers. She is known for conducting insightful interviews with key figures in the cannabis industry, including brand representatives, manufacturers, and experts. In addition to her interview skills, Tia has a keen focus on CBD. She expertly curates product selections and reviews, offering her readers detailed insights into the various effects and benefits of CBD. Tia's ability to combine in-depth interviews with comprehensive CBD analysis makes her a valuable asset to the cannabis community, offering a well-rounded perspective on the industry.

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Grower Stories #111: Chirag Sadana

Chirag Sadana Talks to Us About Cobra Extracts - Award-Winning Cannabis Brand

The AskGrowers team sits for a chat with Chirag Sadana who talks about Cobra Extracts. He speaks about the company’s history and the hard work it took to make it successful, the all-natural products that became fan-favorites, and their focus on maintaining the purity of the plants. He also explains how seriously their company takes user feedback in a bid to continuously improve their products. He mentions two of his favorite strains to smoke as well as the person he’d love to have a smoke with. #growerstories


My name is Chirag Sadana, and I am one of the co-founders and the COO at Cobra Extracts. I am from the East coast and came into cannabis with no background in the industry. I was working in technology and met my business partner and co-founder while we were both working in technology. He wanted to move back to California and we were both big fans of cannabis and decided we wanted to work on something we both loved.


Tia (AskGrowers) : Tell us how you started Cobra Extracts?

Chirag Sadana : In 2015, we started in a small garage with just a single CO2 extraction machine and Google. We didn’t know what we were doing, but figured things out through trial and error and gathering what we could from the internet. We knew that if we made a good product, everything else would work itself out. We spent 6 months in the lab before ever releasing any products. We wanted to make sure it was the best product we could make before putting it on any shelves. We would extract all night, package in the mornings, and then go door to door to dispensaries selling in the evenings. Fortunately, our products became popular pretty quickly and word of mouth helped us grow into about 250 dispensaries and delivery services. Of course, that all reset when regulations changed and we had to start from 0 stores and grow again.


Tia : How does your brand differ from others similar to yours?

Chirag : Since the beginning, our focus has always been to produce all-natural high-quality products at a reasonable price. We never wanted to use harmful solvents, so that has been part of our company culture from day one. Early on, we were the only company around that was not using additives or cutting agents in their oils and that helped us gain a lot of traction and trust with our fans. We’ve also created proprietary processes to produce a variety of different products using both CO2 extraction and ethanol extraction. We grew from just vape cartridges to creating shatter, sugar, diamonds, and we have several other products in the pipeline that we will be launching this year. All of them are produced without using any harmful solvents like Butane.


Cobra Extracts team picture
Tia : Tell us how you make your products? Do you have any specific approaches? What’s your best-selling product now?

Chirag : Our approach is fairly straightforward. We do our best to maintain as much of the plant as possible. That means preserving as many of the cannabinoids and terpenes as we can during the extraction process so that we can have a concentrate that is as true a representation of the plant as possible. Sometimes it’s about potency, for products like distillate vape cartridges, but everything else we make is all about maintaining cannabinoid ratios and allowing for the full effect of the cannabis plant. CO2 wasn’t as good for some of this, as higher temperatures are part of the process. So, we developed special ethanol extraction and built our own equipment. We then figured out how to use the same process to produce different products. It wasn’t always easy. For example, shatter probably took us about a year to get right and we are still improving on it. Our best-selling product right now is probably our Live Resin cartridge. It’s a new product that took us about 6 months to develop. The goal was to create a vape cartridge that had the effects of live resin (so a robust cannabinoid profile and full terpene profile). We are excited to see that consumers are enjoying the product as much as we are.


Tia : I see that you’re 1st Place Winner 2018 High Times Cannabis Cup - Best Vape Cartridge. What are your approaches in handling the business to achieve such results?

Chirag : One of our company’s core values is continuous improvement. We are really never satisfied with anything. We constantly push for feedback and then use that feedback to improve. One of the first things I tell people is, good feedback is great but I want to hear about the stuff we can do better. Learning from that is where we can grow and improve. That’s how we’ve approached all of our product development. And we were very proud to win the Cannabis Cup - it felt like vindication for our obsessive approach.


Tia : What’s the highest THC % in your products? Do you think people should thrive for a particularly high THC % in cannabis edibles?

Chirag : We’ve had products in the low to mid-90s for THC but we are big believers in the full cannabinoid profile. For example, we have had some shatters that are 75% THC, and 94% cannabinoids. And the effects you feel from consuming that shatter can be way more potent than what you might experience from something with higher THC content. It’s important to remember that the cannabis plant contains a lot more than just THC. And those components work together to give you the maximum effect. A lot of research is just getting started as the laws are changing, but there is so much we don’t know about the various cannabinoids and the entourage effect as it relates to how your body chemistry responds to those components along with the terpenes.


Tia : Are there any brands in your state you appreciate and follow? And in the USA in general?

Chirag : We have always been big fans of social equity companies. So, we love LA Kingpins which is Freeway Ricky Ross’ line of cartridges. Big fan of Blaqstar, they make a great flower out of Los Angeles.


Cobra Extracts interview quote
Tia : What is your personal cannabis consumption routine? Does it affect your work/ life?

Chirag : Personally, I prefer to consume at night as a way to wind down from the day. I’m not one of those people that can work after I consume, so for me, it’s much more about relaxing and being social. Cannabis hasn’t affected my work/life balance at all. There have been times where we’ve had to test some of our R&D products during work, and I’ll end up being less productive that day, but mostly I find it’s a great way for me to decompress. I’m not a big alcohol drinker, so cannabis is really my go-to way to relax most days.


Tia : Your top strains to smoke? Why?

Chirag : Right now it’s a tie between Blackberry Kush and Strawberry Diesel. BBK is amazing to help me relax and fall asleep and Strawberry Diesel live resin is great for socializing and having fun.


Tia : What are the 3 main trends in the cannabis industry in 2021 for you now?

Chirag : We love watching cannabis evolve and change. I think over the next year, as more states legalize, there will be a higher demand for non-smoking products. There are a lot of people who want to consume that are new to cannabis and they are not as comfortable vaping or smoking. I think we are also going to see a bit more consolidation of brands as the industry matures. It’s going to get harder for smaller brands to stay relevant without adapting. Lastly, I think there is going to be a resurgence of more balanced products. For a while, it was all about maximum potency and the highest THC but I think the market is learning that it’s not just about the THC. So, I think you will see more products that focus on full profiles rather than just the THC potency.


Tia : If you could have a chance to smoke with anyone on this planet, who’d that be and why?

Chirag : Not sure if you mean alive or anyone through history. I would say, [tooltip title="James Marshall 'Jimi' Hendrix" content="The US musician, singer, songwriter and one of the most influential electric guitarists."]Jimi Hendrix[/tooltip]. I’m a huge fan and would have loved to just seen him play, or hung out.


Tia : Do you plan to expand your brand with time? If yes, what do you plan to add to your product line?

Chirag : We are continuously expanding our product line. We will be launching 4 new flavors of our ELEV8 vape cartridges as well as several new flavors of our Live Resin cartridges. We just launched a sugar line last week.


Cobra Extracts interview quote
Tia : In your opinion, what’s the current situation with cannabis stocks in the USA?

Chirag : Cannabis stocks are still very volatile for most investors. The way they have to be structured and have to avoid the federally illegal issues makes it hard for investors. Though I do think there is a lot of opportunities there as well, there are several stocks that are really underpriced because they are not as famous as some of the others. And volatility has kept them almost like hidden gems.


Tia : Do you think people should invest in the cannabis stock market at all? Why?

Chirag : Absolutely, if you can afford to invest. This is not a get-rich-quick overnight type stock purchase. You really have to look at it as a long-term investment. Cannabis is a growing industry and one that seems to be fairly resistant to recession downturns. As such, I think anyone who invests in well-priced cannabis stocks now, will make a fantastic return over the next few years. Though, there are some overpriced stocks that rode the hype that I would probably be wary of.


Tia : What brands would you invest money in on the cannabis stock market?

Chirag : I don’t think I can legally answer this as I wouldn’t want to recommend any specific stock. I’m by no means a financial advisor etc.


Tia : Do you personally want to get into the cannabis stock market?

Chirag : I have invested in cannabis stocks and will continue to do. We also are looking to get into the public company space so that we can grow nationally.


Tia : What are your predictions on the cannabis industry for the next 5-10 years?

Chirag : I think cannabis will continue to become more mainstream. It will be federally legal or at least rescheduled. You’ll be able to purchase it alongside liquor at stores. These shifts will allow it to grow into one of the United States’ biggest industries. I also think the US could become a huge exporter of cannabis to the rest of the world. We have a lot of agricultural potential and cannabis could be the product that saves a lot of farms. We are already seeing some of this with hemp but I think cannabis could be even bigger.


You can follow Cobra Extracts at:

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Thank you so much, Cobra Extracts team, for taking the time to do the interview. To learn more about them, head on over to their website.

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