Just three months ago, I wrote about the three Bend beverage makers who noticed how the 2018 federal Farm Bill spelled out that products containing 0.3% dry-weight volume of THC are legal to produce, distribute and sell. It essentially translates to being able to consume drinks that boast a low-key 2 milligrams of hemp-derived (but not marijuana-derived) THC, including in public. These are unlike beverages sold at dispensaries, which pack as much as 100 mg of THC.
While the Farm Bill’s primary objective is to support local farmers and artisanal agriculture, it dovetails with the growing backlash to alcohol consumption across all demographics, including people in their 20s.
Those three local purveyors — Shift Naturals, Ascend (Ablis) and Altitude — are part of the national Hemp Beverage Alliance, based in Lakewood, Colorado. The HBA started as eight brands holding informal, weekly conversations about this new class of social beverages. It’s since blossomed into an organization with over 200 hemp-aligned member-companies on both sides of the U.S.-Canada border. Roughly half are brands in the new “hemp bev” space.
It’s bringing the party — well, the inaugural Pacific Hemp Beverage Summit — to Bend on Friday, Oct. 11 for a symposium and panel discussions at Silver Moon Brewing. (Which, despite making a cannabis terpene-infused IPA, does not make hemp beverages. It does sell them, including Shift).
Says Silver Moon owner James Watts, “For several years now, we’ve considered Silver Moon to be a hub of craft beverages…With ‘Sober October,’ it just makes good sense that we offer alternative options. The CBD and THC beverages have been a huge hit, and it’s nice to know that we are offering something for everyone.”
Christopher Lackner is the executive director of the HBA. He says the organization’s goal “is to have hemp beverages anywhere beer, wine and hard seltzer are available. Whether it’s a hockey game, a concert, a fine dining experience or a backyard picnic, hemp beverages should be there alongside the other adult beverage options.”
One reason Lackner may have opened with hockey games: Minnesota was the first state to legalize THC-infused hemp beverages — which explains why the Land of 10,000 Lakes accounts for more HBA member brands than any other state. Oregon is, as one might expect, an early adopter.
“As the voice of the hemp beverage industry,” adds Lackner, “we are moving the category forward by partnering with distributors and alcohol partners, working with regulators, and developing best practices for the industry.”
In the wake of the 2018 Farm Bill, nearly half the states in every region allow for such products. While Kentucky and Florida are already online and Georgia is set to see hemp beverages on shelves and on tap soon, California may reverse course, which Lackner notes would be “catastrophic” for the industry. He adds, “Thankfully, Senator Wyden [D-OR] recently announced a commonsense solution that would create a regulatory framework for our category.”
Friday’s pioneering Summit follows in the footsteps of the Hemp Beverage Festival and Conference held earlier this year in Minnesota by offering opportunities for education, networking and collaboration for all interested parties. It includes panels on subjects ranging from “Navigating Changing Federal and State Regulations for Hemp-Infused Beverages,” to “Strategies and Challenges for the Hemp Beverage Supply Chain.” General admission to the summit costs $150, but the sampling portion of the Summit (accompanied by live music) is from 5:30 to 8 pm and is free to anyone over 21.
This article appears in Source Weekly October 10, 2024.
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