Cannabis News

Missouri House Passes Bill To Ban Hemp THC Drinks, Gummies And Other Products

Published

2 months ago

February 19, 2026

admin

“We’re not pioneering anything new here. What Missouri is doing … is simply aligning our state statutes with federal action.”

By Rebecca Rivas, Missouri Independent

The Missouri House passed a bill Thursday that would ban all intoxicating hemp products — like THC seltzer or hemp-derived THC edibles currently sold at gas stations and smoke shops — beginning in November.

The bill, sponsored by Republican state Rep. Dave Hinman of O’Fallon, would ban hemp products from containing more than 0.4 milligrams of THC per container, among the limits included in a provision of a federal spending bill passed by Congress last year.

Even if Congress were to reverse course and decide to allow the sale of these products, Hinman’s bill would allow them to be sold only at licensed marijuana dispensaries in Missouri. And if Congress chooses to delay the ban for a couple of years, Missouri would ban all products except alcoholic beverages.

With a vote of 109-34, the bill now goes to the Senate for consideration.

“We’re not pioneering anything new here,” Hinman said during Thursday’s debate on his bill. “What Missouri is doing … is simply aligning our state statutes with federal action so that our law enforcement, highway patrol, local prosecutors and the attorney general’s office can work together with our federal partners. No loopholes, no loopholes.”

Republican state representative Matthew Overcast of Ava spoke out against the bill, particularly a provision that says intoxicating hemp products “shall be considered marijuana” and regulated equally.

This would essentially ban all intoxicating hemp sold in the state because marijuana must be grown in Missouri and most hemp is grown elsewhere. It would also require that hemp products be sold in licensed cannabis dispensaries, which can only sell products grown in Missouri licensed cultivation facilities.

Overcast argued that the Missouri constitution already defines what constitutes marijuana, and that only voters, not lawmakers, can change that definition. And while proponents say the changes are necessary to protect children from getting these products, Overcast said, the reality is the bill will only protect the marijuana industry from competition.

“We cannot rewrite voter-approved language by statute because some market participants prefer less competition,” Overcast said. “If protecting children was really the goal, we know what works: age restrictions, standards, clear labelling, packaging protections, responsible retail rules.”

Hinman said he believes Missouri lawmakers have the power to make that change.

“The (Missouri) Constitution defines marijuana as anything from the hemp plant except industrial hemp,” Hinman said. “Cannabinoid products derived from hemp are not industrial hemp. They are intoxicating.”

The cloud also argued invoice does not allow Missouri to continue to comply with federal guidelines. If Congress were to pass legislation allowing states to sell intoxicating hemp products outside of marijuana dispensaries, Overcast said Missouri businesses would not be able to do so because Hinman’s bill allows them to sell only within what he called a “marijuana monopoly.”

“That’s not public safety, that’s not security policy,” he said. “This is about picking winners and losers.”

State officials estimated in 2024 that 40,000 food establishments and smoke shops and 1,800 food manufacturers were selling products that would be banned under the proposed federal regulations. This includes low-THC seltzers such as Mighty Kind and Triple, which have grown in popularity in liquor stores and bars.

Hinman’s legislation is one of the first bills to pass the House this year. He previously told The Independent that the legislation was a priority for state leadership, including the governor, attorney general and House speaker.

It will be the fourth year Missouri lawmakers have tried to regulate intoxicating hemp productsending the previous discussions in deadlocks.

Hinman told The Independent Thursday evening that he is “pro-small business” and that this was not a bill he wanted to pass this year, but the state is in line with the coming federal cuts.

“All of last year and right up until this federal decision, I was pushing to make the drinks and low-dose gummies available for those small businesses to sell,” he said.

For 10 months last year, he said, he tried to bring together hemp business owners to propose a regulatory framework outside of marijuana rules.

“And they couldn’t come to a conclusion about what would be acceptable,” Hinman said.

Limiting the products to being sold only at cannabis dispensaries also wasn’t his priority, he said, but it’s a regulatory framework the state already has in place.

His original language stated that Missouri would delay its ban if the federal government did, but he said that would inadvertently leave the products unregulated in the state indefinitely.

“And then we’re back to trying to create a regulatory framework for hemp products,” he said. “The attorney general was not happy because he wants to get something done. And of course, the police do … their hands are tied with continuing an unregulated market.”

If Congress decides to allow low-dose THC hemp products to be sold outside of dispensaries, Missouri would have to go back and pass legislation allowing that, he said.

Republican state representative Jeff Myers of Warrenton advocated closing the loopholes that opened up when Congress legalized hemp in the 2018 Farm Bill.

“All we’re saying is the federal government stepped back and dealt with a loophole that was exploited,” he said. “We’re closing that gap.”

This story was first published by the Missouri Independent.

Marihuana Moment is made possible with the help of readers. If you rely on our pro-cannabis journalism to stay informed, consider a monthly Patreon pledge.

Cannabis News

Nascent medical cannabis industry aims for growth

Published

8 hours ago

April 18, 2026

admin

The medicinal cannabis sector is struggling to take root, and another specialist processing plant is set to close. But with current regulations and a new collective industry in mind, New Zealanders are promising to reduce their reliance on imported medicinals.

There was great excitement when medicinal cannabis was legalized and then regulated in 2020, with the hope of growing the domestic sector and serving patients here and abroad. However, since then, several companies have closed their doors, including Greenfern Industries, Cannasouth and, most recently, Helius Therapeutics.

The latter plans to close the East Tāmaki plant, affecting 65 workers. It is one of the few medicinal cannabis factories in the entire nation that has a specialized processing certificate called “Good Manufacturing Practice” (GMP).

Medical Cannabis Council executive director Sally King said that under current rules, most growers did not have such certification, and could only sell raw ingredients, not processed products such as more profitable cannabis capsules.

Cannabis News

Medical Marijuana Helps People Stop Using Opioids, Sleeping Aids And Other Prescription Drugs, Study Shows

Published

9 hours ago

April 17, 2026

admin

Using medical marijuana appears to help reduce the use of other medications, including opioids, sleep aids and antidepressants, according to a new study of more than 3,500 patients. They experience far fewer negative side effects after switching from prescription drugs to cannabis.

The survey results show that across all medication categories, patients were able to reduce their use of other prescription drugs by an average of 84.5 percent after starting to use medical cannabis.

More than half of the patients (58.9 percent) completely stopped using other prescription drugs.

The study, conducted and published by medical cannabis and telehealth company Bloomwell, conducted an online survey of 3,528 patients in Germany last month.

“Through the use of medical cannabis, patients were able to reduce their use of other prescription medications by an average of 84.5% across all categories.”

93.4 percent of patients taking sleeping pills were able to cut their use in half after starting medical marijuana, and 75.5 percent were able to get off the medication completely.

For methylphenidate, an ADHD drug sold under the name Ritalin, 77.3 percent of medical marijuana patients stopped completely.

61 percent of patients who were previously dependent on opioids were able to stop completely with the help of medical marijuana.

Stopping the use of prescription drugs led to a significant reduction in drug-related side effects, with 60.7 percent reporting no longer experiencing them.

“These patient reports demonstrate that in many cases, in addition to the treatment of the actual symptoms, one of the key reasons for an individual therapeutic trial with medical cannabis is the absence or reduction of medication-related side effects,” the study concluded.

“60.7% of patients reported no longer experiencing medication-related side effects from using medical cannabis.”

There were positive side effects, however, with 67.8 percent saying medical cannabis helped them concentrate better, 61.9 percent said it helped them foster more social relationships, and 53.9 percent experienced fewer sick days from work.

“The primary reason for prescribing medicinal cannabis, in addition to treating symptoms, is to reduce or avoid the side effects of other medications,” Julian Wichmann, Bloomwell’s founder and CEO, said in a press release. “For example, anyone who can completely stop opioids using medical cannabis has a good chance of going about their daily lives and working without side effects.”

“So we shouldn’t demand restrictions on access to medical cannabis, but rather make sure doctors are willing to do an individual therapeutic trial with medical cannabis, or at least recommend it and refer patients to their colleagues,” he said. “At the same time, our survey shows that we should finally discuss the great benefits of medical cannabis more openly, instead of only warning about the empirically unproven risks and discrediting the flower.”

This is not the first study to position medical cannabis as a safer alternative to opioids and other prescription drugs.

About One in three Americans who use CBD say they take it as an alternative or supplement to at least one medication—especially painful ones—according to a federally funded study published in February.

Also, a recent federally funded study, published by the American Medical Association (AMA), added further evidence Marijuana can be an effective substitute for opioids in the treatment of chronic pain.

Other studies published by the AMA have found legalizing marijuana for medical or recreational purposes “Significantly associated with reduced opioid use among patients diagnosed with cancer.”

A separate paper published in October also found that Legalizing medical marijuana “is associated with a significant reduction in opioid prescriptions.”

In August, however, Australian researchers published a study that shows this Marijuana can be an effective substitute for opioids in pain management treatment.

Another study published last year in the journal Drug and Alcohol Review found that daily drug users with chronic pain cannabis use was associated with greater likelihood of opioid cessation-Especially among men.

Other studies also found this legalizing medical cannabis appears to have significantly reduced payments to doctors from opioid manufacturers who specialize in pain, the authors found that “this reduction is a consequence of the availability of medical marijuana as a substitute” for prescription analgesics.

Other recent studies also showed a decline in fatal opioid overdoses in jurisdictions where marijuana was legalized for adults. That research found a ‘consistent negative relationship’ between legalization and fatal overdoses, effects more pronounced in states that legalized cannabis earlier in the opioid crisis. The authors estimated that legalizing recreational marijuana “is associated with a decrease of 3.5 deaths per 100,000 people.”

“Our findings suggest that expanding access to recreational marijuana could help combat the opioid epidemic,” the report said. “Prior studies overwhelmingly indicate that marijuana (especially for medical use) can reduce opioid prescriptions, and we see it successfully reducing overdose deaths as well.”

Another recently published report on prescription opioid use in Utah follows the state legalizing medical marijuana found that the availability of legal cannabis reduced opioid use among chronic pain patients and helped reduce prescription drug overdose deaths across the state. Overall, the study’s results indicated that “cannabis plays a significant role in pain management and reducing opioid use,” he said.

President Donald Trump said in December that marijuana can “make people feel a lot better.” and serves as a “substitute for addictive and potentially deadly opioid painkillers.” issued an executive order to federally regulate cannabis and promote access to CBD for therapeutic purposes. He clarified, however, that he personally has no interest in using marijuana himself.

Marijuana Moment is made possible with the help of readers. If you rely on our pro-cannabis journalism to stay informed, consider a monthly Patreon pledge.

Cannabis News

More employees mobilize with UFCW

Published

1 day ago

April 17, 2026

admin

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.

For more information:
UFCW
www.ufcw.org