The hemp THC industry, estimated at $28 billion, is fighting to save itself from a looming federal ban. Sen. Mitch McConnell closed a loophole in the 2018 farm bill that allowed hemp products containing the intoxicating compound THC to flourish. Now Congress has until Dec. 11 to regulate the products instead of banning them outright.
The loophole that grew the market
McConnell inserted the hemp THC ban into a measure ending the longest government shutdown in history. The “hemp THC ban” was set to take effect Nov. 12 but was delayed to Dec. 11 after President Donald Trump signed a short-term government-funding bill last month. The delay gives lawmakers time to craft regulations instead of a blanket prohibition. But the industry sees the clock running out.
What the ban would actually do
The ban limits THC in hemp products to 0.4 milligrams per container. That threshold could ban some non-impairing CBD products, such as topical lotions, according to Jonathan Miller, general counsel of the industry group U.S. Hemp Roundtable. Drinkin’ Buds, a cannabis beverage company in Sheboygan, Wisconsin, has mothballed production. Co-founder Matt Swanson took himself off the payroll on Thursday and said the situation was uncertain.
The scale of the threat
A report from Whitney Economics estimates the ban threatens to reduce retail revenues by $28.3 billion, displace 225,000 jobs and reduce state sales tax potential by $2.1 billion. Those figures come from a single economic analysis, not official data.
Kentucky’s Cornbread Hemp owners Eric Zipperle and Jim Higdon have 105 employees, sell hemp beverages in 18 states and expect to bring in $65 million this year. Zipperle said: “If it goes through in December, this place is toast — it’s gone.”
The fight to keep products on shelves
Zipperle and Higdon are willing to cap their products at 5 milligrams to win lawmaker support. The owners are betting that a voluntary limit will look better to legislators than a flat ban. The strategy is simple: offer a compromise before the deadline arrives.
Who is fighting for the industry
Alcohol retailers, including Total Wine & More, have come to the defense of the hemp industry. Their interest is shared: cannabis seltzers have helped offset falling alcohol sales.
The people behind the numbers
Nicholas Hohns, founder of Deutermann Farms in Clayton, North Carolina, spreads blue-green goo into molds to make potent THC gummies. His operation represents a share of the industry’s $28 billion revenue. The human cost of the ban is visible in the faces of the people running these businesses. They are not abstract statistics.
What happens after Dec. 11
The industry’s fate rests on whether Congress acts before the deadline. If lawmakers do nothing, the ban takes effect. The hemp industry has built a legal market around a plant that was previously restricted. Losing it now would undo that work.
A closer look at the numbers
| Measure | Estimate |
|---|---|
| Revenue loss | $28.3 billion |
| Job losses | 225,000 |
| Tax revenue loss | $2.1 billion |
| THC limit | 0.4 milligrams per container |
The numbers are stark. The industry is asking lawmakers to act before the deadline.
Source material: “A $28 billion hemp THC industry is fighting to save itself from a looming federal ban,” PBS.
Get the Notebook.
The day's best stories and every fresh verdict, in plain English, in your inbox by seven. One email a day, no more.