Written by Last week BSH lawyer and member of our litigation and cannabis law teams, Katie McCain, and I participated in the CannaBev Summit in Miami, Florida. The conference was well-attended by the top minds in the cannabis beverage space. A big thanks to Ian Dominguez and Delta Emerald for their curation of such a productive and high-quality program. Below is our coverage of CannaBev – a big thanks to Katie McCain for taking the pen.
Last week, Curtis Harrington and I had the pleasure of attending the 2026 CannaBev Summit in Miami. From beverage brands and distributors to policy advocates and investors and everything in between (Curtis spoke on a panel discussing the varied state regulations), CannaBev created an atmosphere of insightful panels and meaningful conversations centered around one looming question: What’s next for the THC beverage industry in the wake of an effective outright federal ban and how should the hemp-derived beverage industry be positioning itself, specifically?
Here are my key takeaways from this year’s summit…
To provide a quick recap, the 2018 Farm Bill legalized hemp by distinguishing it from marijuana by defining hemp “as any part of the cannabis plant or its derivatives containing no more than 0.3% delta-9 tetrahydrocannabinol (delta-9 THC) on a dry-weight basis.” The law, however, did not account for other intoxicating cannabinoids or methods of synthesizing intoxicants, thus creating a loophole for topical, smokable and ingestible products containing these intoxicants to be sold legally to the public and widely unchecked. Although most states have implemented their own regulations to govern such products (such as age limits, dosage restrictions, and labeling and testing requirements), a federal ban prohibiting all hemp products with 0.4 mg or more of total THC per container was passed last November.
The purpose of the November 2025 ban was to “right the wrong” of the unintended hemp “loophole,” and, without a legislative savior, on November 12, 2026, hemp-derived THC products will revert back to the definition of marijuana and essentially become illegal. Thus, any path forward for the Hemp/THC products industry must include a regulatory framework at the federal level or a delay of the effective ban in order to keep products on shelves.
According to industry leaders, the path of least resistance to counteract the outright ban is to legalize low-dose (5 mg or less of THC per serving) hemp beverages that are regulated in the same or similar three-tier system that regulates alcohol. With high-dose products, synthetics, and anything resembling candy being nonstarters for lawmakers, beverages are something people can get their head around. The three-tier system is also a nearly century-old, proven framework that regulates adult beverages at both the state and federal levels. Regulation = Acceptance.
The THC beverage industry has grown into a thriving, consumer-driven, billion-dollar industry and is primed for continued growth and opportunity. Investors want to invest, banks want to lend, alcohol policy advocates are promoting regulation over prohibition, and national retail chains are excited about carrying low-dose THC products. There is a lot of momentum and interest in the industry, and policy advocates are working hard to educate lawmakers and advance sensible regulation at the federal level.
The overall consensus is that there is and will continue to be a market and demand for these products. Should the ban take effect the question is not if, but when the products re-enter the market under a regulated system. A great deal of work needs to be done in a short amount of time to sway federal lawmakers and keep these products on the shelves. Suggestions discussed at the Summit include:
- Working together to research and establish predicable industry-wide compliance standards, such as label messaging and symbols and testing requirements.
- Dispelling misinformation, myths, and rumors.
- Working together to make sure the various associations within the hemp-derived beverage category are speaking with one voice.
- Getting states on board with the three-tier system.
- Identifying the state leaders that believe in their existing 3-tier system to advocate it to their federal counterparts.
- Focusing on collaborating with local industry partners and getting constituents engaged in a methodical manner. Most consumers are not aware of the looming federal ban. This is an election year, and as voters, consumers need to make their support known.
Last modified: March 6, 2026
