Intoxicating Hemp

After over a decade ball-hawking in the backfield, former NFL star Micah Hyde is taking on a new position: hemp beverage entrepreneur. Following his retirement in January 2025, the Ohio native stepped into the beverage arena with Hyde’s Hail Mary, a line of Shandy-style low-dose THC drinks that’s aiming to recruit both football and beer lovers alike.

Mass retail giant Target is expanding sales of intoxicating hemp beverages, adding the products to stores in Florida, Texas and Illinois. 

Facing an ever-increasing likelihood that hemp THC beverages will be outlawed this fall, Nowadays is preparing for the long-run with its latest innovation: Nowadays Extra Light, a low-dose RTD line designed to be compliant with the upcoming regulatory requirements by using just 0.4 mg of THC and 5 mg of CBD per 12 oz. can.

Senator Rand Paul (R-KY) proposed legislation last week that would allow states to respectively determine the future of hemp-based product sales within their own borders.

THC drinks will have an expanded potential retail set in Minnesota. Despite an existential timeline ticking on the category’s future, beverage retailers continue to add intoxicating hemp drinks to store shelves. Target is the latest to go deeper in the set…at least in its home state.

If there’s a stay of execution, it’ll probably be at the last minute. That’s what hemp lobbyists and industry groups are starting to believe about the potential for a reprieve from the upcoming November 12 THC ban, according to the Coalition for Adult Beverage Alternatives (CABA).

As Congress’s November deadline ticks closer for intoxicating hemp beverage makers, states are not waiting to pass their own regulations on if and where THC drinks can be sold.

Breakthru Beverage Group, one of the largest beverage distributors in the U.S., is jumping into the intoxicating hemp drink business.

Several producers and a distributor filed an emergency lawsuit in Ohio last week in an effort to block Gov. Mike DeWine’s attempt to abruptly shut down the state’s intoxicating hemp beverage industry.

Chicago’s Half Acre Beer Company and Maplewood Brewery & Distillery have merged into what the brands’ leaders are calling “a long-term commitment to Chicago as a great beverage city.”

JuneShine Brands is shifting production of all its brands to third-party producers, the San Diego-based company announced today.

New York may allow licensed alcohol retailers to sell THC-infused drinks if a new measure introduced in the State Legislature earlier this week gains passage.

As the distribution tier continues to shrink, what must brewers and bev-alc brands do to protect their routes to market? ArentFox Schiff partner Nichole Shustack and senior associate Isabelle Cunningham joined the Brewbound Podcast to discuss how suppliers can navigate the turbulence that comes with wholesaler consolidation.

The future of hemp beverages remains in flux as potential legislative bills circulate on Capitol Hill, but for suppliers and distributors in the space, keeping up with demand has been business as usual. Almost.