The alcohol and cannabis industries continue to blend together.
Cannabiniers, a global cannabis brand management company, today announced Marty Birkel as the company’s newest board member. Birkel is the former president of Ballast Point Brewery, and has 20 years of experience in global beer, wine and spirits with Constellation Brands.
“In my 20 years at the forefront of the spirits industry, there have been few moments as significant as where we find ourselves today as the worlds of alcoholic beverages and cannabis merge,” Birkel says.
During his 20 years with Constellation Brands, Birkel served as Chief Global Sales Officer, Wine and Spirits; President of Ballast Point Brewing; President of Constellation Spirits; and Executive Vice President of Barton Beers. He led a $70-million capital project that expanded brewing production to Virginia, optimized Ballast Point’s West Coast production footprint and expanded restaurant/tasting rooms to Chicago, San Francisco and Disneyland.
Earlier this year, Cannabiniers announced the addition of former President of PepsiCo-East, Michael Lorelli, to its board.
Constellation Brands last August invested $4 billion in the Canadian cannabis company Canopy Growth Corporation, which has since expanded operations into New York.
