💸 The Tape

Just days after President Donald Trump signed the massive government funding package that quietly slipped in a sweeping federal ban on hemp-derived THC products, Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC) is stepping onto the field with a bill aimed at undoing the whole thing. And in classic Mace fashion, she’s positioning herself as the Congressional referee calling out the quiet-part-loud: prohibitionists jammed this into a must-pass budget while nobody was looking.

Her draft bill—the American Hemp Protection Act of 2025—would strike the section of the appropriations bill that effectively kneecaps the entire hemp consumables category by banning any product with a “quantifiable” amount of THC. Translation: 90–95% of today’s hemp-derived market—including most CBD products—would instantly become illegal by next year.

That’s a big problem for the tens of thousands of small businesses, farmers, beverage makers, wellness brands, and convenience-store entrepreneurs who’ve spent the last five years building an industry out of the loopholes Congress originally wrote.

To be clear, Mace isn’t mincing words. In remarks entered into the Congressional Record, she called the ban a direct attack on “American farmers,” a gift to “shady, black-market actors,” and a slap in the face to the roughly 20% of U.S. adults who used a CBD or hemp-derived product last year. She also scolded fellow lawmakers for making members choose between “voting their conscience on hemp” and funding the military—a nice way of saying Congress played procedural hardball.

There’s just one issue: Mace’s bill only stops the ban—it doesn’t replace it with the regulatory framework industry leaders have been loudly begging for. And that’s where the internal friction begins. Hemp stakeholders fear that a “repeal-only” strategy leaves the sector right back where it started: a legal gray zone filled with consumer confusion, chemical conversions, and wildly inconsistent state laws.

Behind the scenes, bipartisan lawmakers are working on a more robust bill—one that would include age gating (21+), standardized labeling, child-proof packaging, potency caps, and mandatory third-party testing. In other words, the adult-use playbook lite.

Still, Mace’s move matters. She’s the first Republican to publicly plant a flag against the ban, and she’s pledging a full year of trench warfare to stop its implementation. And her stance puts pressure on GOP leadership, which is increasingly split on the issue—especially as Trump simultaneously promotes CBD on social media while approving the largest federal crackdown on hemp since Prohibition.

The next 12 months will determine whether Congress chooses regulation or eradication. For now, Nancy Mace is betting the market’s not going down without a fight.

📈 Dog Walkers

Avicanna Evolves

Toronto-based Avicanna Inc. (TSX: AVCN) has announced what could be its most elegant scientific flex yet — a new powder-based drug delivery system, dubbed PwdRx, that could finally solve one of the cannabis industry’s longest-standing headaches: how to make oily cannabinoids behave like pharmaceutical-grade drugs.

In preclinical models, PwdRx didn’t just outperform traditional oil formulations — it lapped them. Compared to standard medium-chain triglyceride (MCT) oil delivery, Avicanna’s formulation showed 74% higher bioavailability (AUC), a 63% faster time-to-peak plasma concentration (TMAX), and a 134% higher peak plasma level (CMAX). Translation: cannabinoids get absorbed faster, hit harder, and last longer — the trifecta pharma developers dream about.

The results have already earned the company a provisional U.S. patent filing, covering the PwdRx platform’s composition, applications, and potential therapeutic utility across a wide range of pain-related disorders — from rheumatoid arthritis and neuropathic pain to migraine and multiple sclerosis. The science behind it, according to EVP of Medical and Scientific Affairs Dr. Karolina Urban, lies in the platform’s ability to “improve dispersion, solubility, and consistency of uptake.” In layman’s terms: this could make CBD and its cannabinoid cousins behave more like precision pharmaceuticals and less like artisanal tinctures.

Beyond pharmacokinetics, PwdRx was engineered for manufacturing versatility. The platform supports scalable production in multiple solid-oral forms — tablets, capsules, sachets, and pouches — and features tunable drug-release profiles for tailored dosing. That flexibility could make it a valuable asset not just for Avicanna’s internal pipeline but also for potential licensing or CPG partnerships looking for reliable, standardized cannabinoid delivery.

CEO Aras Azadian called the innovation “a significant step forward in the science and technology of cannabinoid delivery,” noting that the company’s global IP portfolio continues to deepen. Avicanna has been methodically repositioning itself as a biopharmaceutical innovator rather than a typical cannabis play — and PwdRx may be the proof investors have been waiting for.

If the technology scales clinically as well as it performs preclinically, Avicanna could find itself holding the key to pharma-grade cannabinoids with faster onset, more predictable dosing, and broader therapeutic appeal — all wrapped up in a powder.

$CNTMF Upgrades FL Offerings

FLUENT Corp. (CSE: FNT.U; OTCQB: CNTMF) is leaning into patient convenience with its newest Florida launch: Bag-O, a 7-gram pre-ground flower line designed for anyone who loves cannabis but hates prep work. The brand’s tagline says it all — “Skip the grind. Save some time.”

Unlike the mystery shake historically stuffed into budget bags across the industry, Bag-O uses strain-specific, whole flower that’s gently pre-ground to preserve aroma, potency, and terpene integrity. In other words: it’s ready to roll, pack, vape, or sprinkle without sacrificing quality.

FLUENT is leading with a respectable lineup of familiar genetics:

• Gush Moon – Sativa-leaning hybrid

• Tartz – Hybrid

• White Wedding – Sativa-dominant hybrid

• Caramel Cream – Hybrid

• Primus – Indica-dominant hybrid

Additional strains will rotate in based on harvest cycles and patient demand — a smart way to keep the SKUs fresh without bloating the catalog.

Interim CEO Dave Vautrin says the product is a direct response to patient requests: simple, consistent, and low-effort. It’s the “I want good flower but I’m not auditioning for a craft-rolling competition” demographic — a surprisingly large and loyal group in medical markets like Florida.

Bag-O is now available at all FLUENT dispensaries statewide, with online ordering, express pickup, and drive-thru options at select stores — all part of the company’s broader push to tighten operations, improve margins, and lean into formats that move volume without overcomplicating the supply chain.

For patients, the pitch is straightforward:

• Whole-flower quality

• Zero prep time

• Lower price point than premium eighths

• Reliable, consistent, strain-specific effects

For FLUENT, it’s another step in refining its product mix and meeting customers where their real habits are — often somewhere between “I care about terpenes” and “I don’t have time for accessories.”

🗞️ The News

📺 YouTube

Can Hemp and Cannabis Finally Build One Unified Coalition? | TDR Cannabis in 5

What we will cover:

✅ Now that the nationwide hemp ban is officially in place, the real question hits different:

👉 Is it too late — or can the hemp and cannabis industries finally unite and push back against Big Alcohol, Big Pharma, and Big Tobacco before they take this whole space over?

Because after this week, the wake-up call isn’t subtle anymore.

For years, hemp and cannabis fought turf wars while legacy industries sat back, wrote checks in D.C., and prepared their own playbook. As attorney Brady Cobb told us on Trade To Black, when hemp and cannabis are at war, “the only people that win are Big Alcohol, Big Pharma, and Big Tobacco.” And he’s right — the infighting, the loophole economy, and the battles over Amendment 3 all created the perfect opportunity for Congress to slam the door shut.

The hemp ban didn’t just target bad actors — it exposed how fractured this “industry” really is. But it also created a chance. A reset. A moment to finally align around one plant, one set of rules, and one unified strategy going into the next Farm Bill and the broader rescheduling debate.