The origin story of Cannatela begins in high end designer women’s apparel and supermarket aisles where Mark Weinberg, co-founder of the cannabis-infused cocoa hazelnut spread company, built a career selling premium goods with a simple philosophy. The product had to justify the pitch.
“I’m a great salesman but only if my product backs me up,” he said.
Weinberg’s path cut an unusual line through high end designer women’s apparel and into the clean, label-conscious world of gluten-free Italian foods sitting on major retail shelves, before a sideways drift of chance and instinct pulled him into cannabis.
A dispensary opening near his New York and New Jersey home became the entry point, drawing him in at ground level to a new industry still writing its own rules. A call from a friend soon connected him with Lou Agresta, and the foundation for Cannatela took shape through a convergence of food expertise, cannabis knowledge, and a shared instinct for differentiation.
“The next move was to get whatever I can get out of Italy, the finest, and put it into cannabis,” Weinberg said.
That instinct would define the brand. In a market saturated with gummies and familiar formats, Cannatela became something else entirely. It’s a cannabinoid-infused spread available in two indulgent flavors, cocoa hazelnut and Dubhigh pistachio, but that simple description undersells what it really is. Positioned less as a disposable edible and more as a culinary ingredient, it slips into the space where food, ritual, and indulgence synthesise.
Reinventing the Edible
The cannabis edibles aisle has long been dominated by uniformity. Gelatin-based gummies with minor variations in cannabinoid ratios and flavor profiles fill dispensary shelves. Weinberg saw little appeal in joining that chorus.
“They’re all the same,” he said.
Instead, the team pursued a format that felt both indulgent and versatile. The idea surfaced during a meeting with Italian manufacturing partners, when Agresta flipped through product catalogs and paused on a familiar but underexplored category.
“Wait, what is this spread?” he recalled asking.
From there, the concept evolved quickly. The partners sourced high-quality Italian cocoa hazelnut formulations with reduced palm oil content, then began the process of adapting them for cannabis infusion. The result was a product that could be eaten by the spoonful or incorporated into everyday foods, from toast and pancakes to coffee and desserts.
“We expected people to ‘fast dose’ with a spoon,” Weinberg said. “But what we also expected is the whole baking concept, the whole food concept. People are sending us pictures and videos of what they’re doing with this.”
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The Mechanics of Infusion
Behind the indulgent surface lies a surprisingly technical challenge. Infusing a cocoa hazelnut spread is not as simple as mixing in THC oil. The crux is homogeneity, ensuring each serving delivers a consistent dose.
“That’s pretty much the problem in any edible product,” Agresta said.
Unlike water-based products, where THC’s hydrophobic properties complicate mixing, the oil-based nature of chocolate and hazelnut works in the product’s favor. Cannabinoids bind readily to lipids. But that same affinity introduces new risks, including uneven distribution within a batch.
“You could get all the THC clumped in one corner,” Agresta said.
To solve this, the team developed a proprietary process centered on mechanical mixing rather than chemical additives. The infusion is performed by hand during batching, with precise measurements introduced into a controlled system that ensures even distribution before the product is jarred.
Even the equipment posed challenges. The spread’s viscosity required specialized filling machinery, and scaling production has meant looking beyond traditional suppliers.
“Turkey manufactures a majority of chocolate and hazelnut equipment in the world,” Agresta said, noting that future expansion will rely on custom-built vats to increase batch sizes.
The Regulatory Puzzle
Innovation in cannabis rarely exists without regulatory friction. In New York, one of the earliest hurdles was dosing. Edibles must deliver precise, measurable amounts of THC, a requirement that clashes with the intuitive use of a spread.
The solution came in an unlikely form.
“We finally went with a medical dosing spoon,” Agresta said.
Each package includes a calibrated utensil designed to deliver consistent servings, down to microdoses. It is a small detail that reveals a larger truth about the industry. Compliance often shapes product design as much as consumer demand.
Lab testing introduced another layer of complexity. The same lipid binding that enhances the product’s effects can obscure cannabinoid detection during analysis.
“You can’t taste the THC,” Agresta said. “That same tightness of bond means the lab can’t find it either.”
Standard testing methods sometimes failed to detect cannabinoids altogether, requiring more advanced techniques to verify potency. It is a reminder that cannabis science still operates in a space where chemistry and regulation are evolving in tandem.
A Different Kind of High
If Cannatela distinguishes itself in form, it also stands apart in effect. The combination of cocoa, hazelnut fats, and cannabinoids appears to influence how THC is absorbed and experienced.
“There’s a compound in chocolate called anandamide,” Agresta said. “It partially binds the THC receptor.”
That interaction, combined with the lipid profile of the spread, may contribute to what users describe as a faster onset and longer-lasting effect. While the exact mechanism remains unclear, anecdotal feedback has been consistent.
“People with high tolerances are telling me it really hits them,” Weinberg said.
For some consumers, that effect slots neatly into a broader cultural pivot, where cannabis is being reframed less as a purely recreational detour and more as a wellness instrument with a place in the architecture of daily life. The idea isn’t escape anymore, but integration, the kind that quietly threads itself into morning rituals like coffee or breakfast, reshaping the relationship with the plant one habitual moment at a time.
Scaling an Italian Ideal
Sourcing remains central to the brand’s identity. The ingredients are produced in Italy and shipped directly to the U.S. processor, bypassing intermediaries to maintain quality.
“What we do is take what they keep for their own consumption in Italy,” Agresta said.
It is a deliberate choice, rooted in the perception that European producers often export lower-tier versions of their products while reserving the best for domestic markets. By securing that higher standard, Cannatela positions itself as a premium offering within a crowded field.
Scaling, however, presents familiar challenges. Interstate commerce restrictions require localized production or licensing agreements in each new market. The company is currently exploring partnerships with multi-state operators to expand beyond New York.
At the same time, product development continues. New flavors, including fruit-based profiles, are under consideration, along with entirely new formats such as chewable confections that will continue to edge the company further into the space between supplement, snack, and controlled indulgence.
