Community Highlights: Meet Chef Turtle of Chef Turtle’s Infusion Consulting LLC

Today we’d like to introduce you to Chef Turtle.

Hi, Chef Turtle. I’m so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work life, how can you bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
Hello, my name is Neil McAlister, but in the cannabis industry, I am known as Chef Turtle. My first job in cannabis was at The Mint Café, where I saw the industry in a new light. While working there, I had the pleasure of co-writing their hotline menu/recipes with 2 other amazing chefs. After dropping the new menu, I stepped away a few months later to start educating patients about basic infusions. Once I completed my LLC, I started working on a culinary show for YouTube called Chef Turtle’s Infusion Kitchen with a buddy of mine. While we were getting that going, I started putting together my infusion guidebook, published in March 2022, “Chef Turtle’s Infusion Guide/Cookbook with Savory & Baked Recipes. I also started doing some public speaker platforms for cannabis education and motivation at different events. At the Cannabis Awards Music Festival, I took home first place in Las Vegas in 2021 for best male cannabis chef. Then, in 2022, I took home first place in Oklahoma for best cannabis education on speaker. And this year, I took home first place in Arizona for best cannabis chef, class, book, educational speaker, influencer, activist, & entrepreneur. I have two different websites. My main one used is www.ChefTurtle420.com, and you can find my love, peace, cannabis clothing line, and other merchandise on that website. You can also schedule personalized workshops. I also have my workshop video available on my Patreon account under ChefTurtle420.

Would it have been a smooth road, and if not, what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Getting where I am today has been a rough and bumpy road. Due to needing to understand a bylaw added to the Patient Act in 2014, I got my DA card before I was allowed. In my internship, the state forced me out of my job and threatened my patient card because I took them to court about everything. Because of that, I was forced to sign paperwork that will forever red-flag me if I apply to get my DA/FA cards again. So now, along with everything I have created for my business, I actively fight for patients’ and local business owners’ rights so nobody has to deal with the same issues I do because of misunderstanding the law. That would be the biggest struggle in this industry that I have had to deal with, and I’m still dealing with it. But as you can tell, nothing will stop me from educating patients about a natural plant and helping them find a natural remedy instead of pharmaceuticals.

I appreciate you sharing that. What should we know about Chef Turtle’s Infusion Consulting LLC?
My business and brand cover many different avenues in the cannabis industry and others. I teach basic infusion workshops for patients so they better understand how simple it is. I discussed infusing butter, oil, heavy cream, honey, sugar, alternative sugar, seasonings, and flour in the workshop. I also talk about proper dosing, gauge loss, RSO, green/yellow dragon extractions, and the importance of Terpenes. I have a published infusion guide, “Chef Turtle’s Infusion Guide/Cookbook with Savory & Baked Recipes,” that gives you all the same information and is available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Harvard bookstore, and many other websites. For those of you who enjoy culinary shows, I also have a Cannabis cooking show, “Chef Turtle’s Infusion Kitchen,” on YouTube.

Along with that, I do motivational videos on multiple social media platforms and public speaking for cannabis education and motivation nationwide. I have a clothing line/merch store online, “www.ChefTurtle420.com,” and you can also schedule personalized workshops on that website. I am BBB accredited, so I teach group workshops at their facility. I also have my workshop video available on my Patreon account under ChefTurtle420.

In terms of your work and the industry, what are some changes you expect to see over the next five to ten years?
After all these years, the plant is becoming legal on a federal level, and the industry is shifting to be more accepted by everybody in most markets. I also see more openings for small businesses to grow.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://chefturtle420.com/
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/chefturtle420?igshid=MjEwN2IyYWYwYw==
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ChefTurtle42O?mibextid=LQQJ4d
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCMd96E3V7Gu0CNF-GpgPioA?sub_confirmation=1