• 🆕 This Week’s Hot New Sips
• 🍟 MAHA Blames UPFs, Food Dyes For Chronic Disease
• 🧑‍⚖️ FTC Dismisses Pepsi Price Discrimination Suit
• 🤑 Emil Capital Closes $100M Fund IV, Rebrands as ECP
• 👀 ICYMI: BevNET’s Most Read Recent Features

It’s ironic that there’s been a California-to-Texas exodus in recent years because, right now, THC-wise at least, they’re looking a lot alike.

Less than a year after liberal champion Gov. Gavin Newsom approved a since-renewed emergency ban on hemp products in the Golden State, conservative Texas is set to enact a similar-but-permanent measure that effectively pulls the plug on the state’s hemp industry in the name of public safety. Should Gov. Greg Abbott sign Senate Bill 3, as he’s expected to soon, here’s what will happen:

• Manufacturing, selling or possessing hemp products that contain any amount of THC or THCA (a precursor to THC that converts when burned) is now criminalized.
• Non-psychoactive cannabinoids like CBD and CBG are still OK, but can only be sold with a state license.
• “We are not banning hemp. We are banning high,” said Texas House Rep. Tom Oliverson, a supporter of the bill. 
• But because the ban includes even trace amounts of THC – beyond the 2018 Farm Bill’s definition of hemp as containing less than 0.3% THC by dry weight – companies that produce non-consumables like clothes and paper may also be at risk, some say.

It’s a bitter blow for operators like Houston-based Bayou City Hemp (owners of 8th Wonder Brewing) that have helped seed the state’s emerging market since it was legalized in 2019, convincing major retail chains like Total Wine and Spec’s to get onboard in Texas with locally-minded products, like THC-infused ranch water Howdy.

• Citing a drop in cross-border marijuana traffic over the last three years, Bayou City CEO/co-founder Ben Meggs argued in a February op-ed that a state THC ban would only benefit the “criminal gangs who stand ready to fire up their drones to fly over remote borders walls to revive their failing businesses.”

• Thomas Winstanley, who helped lead THC beverage strategy at Theory Wellness prior to taking the reins at Edibles.com., wrote that the law will “send shockwaves” across the industry, and invoked one of Texans’ most treasured rights: “When it comes to firearms, we don’t ban every lawful owner because of a few who break the law.”

• While brands and entrepreneurs decry the move, it has some support from groups like the Texas Package Store Association.

If passed, the law likely won’t go into effect until September, setting up a potentially precarious summer for the Texas hemp industry as it grapples with fight-or-flight scenario. 

The full story will tell you everything you need to know on how the bill fits into the broader context of hemp regulations and how the industry is reacting.

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Before we head into the weekend, we rounded up all of the hottest new products and sorted them for our latest new product gallery. Here’s a preview of what was stocked this week:

🫖 Now that they’ve proven out the concept for hop-infused sparkling water (with adaptogens), HOP WTR is jumping into a whole new line with Iced Tea & Lemonade, its first hopped tea. The brand’s take on the classic Half & Half is now available at all Sprouts locations

🥤 Poppi’s recent innovations took cues from classic soda flavors (cola, cream soda, root beer), but its latest release goes for a different kind of nostalgia. Punch Pop is a modern take on fruit punch and is set to launch in 12 oz. single cans and in 4-packs at retail and online.

💧 Rocket pop? America-sicle? Whatever name you prefer, the classic red-white-and-blue popsicle seems to be a winning flavor this season, with Pepsi’s Bubly the latest to introduce (or bring back, in this case) a limited-time SKU.

Check out the full gallery on BevNET.

In its first publicly-released report, the Make American Healthy Again (MAHA) Commission said the root causes of rising rates of chronic disease in children is due to the prevalence of ultraprocessed foods (UPFs), synthetic food dyes and environmental toxins such as PFAS, microplastics and pesticides in the food system, among other factors. Here’s what you need to know from the full report:

🧁 Ultraprocessed Foods: Specifically, ultraprocessed grains, ultraprocessed sugar (identified as high-fructose corn syrup) and ultraprocessed fats (identified as refined seed oils) were cited as key reasons for nutrient depletion across the U.S. food system. 

🍎 It also goes after, you guessed it, synthetic food dyes, stating that preliminary evidence suggests a possible link between the consumption of these inputs and the development of autism in children, but noted additional research is needed to establish a “definitive link.” 

🚰 Environmental Toxins: The Commission also took aim at environmental toxins including fluoride, pesticides, microplastics and PFAS. It said the latter three have been found in the blood and urine of “American children and pregnant women… some at alarming levels.”

It received mixed reviews, with experts noting that despite claims they might back, HHS, which helped produced the report, has been slashing nutrition programs and firing scientists.

🆓 Check out the full report rundown for all of the highlights.

PepsiCo has dodged a legal bullet. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) voted to dismiss an anticompetitive practices lawsuit filed on January 17. 

• The complaint alleged that Pepsi gave “unfair pricing advantages” to a major retailer while raising prices for its competitors. 
• The contentious lawsuit was split along party lines between Republican FTC commissioners and then-chair Lina Khan when it was filed days before President Biden left office.

Read the full story on BevNET.

Emil Capital Partners has a new round of cash and a new name. The CPG investor rebranded to ECP Growth alongside an announcement it has closed a $100 million Fund IV this week.

• The new fund is not exclusively for CPG investment, and the firm said it will target “high-potential companies” with at least $10 million in revenue. However, CPG will still be in the mix for potential investments.
• Investments are expected to be between $5 million and $20 million and seek to favor companies that are within 18 months of achieving profitability.
• ECP’s portfolio has included A Dozen Cousins, Aloha, Bare Snacks, Base Culture and NextFoods, among others.

Want the full scoop? Insiders can access the full story.

Need to catch up on the beverage industry’s top stories from the last few weeks. No need for FOMO, here’s a selection of BevNET’s most-viewed recent reports.

🏋️ Protein drinks are showing no signs of slowing and neither has the macronutrient content brands are pumping into their muscle mass-building beverages. Read the full story for all of the insights.

🚜 Foodservice, fountain soda supplier Tractor Beverage has landed new funding as it takes itself on the road with a new marketing campaign. Get the full scoop.

👶 Danone took a majority stake in emerging a plant-based, children’s nutrition brand as it eyes growth in medical and retail channels. All the deal details are right here.