High Spirits: The Cannabis Business Podcast
Hosts Ben Larson and AnnaRae Grabstein serve up unfiltered insights, reveal their insiders' perspectives, and illuminate transformative ideas about the cannabis industry for people who want to make sense of it all.
High Spirits: The Cannabis Business Podcast
Holiday Hiatus & High Spirits News
The mics take a breather, but the cannabis market doesn’t. We’re wheels up for MJBizCon and our High Spirits Morning Mixer on Thursday, and then straight to BevNET, while state and federal moves reshape the map from Texas to Virginia to Minnesota to California.
We start with Texas, where regulators approved nine new medical licenses in a historically tight program. It’s a modest step with big implications: recognition that demand is outpacing capacity, but who will be the winners? For operators eyeing long-term positioning, Texas remains a massive, underdeveloped prize where patience, compliance, and local partnerships can compound.
Minnesota faces a different pressure: the looming federal hemp THC ban embedded in a congressional minibus. The state’s hemp-derived THC market—thousands of retailers and strong consumer buy-in—could be gutted overnight. The governor is exploring rapid rulemaking, carve-outs, and potential court challenges to protect businesses until adult use retail is fully stood up. How Minnesota responds may become the national playbook for preserving economic activity amid federal whiplash.
Virginia looks ready to convert legalization on paper into real stores. A bill targeting adult use sales in 2026 would finally establish a regulated retail framework, address social equity, and balance political priorities after years of stalls and illicit market growth. If it moves, Virginia could become the first Southern state with full adult use, forcing regional recalculations and opening a high-potential market.
And California turns the screws on packaging. With a new top regulator and CalRecycle implementing SB54, brands must enroll in a PRO, report packaging at the SKU level, plan for recyclability and compostability by 2032, and meet aggressive plastic recycling targets. Expect cost shifts, supplier consolidation, and innovation in materials, especially for vapes and multi-layer plastics. The winners will treat compliance as strategy, integrating sustainability into brand and supply chain decisions.
Headed to Vegas? Come say hi at the High Spirits Morning Mixer on Thursday. If this breakdown helped you navigate the noise, follow, share, and leave a quick review—what state move should we unpack next?
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Your hosts are Ben Larson and AnnaRae Grabstein.
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Remember to always stay curious, stay informed, and most importantly, keep your spirits high.
Hey everybody, Ben here. I think Anna Ray is in Vegas already. Hope you all had a great Thanksgiving. If you noticed we were quiet last week, yes, we took a break, it was unannounced. Like many of you, we took a beat to recharge. Spend time with the family and prepare ourselves for what is always one of the busiest stretches of the year. This week we're off again because the entire industry is descending on Las Vegas for MJ BizCon, us included. Unless you're one of those folks posting on LinkedIn about not attending MJ BizCon in Vegas. Anna Ray and I will be everywhere. And of course, we're hosting the High Spirits Morning Mixer on Thursday morning. The one event people actually wake up for in Vegas. We can't wait to see so many of you there. And then next week, the Virtosa team and I head straight to Bevnet and Marina Del Rey. So yes, uh, we are in deep in conference mode, holiday mode, year end mode, whatever you want to call it. Let's just call it what it is. We're on a little winter break when it comes to high spirits. But don't worry, we will be back before the end of the year with a proper wrap-up episode. A lot has happened, and even more is coming as we get ready for 2026. How about a little bit of a news roundup since you're here already? Texas. Slow but meaningful expansion of medical access. Texas regulators just approved nine new medical marijuana business licenses, which is a big deal in a state known for keeping cannabis very tightly restricted. Here's why it matters. Texas's medical program is notoriously limited. I think three licenses to date. Low TAC only, small patient pool, very few licenses, like I said. Adding nine new operators signals acknowledgement that demand is outpacing capacity, or at least fulfilling their word of the most recent legislation. And for national operators, looking at long-term positioning, Texas remains one of the largest untapped markets in the US. Oh, did I mention that those nine licenses may have gone to out of state MSOs? It's incremental, it's not perfect. Hey, but in Texas, incremental is is meaningful, right? For Minnesota, the governor is strategizing around the impending federal hemp THC ban. Minnesota is in a uniquely vulnerable position because they pioneered a regulated above-board hemp derived THC market ahead of full adult use cannabis, similar to how Tennessee has a very structured hemp marketplace. That market is thriving. Thousands of retailers, strong consumer adoption, a model other states have copied, and the federal hemp ban included in the congressional minibus would gut that entire ecosystem overnight. That's why the governor is actively exploring options to protect Minnesota businesses, including a state-level workaround or exemption. But it does call into question what does that mean for the supply chain that relies on interstate commerce and centralized manufacturing and all that good stuff? Rapid rulemaking to preserve the market until federal clarity arrives, potential court challenges depending on the final federal language, which I'm pretty sure it's kind of final. So maybe we'll see some court cases from Minnesota. And ensuring legacy hemp businesses aren't wiped out before adult use cannabis fully launches, which they're somewhat related, but not fully. So four years. Political flip-flops and vetoes stalled implementation, leaving Virginia with legalization on paper only, while illicit market activity has surged and lawmakers are facing increasing pressure to create a regulated system. Go figure. This new bill is expected to create a framework for retail stores and tax sales, incorporate social equity considerations, and potentially balance both Democratic and Republican priorities ahead of the 2026 elections. If it moves, it would make Virginia the first Southern state with a full adult use program a major milestone. And finally, my home state of California. We have a new regulator, and we have a new law. California appointed a new top cannabis regulator tasked with cleaning up an extremely complex program that has struggled with tax burdens, illicit activity, local control issues, and inconsistent enforcement. Expectations are high. But while the industry was watching hemp taxes and enforcement, Cal Recycle quietly began implementing SB 54, a sweeping packaging law that affects almost every cannabis brand in the state. Here's the detailed breakdown. One, mandatory pro PRO enrollment. Brands must join the Circular Action Alliance and pay annual fees based on packaging impact. More fees. Wonderful. Two, packaging reporting. Every SKU's packaging materials and weights must be reported. Deadline was november fifteenth. Fines apply. Get with it. Number three, recyclable compostable requirements. By twenty thirty two, which I guess seven years, okay, all single use packaging must meet approved recyclability or compostability standards. Fees escalate for slow movers. Be interesting to see how this impacts the vape market. I'm not sure where we're at with recyclability on that front. Number four, 65% recycling target. Plastic packaging statewide must hit a 65% recycling rate by 2032, forcing major material shifts. And number five, source reduction mandates. Producers will be required to redesign packaging to use less material and eliminate unnecessary components. It is not proposed. It is active, it's expensive, and it's going to transform packaging, supply chains, cost structures, at least for the next seven years. So congratulations, California, you just got even harder to operate in. Alright, that's the news. Not to end on a bad note. We're really looking forward to the next couple weeks, even though we won't be spending much time on air. We'll be spending time in person. We're wishing safe travels to everyone heading to MJ BizCon or Marina Del Rey next week. We hope to see you at the Morning Mixer on Thursday, and we'll be back before the year ends for one last episode to reflect, reset, and close out 2025. We'll talk to you soon.
