Shares of Canadian cannabis companies traded lower in the premarket on Thursday after U.S. President Donald Trump signed a spending bill to end the weeklong government shutdown with provisions to recriminalize hemp THC products from next year.
Trump signed the funding package late Wednesday after the House passed it by 222 votes to 209 earlier in the day, paving the way for the reopening of the federal government following a 43-day shutdown, the longest in U.S. history.
However, the Senate cleared the package on Monday with a last-minute provision to recriminalize many hemp-derived products from late 2026, reversing their legalization under the 2018 Farm Bill.
The spending package “prevents the unregulated sale of intoxicating hemp-based or hemp-derived products, including Delta-8, from being sold online, in gas stations, and corner stores, while preserving non-intoxicating CBD and industrial hemp products,” according to a document provided by the Senate Appropriations Committee.
Signed during Trump’s first term in office, the 2018 Farm Bill legalized products containing less than 0.3% delta-9 THC, the main psychoactive compound in the cannabis plant.
Following its enactment, “the cannabis industry began producing certain cannabis products that contain less than 0.3% delta-9 THC but a total THC concentration that exceeds 0.3%,” according to a 2025 Congressional summary of the bill. “Some of these products may be intoxicating to the user.”
Non-cannabis players also entered the market, with Retail giant Target (TGT) launching a test run for hemp-derived THC beverages at several Minnesota stores this year. This week, Canadian cannabis company Tilray (TLRY) criticized the hemp-related provision included in the funding bill.
“The hemp language buried within the government funding bill is misguided, out of touch with consumer interests, and misplaced in legislation where it does not belong,” Sam Garfinkel, Tilray’s (TLRY) Senior Vice President, said in a statement on Tuesday.
Other cannabis players offering hemp-derived THC products include Canopy Growth (CGC), Curaleaf (OTCPK:CURLF), Organigram (OGI) and Trulieve Cannabis (OTCQX:TCNNF).
Dear readers, We recognize that politics often intersect with the financial news of the day, so we invite you to click here to join the separate political discussion.