EXCLUSIVE: Psyched Wellness CEO Breaks Down Mushroom Strategy, From 'Alice In Wonderland' To The Checkout Aisle

Psyched Wellness Ltd PSYCF plans to begin selling a psychoactive mushroom extract this summer that’s never been scheduled as a drug in the U.S.

It’s derived from amanita muscaria, an instantly recognizable, red-capped fungi, and its active ingredient muscimol.

“Everyone knows what this mushroom is by sight. You’ve seen ‘Alice in Wonderland.’ You’ve seen it on your phone. It’s the mushroom emoji,” Psyched Wellness CEO Jeffrey Stevens told the inaugural Benzinga Psychedelics Capital Conference Tuesday in Miami Beach.

Here’s what psychedelics investors need to know.

The Product: Psyched’s first product, a tincture named Calm, will be sold in the U.S. as a food supplement and is intended as a sleep aid.

It’s built on Psyched’s proprietary amanita muscaria extract AME-1. The extraction is key: the reason the mushroom never caught on from a recreational standpoint is that it would make you ill to eat it without any extraction process, the CEO said.

“You can’t put any patents on a mushroom, but you certainly can on the processes,” Stevens said.

Long used by indigenous groups, muscimol acts on the GABAA receptors and is a powerful compound, he said.

“The regulatory landscape for this mushroom is quite unique,” Stevens said, adding that it can be sold over the counter.

What’s Next For Psyched Wellness: The distribution strategy for Psyched’s first-to-market product Calm targets over 200,000 retail outlets, said CCO Matthew Singh.

The company is developing beverage, pain management, anti-inflammatory, beauty and cosmetic products, slow-release capsules, a tea steeping bag and topical creams for future release, said Singh, who previously worked with Coca-Cola Co KO, Red Bull and Vital Pharmaceuticals.

Psyched is planning a commercial vertical with wholesale white label and private label applications of the AME-1 extract, he said.

“We have a wide assortment of what we want to do with this mushroom and its incredible healing power.”