Cannabis News

Hemp Isn’t A Loophole—It’s A Legal Industry, And It’s Under Attack (Op-Ed)

Published

2 weeks ago

November 27, 2025

admin

“What this will do is put consumers at risk, steal tax revenue from municipalities and states, and ultimately hurt farmers across the nation.”

By Adam Stettner, FundCanna

Congress did something terribly shorthanded. They crammed a massive policy change into a budget deal and mistakenly called it “public safety.”

If the changes stand, it will wipe out a more than $28 billion market, kill about 300,000 jobs, and eliminate one of the best national paths we have today to safe and sensible cannabis reform and regulation. A prime example is when the government burned down a house to kill the spider.

This is not politics. The 2018 Farm Bill is an example of evil politics being used to kill an industry without having the courage to reverse it and fight back.

The Straw Man: “Unregulated hemp is dangerous, so we need a blanket ban.”

Proponents of the change argued that hemp-derived intoxicants such as Delta-8 THC are a public health threat. That it is sold to children. They are untested. That they escaped a loophole in the 2018 Farm Bill.

Although there is some element of truth in their arguments, this is not indicative of the whole truth.

In short, that narrative is written to support blanket prohibition. Every industry has bad actors, companies and people who game the system. Instead of destroying an entire industry to get rid of bad actors, you analyze the problem, determine the underlying problem, and use logic and law to create, regulate, and enforce structure.

That is not what Congress has done.

Leading this charge is Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY), who appears to be trying to clean up what he sees as a legislative mess he authored. In 2018, he supported the Farm Bill that legalized hemp. Today, he says this law inadvertently unleashed an unregulated flood of what he calls “gas station cannabis” and that the only solution is to shut down the entire industry.

The correct solution? A framework that includes maximum potency, laboratory testing, package size, distribution guidelines, age conditions, and a structure to enforce the above. All of this would address concerns about “gas station hemp” and the risk to children.

In short, I’m all for regulation. This is not a regulation. It is eradication.

Reality: This is a legal, licensed, thriving and job-creating industry

The 2018 Farm Bill legalized hemp. That law was written, passed and signed by Congress and President Donald Trump, who has since endorsed the benefits of CBD and cannabinoids and asserted that cannabis policy should be left up to the states.

Since then, an entire market has grown up around hemp-derived cannabinoids. Manufacturers, retailers and financial partners have invested hundreds of millions in business compliance, taxation and job creation.

Cannabis entrepreneurs have built legitimate and highly regulated businesses that now employ hundreds of thousands of Americans. Their success does not depend on speculation, but on sustainable business models, sound financial management and sustainable access to capital;

The new provisions ban products containing more than 0.4 mg of THC per container. If passed, that would wipe out 95 percent of the hemp-derived market, according to industry estimates. And it would do so without holding a single hearing or public comment period, driving an industry underground to beg for regulation.

What this will do is put consumers at risk, steal tax revenue from municipalities and states, and ultimately hurt farmers nationwide. It will drive cultivation, production and manufacturing into the black market as it has done in the case of prohibition or unexpected legal structures.

One only has to look at the state’s legal cannabis market, which still operates under federal prohibition, to see a legal market that has grown to $35 billion but has simultaneously fueled an illegal market north of $100 billion.

The ban doesn’t work. Half-baked structures and scattered laws without a clear framework, understanding of basic economic principles and lack of regulation/enforcement do not work.

“This is just the beginning”? Let’s not invent ghosts

Some in the broader cannabis industry fear this is the horse behind future attacks on legal THC. This paranoia is understandable, but wrong.

This is not part of a coordinated federal crackdown. It’s a last-minute misguided attempt to solve a real consumer safety issue using the wrong tool. The maturity of the cannabis industry will be determined by its ability to distinguish between good policy and bad process. It is the latter.

Every part of the plant, regardless of label, requires logic, science-backed education, data, debate, and sensible, thoughtful regulation.

Do you want security? Regulate, not abolish

Intoxicating products must be tested, sales must be restricted to adults, packaging and potency must be clearly labeled. This is called regulation.

We regulate alcohol, tobacco and caffeine. We regulate thousands of other industries. What we don’t do is ban entire industries through the fine print in budget bills.

If Congress wants to fix the Farm Bill’s flaws, hold hearings. Invite scientists. Ask the Food and Drug Administration for guidance. Bring industry leaders to the table. What we don’t need is a hidden policy reversal tucked into a spending bill without public debate.

Over the decades, prohibition brought us figures like Al Capone and El Chapo, and created drug trafficking from all corners of the world. It involves crime, money laundering, loss of life, and it’s all pointless. What will the ban create in this case? Just imagine.

Although scientifically less dangerous than cannabis, the regulated alcohol and tobacco industries today employ millions, generate billions in sales and, above all, provide consumers with standardized and safer products through proper oversight. Yet we continue to vilify and ban rather than regulate.

The financial consequences are real

Ban hemp, and you haven’t gotten rid of “gas station” hemp.

You kill an entire industry, even the good parts. You eliminate hundreds of thousands of jobs. You eliminate tax revenue at the federal and state and municipal levels. You immediately take $30 billion out of the economy and push that money into illegal channels. You’re directly putting the product you’ve outlawed into the hands of children and those you claim to protect. Eliminating jobs and the possibility of regulation, oversight, safer products and age-status in the process.

Banning the industry does not protect consumers, it penalizes law-abiding and responsible business owners who are open to regulation and oversight.

The cannabis industry doesn’t want a free pass, but it deserves fair and responsible regulation. That starts with policy making that is deliberate, transparent and informed by the people doing the work on the ground.

Congress, your actions have created a much bigger problem than the problem you were trying to solve. If you want to keep our children safe and support our farmers and industries, do it the right way by regulating with logic. There is a way to have it all, this isn’t it.

Adam Stettner, CEO of FundCanna, has overseen more than $20 billion in loans in underserved markets.

Max Jackson’s photo.

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

US (FL): Cannabis company countersues competitor for AI-fabricated extortion

Published

16 hours ago

December 9, 2025

admin

Leafwell Inc. filed a federal lawsuit against medical marijuana company My Florida Green, alleging that its competitor used artificial intelligence to make legal claims as part of an extortion scheme designed to harm Leafwell’s business. The lawsuit was filed in U.S. District Court…

Cannabis News

Maine Officials Approve 2026 Ballot Initiative To Largely Repeal Marijuana Legalization Law For Signature Collection

Published

16 hours ago

December 9, 2025

admin

Maine officials have given permission to prohibition activists to begin gathering signatures for a proposal A ballot initiative that would roll back the state’s voter-approved marijuana legalization law. The measure, if passed, would also overhaul the regulatory structure of the medical cannabis program by establishing product testing requirements.

The proposal — called the “Cannabis Legalization Act and Maine Medical Use of Cannabis Act” — is a revamped version of a marijuana initiative introduced in September, sponsored by a Republican state senator and a former top staffer for then-Gov. Paul LePage (R), staunch prohibitionist.

The latest proposal, a petition approved by the Secretary of State on Monday, would remove and amend multiple sections of the current state statute, which voters approved in 2016 to effectively repeal the legalization of recreational marijuana sales.

Adults over the age of 21 would remain legal to possess 2.5 ounces of cannabis under the proposal, but a section of the law allowing home cultivation would be repealed. The sale and home cultivation of medical marijuana would be legal.

Madison Carey, who was listed as a lead petitioner in the original version of the repeal initiative and remains involved in the current campaign, told Marihuana Momenti on Tuesday that “there needs to be regulation of marijuana,” arguing that her own experience recovering from opioid misuse disorder speaks to the inadequacy of the current law.

“My hope is to raise awareness of the reality of the potential dangers of not having regulation,” he said. “I think people are fed up with the constant use — the constant (retail businesses) coming up where people can legally buy marijuana.”

Of course, repealing the voter-approved law that established the adult-licensed sales system would eliminate the current regulatory infrastructure in place, which reform advocates say helps mitigate public health and safety risks associated with the illegal market.

Rep. David Boyer (R), who led the fight to get a cannabis legalization initiative on Maine’s ballot in 2016 when he was a staff member at the Marihuana Policy Project, said voters should refuse to sign petitions for the new initiative.

“Don’t stop Maine’s progress, don’t stop signing this unfair repeal initiative,” he told Marijuana Moment on Tuesday. “Repealing the legalization of cannabis would shut down an industry larger than lobsters, potatoes and blueberries combined, costing our state jobs, revenue and economic growth.”

According to the new measure, the director of the Office of Cannabis Policy will “advance policies that promote the health and welfare of the people of the state and protect their health and safety, emphasizing the health and welfare of minors as a priority consideration in the performance of all duties.”

They should also “ensure that eligible patients maintain access to high-quality, effective, and affordable medical cannabis under this Act.”

Under the proposal, the Department of Administrative and Financial Services would create a testing program for cannabis products that would require dispensaries and dispensaries to send those products to a licensed facility for safety evaluation before dispensing them to qualified patients.

The testing facility “should ensure that cannabis or cannabis products do not exceed acceptable levels of contamination for any contaminants that are harmful to health and require testing and ensure proper labeling.”

“The department shall adopt rules establishing a testing program under this section, rules identifying the types of pollutants harmful to health, which must be tested for cannabis and cannabis products under this chapter, and rules regarding the maximum level of contamination for each pollutant,” the vote said. the initiative the text says

Additionally, regulators should administer a system to track cannabis plants from seed to the point of retail sale or disposal. That system “should be able to track cannabis plants in groups during the cultivation phase and when passing from the cultivation phase to another registrar”.

Entrepreneurs must submit at least 67,682 valid voter signatures by February 2, 2026 to be eligible for next year’s ballot. If approved by voters, the initiative would take effect on January 1, 2028.

—
It’s Marijuana Moment tracking hundreds of cannabis, psychedelic and drug policy bills in state legislatures and Congress this year. Patreon supporters by pledging at least $25/month, you’ll get access to our interactive maps, charts, and audio calendars so you never miss a development.

Learn more about our marijuana bill tracking and become a Patreon supporter to gain access
—

Maine lawmakers passed a bill in June legalize possession of an ounce of psilocybin Adults over 21 years of age.

After a different effort in the state last year legalize psilocybin and allow adults to access the psychedelic in state-licensed facilities. But lawmakers watered down that bill—instead, they changed it to create a committee to study further reforms—and in the end it was not approved.

Meanwhile, Maine legislators in February A top marijuana official voted to investigate possible conflicts of interest.

And last year, the law that allowed people came into force now apply for legal marijuana crime records to be sealed.

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

By concentrating our portfolio, we create room for innovation and growth

Published

2 days ago

December 8, 2025

admin

Viscon transfers the range fork product portfolio to Flier

Viscon Plant Technology will transfer its spacer fork product portfolio (including spacer forks and fixed forks) to Flier Systems effective January 1, 2026.

“The furrows are a proven solution for spacing within the sector. By transferring this portfolio to Flier Systems, the technology will remain available to both existing and new customers, with continued quality and support. Flier Systems will take over development, sales and technical service, while Viscon Plant Technology focuses on its core activities,” the team says.

“The transfer of the fields is a deliberate strategic step to strengthen our focus on automation solutions for plant growers and young breeders. In addition to concentrating our portfolio on technologies such as tissue culture automation, phenotypic sorting and somatic embryogenesis automation, we create room for further innovation and growth. We are pleased to have found a reliable and dedicated partner in Flier Systems,” said Nigela, who will continue the same product portfolio. Viscon Plant Technology.

“Acquiring spacer forks fits perfectly into our strategy to automate the entire production process for professional plant growers. Having just introduced the upgraded SPH transplanter/sorter, we have already taken an important step in the automation of potted plants. Acquiring spacer forks is a logical addition as it allows us to offer a complete and integrated package. Viscon,” said Ad Kranendonk, Flier Systems.