United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 360 has announced that more cannabis workers in New Jersey are joining its union family. Workers at Hamilton, New Jersey-based cannabis product manufacturer Sun Extractions chose to unionize with Local 360 for the better wages, benefits and benefits that come with a union contract.

Their decision adds to the growing momentum of UFCW Local 360’s Cannabis Workers Rising campaign, which has helped shape statewide labor standards and increase worker, consumer and community safety in New Jersey’s fledgling legal marijuana industry.

“New Jersey’s cannabis industry is stronger today thanks to this vote by Sun Extractions workers,” said Hugh Giordano, UFCW Local 360 Organizing Director. “Sustainable success for companies, workers and communities starts with fair treatment, strong standards and shared commitments. This is how jobs in the cannabis industry become long-term careers, and the future these workers work for.”

“It’s great that this vote is being announced before 4/20,” Giordano added. “4/20 used to be about the plant, but it has become a holiday that celebrates the entire cannabis community and recognizes the workers who grow, cut, pack, package, advise and distribute our cannabis products. Their hard work is why New Jersey’s medical and adult markets are safe and growing, and why sales are on target to exceed $2 billion this year.”

UFCW Local 360 President Sam Ferraino, Jr. emphasized that the Sun Extractions vote is part of a growing push to improve worker protections and benefits in the legal marijuana industry.

“We have more reasons than ever to celebrate 4/20 this year. We welcome the employees of Sun Extractions to the Local 360 family, seeing the hard work of our members move an entire industry forward, and speaking to other states, looking to New Jersey as a model of how to do it,” said Ferraino. “It’s further proof of what we always say: stronger unions mean stronger industries and communities. And that’s worth celebrating.”

For more than a decade, UFCW Local 360 has been at the forefront of efforts to ensure that New Jersey’s cannabis industry offers fair wages, strong job protections and real advancement opportunities. Thousands of cannabis workers, from cultivation to retail, have joined the union since the Cannabis Workers Rising campaign began.

From seed to sale, UFCW is the national leader in organizing workers in the cannabis industry and is the official cannabis union of the AFL-CIO. In the US, UFCW works with workers and business owners to achieve the shared goal of a regulated cannabis industry that provides family-supporting jobs and promotes social equity.

A Republican senator said he hopes to introduce bipartisan legislation in Congress this week to avert what he called the “catastrophe” of the federal recriminalization of THC hemp products set to take effect later this year.

Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) said in an online town hall meeting Tuesday that hemp has “become a billion-dollar industry” since products containing less than 0.3 percent delta-9 THC by weight of the drug were federally legalized under the 2018 Farm Bill signed by President Donald Trump in his first term.

But late last year, Trump signed new legislation that would redefine hemp in a way that advocates say will destroy the industry, so that only products with a total of 0.4 milligrams of THC per container will remain legal.

“I regret that the government is trying to destroy this industry, but I’m doing everything I can and working with a Democratic senator to ensure that if your state decides to regulate hemp, state law would supersede federal law, which is really the way it should be,” Paul said.

The GOP senator said he and Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) plan to introduce legislation “I think will be introduced this week” to address the sweeping federal ban that will take effect in November for states.

“It’s in the Agriculture Committee, and they do the Farm Bill. Our hope is that it can get a vote in committee to try to attach it to the Farm Bill,” Paul said of the upcoming hemp relief bill. “We have our fingers crossed, but it’s difficult for those in the business now, because it’s a crop, it has to be planted, and if it’s going to be illegal in November, farmers are asking if they have to plant it this year.”

The text of the Paul-Klobuchar hemp bill has not yet been made public, but a source told Marijuana Momenti on Thursday that its provisions would allow states to opt out of the federal hemp THC recriminalization policy and allow interstate commerce among themselves.

Paul, for his part, said at this week’s town hall meeting that “Kentucky has a successful hemp industry.”

“There are new startups now. They’ve scaled up to millions of dollars,” he said. “And it’s been good for Kentucky. It’s good for Kentucky farmers. It’s like tobacco, not as big as tobacco, but like tobacco, and I think we should expand it.”

Check out Paul’s full hemp comments starting around 41:50 in the video below:

Paul previously said that in November last year his hemp reform bill could be introduced in daysbut that didn’t happen.

Other members of parliament have introduced legislation delaying the scheduled recriminalization of hemp THC productsbut these efforts have not gained strength with the Congress leadership.

Meanwhile, this month the Trump administration launched a new initiative Cover up to $500 of hemp-derived products annually for eligible Medicare patients. The program being implemented by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) focuses largely on CBD, but also allows a certain amount of THC in products.

Anti-marijuana organizations filed a lawsuit against the Medicare hemp coverage policyand Health and Human Services attorneys. Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and CMS Director Mehmet Oz recently He submitted a letter requesting the filing of the case.

Meanwhile, the White House Management and Budget Office has held a series of meetings a Food and Drug Administration (FDA) CBD product enforcement policy.

The FDA also issued guidance making it clear that it does not intend to interfere Establish a Medicare coverage plan for hemp-derived products.

CMS finalized a rule that will be adopted separately Coverage of certain hemp products, primarily as specialized health-related benefits, through Medicare Advantage the plans

As hemp products become more popular among consumers, some big brands are trying to get in on the action.

The main retailer Target, for example, is expanding its market share of hemp-derived THC beverages. Last year, the company began a pilot program in 10 stores in Minnesota that sell cannabis drinks. That apparently went well, and now the company has secured licenses from Minnesota regulators to sell lower-potency edible hemp products — including THC drinks — in 72 stores in the state.

Tilray has announced a number of strategic initiatives to mark the next phase of its global growth, expanding across healthcare, cannabis and beverages, strengthening its ability to expand internationally and capture emerging market opportunities.

Irwin D. Simon, President and CEO of Tilray Brands, stated: “Tilray Brands is setting the pace for global innovation in healthcare, cannabis and craft beverages – each a distinct growth engine on our platform. This is a crucial time as we enter the next phase of global growth. We are executing carefully against our strategic plan by expanding our international brand growth icon position and Brewver’s international medical icon position. At the same time, our brands, We maintain the financial flexibility to invest behind infrastructure and capabilities.Together, these actions position Tilray as a broad and diversified global platform with multiple near- and long-term growth drivers, and one of the most dynamic and exciting consumer companies today.

© Tilray Marks

Tilray expands UK Medical Platform with acquisition of Lyphe
Tilray acquired Lyphe Group, a leading UK-based medical cannabis clinic and digital pharmacy platform, with Lyphe Dispensary dispensing around 150,000 units and Lyphe Clinic treating over 16,000 patients to date, anchoring and expanding Tilray Medical’s footprint in one of Europe’s largest and most dynamic healthcare markets. The addition of Lyphe strengthens Tilray’s vertically integrated medical ecosystem, combining clinical services, patient access and pharmaceutical distribution. Through Lyphe’s online clinic and pharmacy platform, Tilray will improve access to medical cannabis while accelerating its traditional prescription drug delivery capabilities, creating a seamless digital patient experience.

Most importantly, with the addition of the Lyphe Group, Tilray Medical is establishing its first fully vertically integrated medical platform, which combines the cultivation and production of pharmaceutical-grade medical cannabis with clinical care, distribution services and pharmaceutical distribution. The integration of Lyphe’s highly skilled patient care team further differentiates this model, enabling a more personalized, unified and comprehensive approach to patient care and outcomes. Tilray will also leverage CC Pharma’s established scale, supply capabilities and purchasing power to supply medicines more efficiently through the Lyphe platform, supporting the wider needs of UK patients and further strengthening Tilray’s European pharmaceutical distribution network.

Rajnish Ohri, International President, Tilray Brands, said: “I am proud to welcome the Lyphe team to Tilray, bringing deep clinical experience and a strong patient-first approach, which immediately strengthens our capabilities. This acquisition marks an important step in Tilray Medical’s continued expansion as a global healthcare platform. We look forward to enhancing our capabilities, our ability to serve UK patients, and the international medical ecosystem in 2027. to build a fully connected, consistent, high-quality care while expanding access to cannabis and traditional therapies.

BrewDog and the beverage platform: Accelerate growth, scale globally and invest in expansion
Six weeks after Tilray acquired BrewDog, the company has moved with speed and discipline to stabilize and strengthen the platform, positioning the brand for its next phase of growth. Tilray has stabilized beer volumes, maintained service levels across channels to ensure consistent stock availability and has begun onboarding new distribution and strategic partners to support expansion.

Mr Simon added: “Our priorities are clear: to strengthen BrewDog, accelerate innovation and scale our global beverage platform. We are already taking decisive steps to reinvest in the BrewDog brand, the innovation pipeline and the brewpub experience, and we see a clear path to rebuilding BrewDog. In the US, we are leveraging our infrastructure and distribution network for our broader beverage portfolio in key growth markets, including the Middle East and India. to scale and support the growth of our American craft brands and global partners like Carlsberg across the US.

Tilray expects the BrewDog business to be cash flow positive by 2027 and is investing in the brand and to revitalize and modernize the existing brewpub estate – areas that have seen limited investment in recent years. This provides a strong foundation for improving performance through targeted operational improvements and focused brand building. These efforts are focused on reimagining the brewpub experience to better connect with today’s consumers to ensure long-term brand relevance. As part of enhancing the venue experience with modern activations, strengthening brand engagement and aligning with evolving consumer preferences, Tilray will invest in a “brewpub of the future” at one of its existing locations, allowing it to analyze, evaluate and recommend future changes to its brewpub network. Tilray BrewDog is building a more compelling platform for the future.

Tilray is seeing strong and growing demand for its American craft portfolio in the UK, creating near-term opportunities to expand distribution and build brand presence in the market. Building on this momentum, the Company plans to launch Hi*Ball Energy in the UK in May, further expanding the beverage offering and increasing consumer demand in the growing functional drink category.

Positioned for US reprogramming and medical cannabis options
In the United States, we are closely following medical cannabis rescheduling and actively engaging with legislators and regulators as they evaluate and work on this important drug policy development. We are also evaluating our participation in the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation pilot program, an opportunity to partner with Healthcare Organizations and oncology practices to provide hemp-derived medical cannabis to underserved and vulnerable patients, provide safe and therapeutic access to medical cannabinoids, and collect data on patient outcomes.

Denise Faltisch, Director of Strategy and Head of M&A, Tilray Brands, stated: “In retrospect, Tilray Medical is strategically positioned to participate in the US medical cannabis market, given our proven track record of operating at scale in highly regulated medical cannabis markets globally, our pharmaceutical quality systems and scientific research, backed by scientific education and scientific research. It will happen in the near term and when it does, we are well positioned to seize the opportunity.”

Through our global Tilray Medical platform, Tilray Medical offers extensive experience in pharmaceutical-grade cultivation, manufacturing and distribution, clinical research and regulatory expertise based in more than 20 markets worldwide. Tilray Medical has helped hundreds of thousands of patients worldwide and offers an extensive portfolio of medical cannabis products, including CBD and THC: beverages, edibles and topicals.

Tilray Introduces ATM Program to Accelerate Global Beverage Expansion
To support this next phase of growth, Tilray has also announced that it will introduce a market equity program (the “ATM program”) of up to $180 million to improve financial flexibility and invest behind its global beverage platform. The ATM program will be managed by Jefferies LLC, TD Securities (USA) LLC and Roth Capital Partners LLC.