Welcome to the latest edition of “Last week in Weed,” catching you up on the latest breaking news and industry developments in the world of cannabis.
Here’s what you may have missed over the last week:
Congress Eyes Hemp THC Ban, Industry Rings Alarm Bells
A House committee advanced a measure last week that would ban intoxicating hemp-derived cannabinoids like delta-8 and THCA at the federal level. Tucked into the 2024 Farm Bill, the amendment redefines hemp as only non-intoxicating cannabis with 0.3% total THC—including derivatives. Industry stakeholders warn the move could wipe out thousands of small businesses and collapse the booming alternative cannabinoid market. What began as a loophole from the 2018 Farm Bill may soon be closed with a bang.
High Times Gets a $3.5M Revival Shot from RAW Founder
In a twist worthy of the brand’s wild ride through counterculture history, High Times is getting a second life. RAW founder Josh Kesselman and former High Times executive Matt Stang are injecting $3.5 million into the floundering cannabis media empire. Kesselman, calling the publication “a piece of Americana,” aims to restore its cultural relevance after years of financial chaos. Whether this reboot sticks remains to be seen, but nostalgia has a way of selling—especially when it’s rolled in RAW paper.
Tilray Becomes First to Sell Branded Medical Cannabis in Italy
Tilray has kicked in the doors of the Italian medical cannabis market — becoming the first outfit to legally import and slap a brand label on it’s cannabis.
For decades, Italy’s cannabis supply was a state-run operation, the kind of tightly buttoned, military-grown marijuana that smelled more like government paperwork than liberation. But now, the foreign floodgates are creaking open, and Tilray’s move signals a new era: multinational green empires looking to stake their claim in Europe’s sun-drenched fields of bureaucracy. As regulatory barriers soften, expect more cross-border moves like this from the big players.
The Bigfoot Blunder: Michigan Dispensary Lights Up the Wrong Kind of Fire
A cannabis retailer in Michigan stirred controversy with a Bigfoot statue clutching a joint. The locals weren’t amused. The statue, apparently too whimsical for the pearl-clutchers of middle America, ignited a firestorm of righteous outrage from critics who claim it’s marketing weed to wide-eyed children.
Now, the shop owners say it’s just harmless cryptid kitsch — a high-minded prank in fiberglass and resin — but that didn’t stop the moral torches from lighting up. It’s the same tired song and dance: cannabis inches toward cultural legitimacy while the guardians of decency shriek at anything that doesn’t come wrapped in child-proof packaging and shame.
Welcome to the razor’s edge of legalization, where a pot-smoking Sasquatch might just be the most dangerous thing in suburbia.
Cannabis Stocks: Green Shoots or False Starts?
On the market side, cannabis stocks showed mixed performance last week. Tilray Brands (TLRY) ticked upward following its Italy news, while Canopy Growth (CGC) and Curaleaf (CURLF) faced modest drops amid broader market jitters. Volatility remains a given in the sector, but international expansion and pending U.S. legislation could inject fresh momentum—if and when they arrive.
