New Mexico Candy Maker Is Now Making Medical Marijuana Edibles

Expert candy maker Chuck Higgins closed the doors of his candy shop to begin a new venture in the medical marijuana industry. The gourmet chocolate shop, C.G. Higgins Confections, closed in 2016. Following a mini-stroke, Higgins had to make some lifestyle changes.

Operating the gourmet chocolate shop was hard for Higgins to maintain, according to Santa Fe New Mexican. He began chatting with New MexiCann Natural Medicine and is now working with the dispensary to make marijuana-infused edibles. He makes fudge and hard candies to name a couple of options.

Higgins said, “There are plenty of people that will say, ‘Can you bring me some samples?’ The answer is no. I can’t. I’m sorry.”

Regarding his shift in careers, he said, “With a lot of decisions in life, everything comes with tradeoffs. You maybe give up something, but you get something better, and is it worth it? In my case, absolutely yes. I had to get out from underneath the nonstop stress. That was a driving force to step back and sell the business.”

Before going full-time with the dispensary, Higgins did make edibles for them on a smaller scale.

Higgins said, “I am continually hearing how the cannabis program is such a help to the patients. A peripheral benefit to this job is knowing how my work brings relief and comfort to those patients. My high comes from knowing my efforts are beneficial.”

He didn’t have much knowledge about cooking with marijuana.

He said, “Marijuana has never been part of my existence, quite honestly, and I didn’t know the first thing about it. But they were patient.”

Regarding his approach, he said, “The approach was more like looking at the benefits, helping people who were hurting, who really can use this product. It’s kind of neat to know that I’m not just making candy that people enjoy but that actually does people some good.”

When asked if he’s had any reservations about the shift in career, Higgins said, “Reservations? None whatsoever. Full speed ahead.”