Forbes • 22nd May 2026

Why Virginia Governor Vetoed Retail Cannabis Bills

Virginia has once again failed to pass bills that would have regulated the sale of recreational cannabis.Gov. Abigail Spanberger (D) on May 19 vetoed House Bill 642 and Senate Bill 542, which would have established a retail marketplace for cannabis products, citing concerns over the timeline, structure, and “resources needed for successful implementation.”Despite the vetoes, Spanberger said in a statement that she supports a safe, legal, and well-regulated cannabis retail market, and that “Virgi...

Forbes • 17th May 2026

Georgia Governor Signs Bill Expanding Medical Cannabis Program

Georgia governor has signed a bill that expands the state’s medical cannabis program, easing access to cannabis vapes and removing the THC potency cap.Signed this week by Republican Gov. Brian Kemp, Senate Bill 220, known as the “Putting Georgia’s Patients First Act,” marks a further expansion of the state’s medical cannabis program.With the new legislation, the language that defines cannabis changes, with the replacement of the term “low-THC oil” with “medical cannabis.” The law also expands qu...

Forbes • 14th May 2026

France To Ban CBD Edibles Under Stricter Enforcement Of EU Novel Food Rules

France is set to restrict CBD edibles under stricter enforcement of EU Novel Food rules, a move expected to disrupt parts of the hemp-derived food market.The ban, according to AFP and other local news outlets, is taking effect on May 15 and will prohibit the sale of edible products containing CBD, the primary nonintoxicating compound found in hemp.The ban is not the result of new legislation but follows a strict interpretation of the European Union food agency’s establishment of safe consumption...

Forbes • 30th April 2026

Richard Branson Calls For U.K. Cannabis Reform As Public Support Grows

British billionaire businessman Sir Richard Branson has called for cannabis reform in Britain, as the latest polls show growing support for legalization.With a net worth estimated at $2.8 billion, the founder of the Virgin Group said in a blog post on Wednesday that the UK should reform its cannabis and drug laws, arguing that current prohibition policies are failing and causing more harm than good.Branson argued that decriminalization alone is not enough to curb the harms of prohibition, becaus...

Forbes • 27th April 2026

Does Cannabis Legalization Spur More Innovation Than Medical Research?

The announcement of the rescheduling of medical cannabis products this week has been one of the most significant policy shifts in the U.S. cannabis industry and broader drug policy in years, which is set to potentially ease barriers for researchers who study cannabis.The Department of Justice and the Drug Enforcement Administration moved cannabis products approved by the Food and Drug Administration and products covered by qualifying state medical cannabis licenses to the Schedule III category u...

Forbes • 22nd April 2026

California Marks 10 Years Of Cannabis Legalization Amid Illegal Market Struggle

Almost a decade has passed since California legalized recreational cannabis, and Governor Gavin Newsom marked April 20, widely known as “4/20,” an informal holiday celebrating cannabis culture, by announcing that the state has curbed illicit activity worth about $1.2 billion over the years and cleared 215,000 past cannabis charges.“California has cleared records, seized illegal product, and built a legal market that works,” Newsom said in a statement. “As our work continues, we’re focused on str...

Forbes • 18th April 2026

New Bipartisan Bill Would Let States Opt Out Of Federal Hemp THC Ban

A new bipartisan bill introduced in the Senate this week aims to create a federal regulatory framework for hemp products containing THC that would give states and Indian tribes flexibility to set their own rules, opting out of the federal ban and effectively providing a lifeline for the hemp industry.The proposed legislation, filed by Republican Senator Rand Paul from Kentucky, would give more authority to individual states and Tribal governments over how hemp and hemp-derived products are defin...

Forbes • 16th April 2026

Thailand Closes The Door On Recreational Cannabis

Thailand is tightening cannabis rules and restricting legal sales to medical use, effectively ending recreational cannabis sales.Retailers who wish to continue to sell medical cannabis products will have to obtain a license and convert into approved health-focused centers, such as clinics, pharmacies, or traditional pharmacies, and staff licensed healthcare providers. The shift marks a new phase in the country’s evolving stance on cannabis, following its 2022 decision to decriminalize recreation...

Forbes • 1st April 2026

Cannabis Vaping May Be Linked To Earlier Cannabinoid Hyperemesis Syndrome Symptoms, Study Suggests

The findings of a group of researchers at the University of California suggest that the use of vape cartridges containing THC may play a key role in the development of Cannabinoid Hyperemesis Syndrome symptoms. California researchers, in a study published in Cannabis & Cannabinoid Research this month, took a closer look at this little-known condition that triggers repeated bouts of nausea and vomiting in people who use cannabis to get a clearer picture of how it develops, exploring several canna...

Forbes • 29th March 2026

U.S. Army Eases Rules For Some Cannabis Offenses

The U.S. Army has recently loosened some of its recruitment policy, removing certain barriers for people who had minor cannabis-related offenses, in a move aimed at widening the pool of potential recruits.Besides increasing the maximum age for new enlistees from 35 to 42, the updated Army regulations loosened restrictions on people with minor cannabis-related offenses during the enlistment process. In practice, people who have a single conviction for cannabis possession or possession of drug par...

Forbes • 20th March 2026

Swiss Cannabis Experiment Yields Positive Results After Three Years

The cannabis experiment in one of the Swiss cantons is showing positive results three years after its launch, highlighting the need to reconsider the national cannabis policy.The Swiss canton of Basel-Stadt published today the results of its cannabis experiment, launched in 2023, showing that “a health-oriented regulatory model can reduce risks for existing cannabis users without increasing consumption.”In the past three years, participants in the study reported a reduction in problematic cannab...

Forbes • 17th March 2026

Tilray To Buy BrewDog’s U.S. Assets In Craft Beer Push

Canadian cannabis company Tilray Brands has announced its acquisition of some U.S. strategic assets of craft brewery and pub chain BrewDog.The announcement, made on Monday, comes just weeks after the company acquired BrewDog’s brewing operations in Australia, the United Kingdom and Ireland, consolidating a broader shift in the cannabis industry in which companies branch into the beverage sector while waiting for long-delayed U.S. legalization.Under the deal, whose financial terms haven’t been di...

Forbes • 11th March 2026

Tennessee Lawmakers Relaunch ‘Pot For Potholes’ Campaign To Legalize Cannabis

Lawmakers in Tennessee are trying again to legalize the recreational use of cannabis in the state, relaunching a campaign that promises to use tax revenue to repair roads and infrastructure.The campaign, which was launched last week, is supported by a bill sponsored by Senator Heidi Campbell and Representative Aftyn Behn, both Democrats from Nashville. The bill would legalise the purchase of cannabis by adults over the age of 21, with the resulting tax revenue being used to fund transportation p...

Forbes • 27th February 2026

Nebraska Bill Seeks To Shield Doctors Recommending Medical Cannabis From Arrest

A Nebraska committee has advanced a bill that would give immunity to practitioners for recommending medical cannabis, even though the treatment is already legal.The members of the Nebraska Legislature’s Health and Human Services Committee voted 5-2 on Tuesday to advance a bill introduced by State Sen. John Cavanaugh of Omaha that would protect doctors and other medical practitioners from civil, criminal, or disciplinary trouble if they say, in their professional opinion, that a patient could ben...

Forbes • 24th February 2026

New York’s Liquor Shops May Start Selling Low-THC Cannabis Drinks

New York State lawmakers have introduced a bill that would allow liquor stores to sell low-THC cannabis drinks, amid growing interest in cannabis drinks. Democratic Sen. Jeremy Cooney and Assemblyman John Zaccaro have recently introduced companion legislation in the Senate and Assembly to allow licensed liquor and wine stores to sell low-potency cannabis beverages.The bill would allow retail permits for single-use drinks containing up to 5 milligrams of THC, produced by New York adult-use cannab...

Forbes • 23rd February 2026

Teens Who Use Cannabis Face Higher Risk Of Mental Disorders, Study Finds

A new large-scale study has found that teens using cannabis have a higher risk of developing psychiatric disorders, especially psychotic and bipolar conditions, raising fresh concerns about the safety of the drug for young people.The research, published in the JAMA Health Forum journal on February 20, analyzed health data from over 460,000 teens between 13 and 17 in the Kaiser Permanente Health System in Northern California. The data were collected between 2016 and 2023. Participants filled out...

Forbes • 19th February 2026

Organigram Acquires Sanity Group Amid Germany’s Cannabis Boom

Canadian cannabis producer Organigram Global has acquired Germany’s cannabis company Sanity Group to expand its European presence into regulated cannabis markets.The deal, announced this week, comes as Germany’s medical cannabis industry is gaining momentum and consolidating its position as the largest cannabis market in Europe, appealing to U.S. and Canadian cannabis companies seeking investment opportunities.The $268 million deal between Organigram and Sanity allows the Canadian company to con...

Forbes • 12th February 2026

EU’s Food Watchdog Sets Hemp-Derived CBD Safety Limits

The European Union’s food agency has established safe consumption levels for CBD, signaling a major, though cautious, regulatory shift for the CBD industry in Europe.The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) announced this week that it has set a provisional limit for the consumption of hemp-derived CBD, the main non-intoxicating compound in cannabis.The provisional safe intake level for CBD has been set at 0.0275 milligrams per kilogram of body weight per day, which is about 2 mg/day for a 70 kg...

Forbes • 14th January 2026

How Much Cannabis Is Too Much? U.K. Researchers Propose Safer Use Limits

A group of researchers has proposed clear, practical guidelines for safer cannabis use, similar to how alcohol consumption is measured in standard units, which aim to reduce the risk of cannabis-related harm as legalization spreads.Researchers at the University of Bath in the U.K. published the study in the journal Addiction, outlining weekly cannabis-use thresholds beyond which the risk of developing cannabis use disorder (CUD) rises sharply.Cannabis is the most widely used illicit drug globall...

Forbes • 8th November 2025

Republican Support For Cannabis Legalization Falls During Trump, Survey Finds

Republicans are showing less support for cannabis legalization under the Trump administration, amid the White House’s efforts to fight illegal drugs. A survey published this week by the analytics and advisory company Gallup shows that support for cannabis legalization among Republican voters dropped by 13 points over the past 12 months. In 2024, 53% of Republicans supported legalization, but that figure has fallen to 40% this year, returning to levels similar to 2016, when, under President Donal...