CLOVR and Keef brands celebrate a Missouri cannabis partnership built to last

Missouri’s first approved cannabis manufacturer and a pioneer of cannabis beverages reflect on a partnership that helped introduce the state’s first cannabis beverage and prepare for a new wave of Keef innovation

When Missouri’s regulated cannabis industry was still taking shape, Kansas City-based CLOVR Cannabis and Keef Brands made an early bet on what the market could become.

Today, after years of regulatory change, adult-use legalization, price compression, increased competition and industry consolidation, that partnership remains and the two companies are preparing for their next stage of growth in Missouri.

CLOVR became the first Missouri medical marijuana manufacturing facility to receive state approval to operate in December 2020, following state inspections of its security, health and operating procedures.

Even before CLOVR received final approval to operate, the company had announced its licensing partnership with Keef in July 2020 with the goal of manufacturing and distributing Keef cannabis-infused beverages in Missouri.

That partnership would ultimately help introduce Missouri consumers to an entirely new cannabis category.

FROM MISSOURI’S FIRST MANUFACTURER TO ITS FIRST CANNABIS BEVERAGE

For CLOVR, being first meant there was no established Missouri cannabis manufacturing playbook to follow.

The company had to build its manufacturing operation while Missouri itself was building a regulated cannabis industry. After becoming the state’s first manufacturer approved to operate, CLOVR began producing a portfolio of cannabis products and partner brands from its Kansas City operation.

Keef was among those original partners.

Founded in Boulder, Colorado in 2010, Keef helped pioneer the cannabis beverage category and has since grown into a nationally recognized beverage brand operating across numerous regulated cannabis markets.

Together, CLOVR and Keef brought Keef’s infused beverages to Missouri consumers, helping establish a beverage category that barely existed when the state’s cannabis program began.

“CLOVR has experienced nearly every challenge a cannabis operator can experience, launching in a new market, navigating changing regulations, transitioning from medical to adult use, price compression and an increasingly competitive marketplace,” said Matt Baumgartner, CEO of Keef Brands. “What stands out is their ability to continue adapting. Building a cannabis business is difficult. Building one that can take adversity, evolve and still be standing years later takes a different level of commitment.”

A PARTNERSHIP TESTED BY A CHANGING INDUSTRY

The cannabis industry of 2026 looks dramatically different from the industry CLOVR entered in 2020.

Missouri operators now compete in a mature adult-use market where consolidation, margin pressure and competition for retail shelf space increasingly favor scale. At the same time, Missouri’s regulated system requires cannabis sold in the state to be cultivated, manufactured, tested and transported, and distributed in Missouri.

For Missouri based licensees, CLOVR believes that creates both a challenge and an opportunity.

“Consolidation is happening throughout cannabis, and Missouri isn’t immune to it,” said Kris Sudduth, COO of CLOVR Cannabis. “There is tremendous pressure on independent and Missouri-based operators to compete against increasingly larger organizations. But I don’t believe consolidation means locally owned licensees can’t win. It means we have to operate better, innovate faster, build stronger partnerships and give Missouri consumers a reason to choose the products being made here.”

Sudduth said CLOVR’s relationship with Keef demonstrates the importance of those partnerships.

“We’ve been through difficult periods, made mistakes, adapted and kept moving forward. What I’m proud of is that we’re still here, we’re still manufacturing in Kansas City, and we’re continuing to invest in Missouri,” Sudduth said. “Our relationship with Keef goes back to the beginning of this industry. We helped bring a completely new cannabis category to Missouri together, and years later we’re still looking at what we can do next.”

KEEF AND CLOVR PREPARE FOR THE NEXT CHAPTER

That next chapter begins with an expansion of Keef’s Missouri beverage lineup.

CLOVR and Keef plan to introduce multiple new Keef beverage flavors during Q4 2026 and Q1 2027, expanding the choices available to Missouri consumers and bringing additional products from Keef’s broader beverage portfolio into the state.

Keef’s current national portfolio extends well beyond its original sodas and includes Classic Soda, Energy, Sparkling H2O, Life H2O and Mocktail formats. Its current Missouri lineup includes familiar flavors such as Blue Razz, Bubba Kush Root Beer, Orange Kush, Purple Passion, Pineapple X-Press and C.R.E.A.M., among others.

The companies will announce specific new Missouri flavors and launch dates as the products approach retail availability.

“Missouri has grown into an important market for Keef, and CLOVR has been there with us from the beginning,” Baumgartner said. “The companies that survive in this industry aren’t necessarily the ones that never face adversity, they’re the ones that learn from it, keep improving and continue delivering for their customers. CLOVR has demonstrated that resilience, and we’re excited about what we’re building together next.”

BEVERAGES WERE A BET. TODAY, THEY’RE A CATEGORY.

When CLOVR and Keef announced their Missouri partnership in 2020, cannabis beverages were still an unfamiliar format for many consumers.

The original partnership contemplated Keef Classic Soda, Keef Life H2O and other beverage and edible products for Missouri. By 2022, the companies were already expanding the state’s assortment with additional products including Blackberry Coconut Sparkling H2O, Blueberry Lemon Life H2O and Fruit Punch Mocktail.

Today, Keef describes itself as the original cannabis beverage company and says it sells millions of sodas annually. CEO Matt Baumgartner has described Keef’s journey as one of growth accompanied by continual regulatory and market changes.

For CLOVR, that evolution validates the decision the companies made six years ago.

“When we started, we weren’t looking at what Missouri cannabis already was, we were looking at what it could become,” Sudduth said. “Beverages were part of that vision. Keef believed in Missouri, we believed in Keef, and together we helped establish that.

As consolidation reshapes cannabis nationally, CLOVR believes the future of Missouri cannabis should continue to include locally operated businesses, entrepreneurs and licensees capable of creating products and brands that compete on quality and innovation.

“Being Missouri-based doesn’t mean we should expect consumers to support us simply because we’re local,” Sudduth said. “We have to earn it. We have to make great products, price them competitively, operate responsibly and continue innovating. If Missouri licensees do those things and work together where it makes sense, I believe there is still tremendous opportunity for locally operated companies to thrive.”

For CLOVR and Keef, a partnership established before Missouri’s first cannabis manufacturing facility began production is now entering another chapter.

First manufacturer. First beverages. Six years of change. And still building.

ABOUT CLOVR CANNABIS

CLOVR Cannabis is a Missouri-owned and operated cannabis manufacturer based in Kansas City. In December 2020, CLOVR became the first medical marijuana manufacturing facility in Missouri to receive approval to operate from the state. The company manufactures and distributes a portfolio of cannabis products and partner brands throughout Missouri.

ABOUT KEEF BRANDS

Keef Brands was founded in Boulder, Colorado in 2010 and is a pioneer of the cannabis infused beverage category. Its portfolio includes cannabis-infused sodas, energy drinks, enhanced waters, mocktails and other products. Keef products are manufactured by licensed partners within the regulated markets in which they are sold.