IN THE SPOTLIGHT
Should we be worried about hemp-derived THC beverages? After all, as part of ending the recent federal government shutdown, Congress moved to close the loophole in the 2018 Farm Bill that technically permitted manufacture of these popular products. While that closure isn’ t set to take effect until November 13th, 2026, the cannabis drinks industry faces an uncertain future given this potentially devastating outcome.
To better understand what is at stake, Editors Kyle Swartz and Krystina Skibo recently sat down with Xander Shepherd, co-founder of the THC beverage brand Artet. Shepherd joined us for an episode of On & Off, our podcast that discusses the on- and off-premise beverage alcohol industry. What follows is a partial transcript of that conversation.
The Future of Cannabis Drinks After the Farm Bill Change
by KYLE SWARTZ AND KRYSTINA SKIBO
KYLE SWARTZ: Can you tell us a little bit about what these changes are, and how you think they ' ll affect the industry?
XANDER SHEPHERD: I think the Devil ' s in the details. And certainly on the face, you can look at what has transpired and refer to it effectively as a ban. I think if we ' re being fair, which is probably more generous than many would was necessary, but if we ' re being fair to the language that was put into amending the federal funding bill, where this language kind of got snuck in, it limits the potency of a product at 0.4 mg of THC. Which is if we want to, again, be sort of mindful here, is a number larger than zero. So in effect, there is some amount of THC permitted in finished products.
Now, that is being extremely generous and extremely flexible in this sort of thinking. The reality is that at 0.4 mg, it is effectively so low that no one would theoretically feel anything, which does challenge many of the products, many of the brands, many of the experiences, many of the sort of end benefits that people seek in consumption of THC goods.
So yes, in many ways there is a legit-
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