Where the Hemp and Cannabis Industry Really Stand Right Now
Three big cannabis industry topics on our latest TDR Trade to Black, presented by Flowhub. Hosts Shadd Dales and Anthony Varrell open with a fresh legal win for rescheduling: the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals has denied a request to freeze the Trump administration’s medical marijuana Schedule III order, ruling that the petitioners — tied to prohibitionist groups including Smart Approaches to Marijuana — hadn’t satisfied the stringent requirements for a stay pending court review. We break down why it matters: the order stays in effect while three consolidated challenges play out, so medical operators can keep pursuing DEA registration. The court also turned away a bid by two medical cannabis companies to intervene on the government’s side.
In segment one, Flowhub CEO Kyle Sherman breaks down what Labor Day 2026 sales data actually tells us about the industry. Across the Flowhub network, sales were only about 5% higher than a typical weekend, with no single breakout day and cart sizes staying flat — a sign the lift came from existing customers shopping a little more, not new demand. Kyle compares that against 4/20 2026, when dispensaries saw roughly 3.3x the revenue of an average Monday, and unpacks why retailers shouldn’t treat every holiday like it deserves the same deep discounts heading into Green Wednesday, Thanksgiving, and Black Friday. He and Anthony also dig into THC beverages as a growing format, and whether 10-milligram doses are overkill versus a lighter social pour.
In segment two, longtime viewer and frequent commenter Brian Dombrowski, a 20-plus-year hemp and cannabis industry veteran, finally joins on camera. Dombrowski lays out what he thinks real hemp regulation should look like with the December 11 federal deadline closing in — 21-plus age limits, packaging, labeling, and testing — and makes an impassioned case for keeping THCA flower legal for veterans and for people in states without real medical access. Anthony pushes back with the one-plant argument, and the two get into the “synthetic” versus “converted cannabinoid” debate, track-and-trace, and Texas, where Dombrowski was close to the industry’s pushback against the state’s THC ban and what could come next heading into the midterms.
There’s a lot in this one — give it a listen.
