[PRESS RELEASE] – SAVONA, Italy, June 24, 2025 – Tilray Medical, a division of Tilray Brands Inc. and a global leader in medicinal cannabis, empowering the therapeutic alliance between patients and health care practitioners to make informed individualized health decisions, announced a significant milestone in its European expansion with the introduction of three new medical cannabis flower varieties in Italy.

Through its wholly-owned subsidiary, FL Group, Tilray has become the first company in Italy to receive official authorization from the Ministero della Salute (Italian Ministry of Health) to import and distribute proprietary Tilray Medical-branded medical cannabis flower for therapeutic use.

Beginning this month, the following Tilray Medical products are approved for therapeutic use in Italy and available for distribution through pharmacies across Italy:

• Tilray THC 25%
• Tilray THC 18%
• Tilray THC 9% / CBD 9%

“This milestone underscores the vital role of medical cannabis as a therapeutic medicine for patients in need, supporting their health and well-being,” Denise Faltischek, chief strategy officer and head of International at Tilray Brands, said.

“We are proud to expand our medical cannabis portfolio in Italy with the introduction of our Tilray Medical high-quality, EU-GMP certified medical cannabis products that uphold the highest standards in patient care,” Faltischek said. “We extend our gratitude to the Ministero della Salute for their trust in Tilray Medical and for providing the necessary regulatory framework to ensure access to safe, consistent and reliable cannabinoid-based therapies. Together, we are advancing health care and patient wellness through innovation and collaboration.”

Tilray continues to lead the European medical cannabis market with operations in Germany, Italy, Portugal, Poland and the United Kingdom, offering a broad portfolio of EU-GMP certified medical cannabis products.

A powerful House committee has approved a spending bill containing provisions that hemp stakeholders say would devastate the industry, prohibiting most consumable cannabinoid products that were federally legalized during the first Trump administration.

The House Appropriations Committee passed the agriculture appropriations legislation in a 35-27 vote on Monday. It now heads to the Rules Committee to be prepared for floor consideration.

While the panel adopted a manager’s amendment to a report attached to the bill earlier this month that provided clarifying language stating that members did not intend to prohibit non-intoxicating cannabinoid products with “trace or insignificant amounts of THC,” the underlying bill went unchanged, despite the industry’s concerns about the proposal.

The large-scale measure covers a wide range of issues, but for hemp advocates and stakeholders, there’s one section of particular concern that would redefine the crop under federal statute in a way that would prohibit cannabis products containing any “quantifiable” amount of THC or “any other cannabinoids that have similar effects (or are marketed to have similar effects) on humans or animals” as THC.

Rep. Andy Harris (R-MD)—chair of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies—championed the hemp ban, which he said “closes the loophole” in the 2018 Farm Bill allowing for consumable hemp products with THC that led to the proliferation of the market.

As many states have stepped in to curb these dangerous project products from reaching consumers, particularly children, it’s time for Congress to act to close this loophole while protecting industrial hemp industry,” Harris said this month. “Reports that the included language would destroy legitimate businesses are simply not true, and that’s clear to anyone closely reading the carefully drafted language that I believe threaded the needle.”

Despite Harris’s strong opposition to cannabis reform and criticism of intoxicating hemp products, his manager’s amendment to the report that the committee approved notably expresses the intent of the committee to take a more flexible regulatory approach to certain cannabis items.

“In determining the quantifiable amounts, the Committee does not intend for industrial or nonintoxicating hemp-derived cannabinoid products with trace or insignificant amounts of THC to be affected,” it says.

But the language in the bill itself would still effectively eliminate the most commonly marketed hemp products within the industry, as even non-intoxicating CBD items that are sold across the country typically contain trace amounts of THC. Under current law, those products are allowed if they contain no more than 0.3 percent THC by dry weight.

The proposed policy championed by Harris would drastically change that. It would instead maintain the legal status of “industrial hemp” under a revised definition that allows for the cultivation and sale of hemp grown for fiber, whole grain, oil, cake, nut, hull, microgreens or “other edible hemp leaf products intended for human consumption.”

The Congressional Research Service (CRS) released a report last week stating that the legislation would “effectively” prohibit hemp-derived cannabinoid products. Initially it said that such a ban would prevent the sale of CBD as well, but the CRS report was updated to exclude that language for reasons that are unclear.

An Appropriations Committee press release on Monday said the bill “supports the Trump Administration and mandate of the American people by…closing the hemp loophole that has resulted in the proliferation of unregulated intoxicating hemp products, including Delta-8 and hemp flower, being sold online and in gas stations across the country.”

The hemp language is largely consistent with appropriations and agriculture legislation that was introduced, but not ultimately enacted, under the last Congress.

Hemp industry stakeholders rallied against that proposal, an earlier version of which was also included in the base bill from the subcommittee last year. It’s virtually identical to a provision of the 2024 Farm Bill that was attached by a separate committee last May via an amendment from Rep. Mary Miller (R-IL), which was also not enacted into law.

There are some differences between the prior spending bill and this latest version for 2026, including a redefining of what constitutes a “quantifiable” amount of THC that’d be prohibited for hemp products.

It now says that a quantifiable amount is “based on substance, form, manufacture, or article (as determined by the Secretary of Health and Human Services in consultation with the Secretary of Agriculture),” whereas it was previously defined as an amount simply “determined by the Secretary in consultation with the Secretary of Health and Human Services.”

The proposed legislation also now specifies that the term hemp does not include “a drug that is the subject of an application approved under subsection (c) or (j) of section 505 of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. 355),” which seems to carve out an exception for Food and Drug Administration- (FDA) approved drugs such Epidiolex, which is synthesized from CBD.

A leading alcohol industry association, meanwhile, has called on Congress to dial back language in the House spending bill that would ban most consumable hemp products, instead proposing to maintain the legalization of naturally derived cannabinoids from the crop and only prohibit synthetic items.

Wine & Spirits Wholesalers of America (WSWA) President and CEO Francis Creighton said in a press release that  “proponents and opponents alike have agreed that this language amounts to a ban.”

“By pushing a rapidly evolving industry back into the shadows, Congress is creating even more chaos in the marketplace, undermining state initiatives and punishing responsible actors,” he said. “We urge the full House to reconsider this approach. States can regulate intoxicating products safely and effectively through systems that preserve consumer trust and public safety. It’s time for Congress to follow their lead, not override their authority.”

Members of WSWA also met with lawmakers and staffers in April to advocate for three key policy priorities that the group says is based on “sound principles of alcohol distribution.” They include banning synthetic THC, setting up a federal system for testing and labeling products and establishing state-level power to regulate retail sales.

Separately, key GOP congressional lawmakers—including one member who supports marijuana legalization—don’t seem especially concerned about provisions in the bill despite concern from stakeholders that it would put much of the hemp industry in jeopardy by banning most consumable products derived from the plant.

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Jonathan Miller, general counsel of the U.S. Hemp Roundtable, told congressional lawmakers in April that the market is “begging” for federal regulations around cannabis products.

At the hearing, Rep. James Comer (R-KY) also inquired about FDA inaction around regulations, sarcastically asking if it’d require “a gazillion bureaucrats that work from home” to regulate cannabinoids such as CBD.

A report from Bloomberg Intelligence (BI) last year called cannabis a “significant threat” to the alcohol industry, citing survey data that suggests more people are using cannabis as a substitute for alcoholic beverages such a beer and wine.

Last November, meanwhile, a beer industry trade group put out a statement of guiding principles to address what it called “the proliferation of largely unregulated intoxicating hemp and cannabis products,” warning of risks to consumers and communities resulting from THC consumption.

Texas GOP Governor ‘Wants To Legalize Recreational Marijuana,’ Lieutenant Governor Claims

Photo courtesy of Kimzy Nanney.

TX gov and lt. gov. clash over hemp; Poll: US voters support marijuana reform; UT cannabis legalization support; DEA psychedelics ban

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/ TOP THINGS TO KNOW

Trump administration solicitor general D. John Sauer is asking the U.S. Supreme Court to take up a case on marijuana consumers’ gun rights, saying that they pose a “clear danger of misusing firearms.”

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) is calling lawmakers into a special session next month, directing them to pass legislation regulating intoxicating hemp products similar to alcohol—including with age limits and requirements for testing and labeling, rather than banning them as would be the case under a bill he vetoed.

Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick (R) accused Gov. Greg Abbott (R) of wanting to legalize recreational marijuana after he vetoed a bill to ban consumable hemp products with any amount of THC and instead recommended regulations—also implying the governor may have lied to him about supporting the proposal.

A Drug Enforcement Administration judge sided with the agency in its attempt to ban two psychedelic compounds that researchers say hold significant therapeutic potential, recommending that they be placed in Schedule I.

A new poll of U.S. registered voters found that 70 percent want to end federal marijuana prohibition and that 45 percent would view the Trump administration’s agenda more favorably if it supported reforming cannabis laws.

A new poll shows that 53 percent of Utah voters support legalizing recreational marijuana—but the Republican House speaker and Senate president say they remain opposed to the reform.

A Bigfoot statue outside the Higher Love marijuana dispensary in Menominee, Michigan is causing controversy—with concerned citizens testifying at a recent Planning Commission meeting that they’re concerned it could appeal to children.

/ FEDERAL

The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality included search terms for cannabis and MDMA in a database on treatments for PTSD.

/ STATES

An Ohio representative said he believes the state Constitution prevents the legislature from making major changes to the voter-approved marijuana legalization law.

Delaware’s top marijuana regulator spoke about plans to launch recreational sales.

Alabama’s top medical cannabis regulator discussed the path forward to launching patient access.

The executive director of the Washington State Public Employment Relations Commission discussed the agency’s role in implementing a new law granting collective bargaining rights to agricultural cannabis workers.

Vermont regulators will consider cannabis social equity, licensing and waste issues on Wednesday.

The Alaska Marijuana Control Board will meet on Wednesday and Thursday.

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/ LOCAL

A Norfolk, Virginia grievance panel denied an appeal from a firefighter who is trying to get his job back after being fired over medical cannabis use.

/ INTERNATIONAL

Korea’s Supreme Court ruled that CBD is considered illegal cannabis.

/ SCIENCE & HEALTH

A study found that “cannabis sativa extract may be considered an adjuvant in the management of pain and quality of life in patients with metastatic lung cancer.”

A study’s results “add to the existing pool of evidence for the usefulness of [psilocybin, LSD and ketamine] for treating cluster headache, and further support the lowering of legal and regulatory barriers to medical access to the psychedelic indoleamines.”

/ ADVOCACY, OPINION & ANALYSIS

Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States Iowa’s executive director authored an op-ed supporting federal marijuana rescheduling.

/ BUSINESS

Jones Soda Co. sold its cannabis beverage business, including all related cannabis-specific assets under the Mary Jones brand, to MJ Reg Disrupters LLC.

Compass Pathways plc reported positive results of its psilocybin medicine in treating depression.

Elon Musk announced that Tesla launched robotaxis in Austin, Texas “with customers paying a $4.20 flat fee.”

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Photo courtesy of Chris Wallis // Side Pocket Images.