Ecuador’s hemp sector is projected to approach or surpass $20 million in 2026 as companies move beyond raw biomass into chocolates, cosmetics, supplements, veterinary products and other finished goods. With more than 700 companies operating across the supply chain, the industry is now looking to capture more value domestically while expanding finished-product exports into international markets.

When people talk about the hemp industry, it can be hard to picture what that actually means beyond a field of crops. In Ecuador, the answer is starting to show up in very tangible products: chocolates, gummies, herbal infusions, craft beer, kombucha, creams, serums, oils and pet products are all part of an increasingly diverse market for non-psychoactive cannabis—meaning cannabis that does not get you high and contains very low levels of THC.

That shift from raw plant material to finished goods is at the heart of a sector that, according to figures provided by industry representatives, grew from roughly $10 million in revenue in 2024 to $15 million in 2025 and is projected to approach or surpass $20 million in 2026, according to El Universo.

The ecosystem now includes more than 700 companies involved in everything from seeds and cultivation to processing, laboratories, retail and finished-product manufacturing.

But that number tells only part of the story. One of the industry’s biggest bets is moving beyond hemp as biomass or raw material and capturing more value by turning it into finished products inside Ecuador.

From Hemp to Chocolate: The Money’s in Finished Products

Ecuador’s Cannabis, Industrial and Medicinal Hemp Industries Cluster brings together roughly 30 small and midsize companies, with goals that include strengthening the production chain and developing finished goods rather than biomass alone.

That strategy is already visible on store shelves and in product catalogs. Forbes Ecuador identified chocolates, gummies, teas, herbal infusions, craft beer, kombucha, ointments, creams, oils, flower, anti-aging products, balms, lubricants, probiotics, prebiotics and oils for pets already on the market.

One company that helps illustrate that range is CBD Solutions, a family business that began taking shape in 2020 and later developed its own small lab as it moved from artisanal production toward manufacturing under more formal standards. Its portfolio includes sublingual oils, creams, ointments, lip balms, chocolates, craft beer, kombucha, herbal infusions, gummies, coffee with CBD kief, extract cartridges and flower.

Hemp Ecuador Labs represents another part of the production chain: research and formulation. The company has operated since 2021 and, according to Forbes, has developed close to 200 products across its own projects and work for third parties, while offering around 45 products under its own brands. Its manager, Eduardo Monge, said bringing a cosmetic or supplement to market can take roughly six months of research, formulation, testing and analysis.

Mayu Ecuador, meanwhile, sells supplements, oils, infusions, chocolates, gummies, creams and a cosmetic serum, along with products for the veterinary market. The company distributes its lines through more than 100 locations nationwide and also works with two compounding pharmacies in Quito and Cuenca.

As far back as 2021, data from Ecuador’s National Agency for Health Regulation, Control and Surveillance, known as ARCSA, showed that 144 CBD products had been authorized for sale in the country, with 95 of them in the cosmetics category.

Among the examples at the time was Laboratorios Beautik, which had developed a CBD hair-care line including shampoo, conditioner, leave-in cream and a hair mask.

What has changed is the scale. Industry sources now point to more than 2,000 products with health notifications or registrations, while other recent counts cite more than 2,500 products registered with ARCSA and more than 50 types of veterinary products registered with Agrocalidad.

Ecuador Has Drawn a Clear Line Between Psychoactive and Non-Psychoactive Cannabis

Ecuador’s growth is taking place within a defined regulatory boundary separating this industry from debates over psychoactive cannabis and adult use. In the country, non-psychoactive cannabis—containing less than 1% THC by dry weight—was removed from the country’s controlled-substances framework and placed under agricultural regulation.

For processed foods and supplements, the rules are even more specific. Resolution ARCSA-DE-2022-014-AKRG allows parts of non-psychoactive cannabis, hemp, or their derivatives to be used as ingredients, but requires the finished product to contain less than 0.3% THC.

Companies seeking health notification must submit testing showing that concentration, along with analyses for heavy metals and pesticides. The same regulation prohibits the use of psychoactive cannabis or its derivatives in those foods and supplements, as well as THC concentrations of 0.3% or higher.

That framework helps explain why the recent shelving of a broader cannabis proposal did not halt this industry. The bill shelved in August addressed issues including adult use, home cultivation and THC-containing products, while the non-psychoactive segment has been operating under its own regulations since 2020.

This also puts another figure highlighted by the industry Cluster into context. According to its president, Lizbeth Fajardo, no health alerts have been reported in connection with the sale of registered products in this market.

The Next Step Is About Much More Than Exporting Biomass

Ecuador’s industry already exports raw material and biomass to other markets, including the United States, Switzerland and Germany, according to sector representatives. The next challenge is increasing exports of finished products, allowing more of the formulation work, technical know-how, intellectual property and commercial value to remain in Ecuador.

Hemp Ecuador Labs, for example, has already tested products in Colombia, Paraguay and the United States and is now working toward meeting the volumes required by those markets. 

Mayu, meanwhile, is working to enter the markets of the United States, Spain, Iceland, France and Costa Rica. One of its CBD chocolates was selected as a semifinalist in the II Ecuadorian Cacao Innovation Award, earning the company the opportunity to present it at the Salon du Chocolat in Paris.

That example captures where the industry wants to go. Ecuador can produce flower and biomass, but the business strategy behind that projected $20 million market goes much further: turning raw material into something recognizable, regulated, and marketable, whether that means a gummy, a cosmetic, or a veterinary product.

In that sense, the clearest way to understand what Ecuador’s “hemp industry” looks like today may be to stop looking only at the plant and start looking at everything companies are making from it.

Cover photo created with AI.

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Licensed cannabis retailers in Canada set a new monthly sales record in June of CA$517.8 million, or about $374.5 million USD. This exceeds the $372.4 million USD generated by California during the same month, which means that Canada — at least for the month of June — became the world’s largest cannabis market, according to SF Gate.

As the world’s second-largest country by land mass, Canada is far bigger than California, but the territories have similarly sized populations. But while California’s cannabis industry has struggled with high taxes, strict regulations, local bans, and competition with a rampant illicit market, the Canadian market has continued growing with new businesses and overseas export opportunities.

California currently has 3.7 cannabis dispensaries or delivery services per 100,000 people, according to the report, while Canada has 7.9 cannabis stores per 100,000 people.

Los Angeles-based cannabis consultant Hirsh Jain told SF Gate that California had all of the advantages it needed to become a global leader in cannabis reforms, “Yet poor policymaking has turned what should have been the world’s premier legal cannabis market into a cautionary tale.”

Previously, Michigan outpaced California in total legal cannabis sales in 2024, although the California market still generated more revenue that year.

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“The sad part was people who were targeted when there was prohibition on cannabis, those same individuals were excluded from the cannabis industry.”

By Will Hammann, Maryland Matters

When Candice Peters opened Coastal Cure Cannabis in Delmar on June 1, it was the culmination of more than two years of hard work on a decade-old dream.

And that’s a fast turnaround compared to many of her peers.

Of the 83 “social equity” licenses for dispensaries that have been distributed by the state since 2023, only 17 are currently in operation, twice the number that were open at the start of this year as more and more finally get their businesses off the ground.

In addition to the challenges faced by any wishful entrepreneur, license holders say they also struggle with unique zoning issues, limited investors and unwilling real estate partners as the still-pervasive stigma around their product hangs in the air.

“It’s been a journey,” said Peters. “And there have been a lot of long nights, and longer days trying to jump…all of these hurdles.”

Peters, a physician who had long been interested in medical use of cannabis, first sought a license after marijuana was legalized for medicinal use in Maryland more than 10 years ago. But she didn’t come away with one then.

“There were no minorities, or very few minorities that got these licenses,” she said. “They were supposed to be a very blind application process. That turned out not to be true, which is how we end up here.”

The Cannabis Reform Act, which made recreational sales legal in 2023, also created the Maryland Cannabis Administration and the Office of Social Equity. It created the social equity licenses, for new dispensaries, growers and processors who came from Maryland communities—or who attended schools in communities—disproportionately affected by the war on drugs.

“The sad part was people who were targeted when there was prohibition on cannabis, those same individuals were excluded from the cannabis industry,” Peters said. “Multimillions of dollars have been made, and no one who was affected by it, decades ago, was able to really profit from that.”

That was echoed by Malcolm Gillian, founder of the Maryland Coalition for Cannabis Equity, a trade association representing social equity licensees like Peters.

“Cannabis should never have been illegal—the enormous impact and harm on folk in arrests and everything else—I definitely want to see that be corrected,” said Gillian, who said he is a few months away from opening his own dispensary.

He said his coalition, made up mostly of self-financed entrepreneurs, works to “make sure social equity licensees have the right funding opportunities, and frankly, when they get to market, have a chance to compete,”

Gillian said Maryland’s law, and the Cannabis Administration, have “created a very healthy, very robust, legal marketplace versus other states that are still challenged with killing the illegal markets.”

Sales have increased each year since recreational cannabis was legalized in 2023, according to data from the Cannabis Administration, totaling $3.46 billion since then and hitting a monthly record in April of $105 million in combined medical and recreational sales.

“The MCA remains committed to providing a safe, equitable and accessible medical and adult-use cannabis industry for qualifying patients and adult consumers,” the administration said in a statement.

Most dispensaries in the state began as medicinal-use operations that converted their licenses to sell recreational cannabis as well. There are 99 non-social equity equity licensed dispensaries currently operating in the state, according to MCA data.

Peters noted that part of regulating the industry has been ensuring that new businesses weren’t founded or swept up by larger investors with multiple locations, sometimes across multiple states.

“The resources that these multistate operators have, I mean, they’re so far above what we have access to,” she said. “Not just financially but in who we know, who we can contact to get expedited services.

“This round of licenses was critical to, not even evening the playing field, but at least allowing us to have a seat at the table,” Peters added. “If half those licenses are bought up by multistate operators, the other half of us would never be able to compete with those numbers.”

Making sure that social equity licenses stay in local hands is just one of the challenges the new businesses have faced. Peters, Gillian and Frank Hayes, an owner of Crabtree Cannabis in Kensington, said the law requiring that 65 percent of equity is held by the qualified applicant can make it especially difficult for social equity licensees to raise capital.

Hayes, who sits on the board of the Maryland Dispensary Association, has spent time lobbying to strike a balance between attracting investors and keeping ownership in the hands of the people the special licenses were meant for.

“We’re very limited in terms of what we can do from a marketing and advertising perspective,” he said. “We’ve lobbied to try to loosen up some of those restrictions with pretty little success.”

There are other challenges. Hayes and co-owner Felicia Covel Rami, owner of a catering business and Baltimore native who won a social equity license in the state’s lottery in 2024, were renovating a former bank to become their dispensary when the state ordered work halted after complaints from two nearby churches. State regulations prohibit dispensaries within 500 feet of places of worship.

It turned out the churches themselves lacked permits, and they were forced to move. Months after filing a lawsuit, the order was lifted, and their renovation could continue.

Hayes said just finding a location was a challenge, as many landlords or their major tenants are unwilling to share space with a cannabis dispensary, even if it complied with zoning laws.

“I think there is still certainly a stigma associated with cannabis because it’s federally illegal,” said Hayes, whose dispensary opened April 14. “I think a lot of that stigma originates from the war on drugs, which in my opinion was pretty misguided on behalf of the federal government.”

Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche in April reclassified medical cannabis from a Schedule I to a Schedule III drug. That put cannabis on the same level as pain medicine and ketamine, in the eyes of the federal government, instead of side by side with drugs like heroin and LSD.

That’s progress, said Peters and Hayes, who hope to see more cannabis research now that the rescheduling opens the door. But the order also created an uneasy future for the recreational side of dispensaries, since the federal Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) still considers recreational cannabis illegal.

“If anything, this April decision has just created a lot of confusion,” Hayes said. “Some licensees have chosen to register and apply with the DEA, others have chosen not to, but I don’t think either camp has confidence [nor] clarity on the path forward.”

He and Covel Rami decided to register after their suppliers said they planned to do so, since registered businesses can’t deal with unregistered partners. Peters was already registered because of her medical career. But she noted that the DEA is the same agency that led the war on drugs that inspired the social equity license program and, “Choosing to trust them now, even for good reason, does cause me to pause.”

“To now include something that’s federally illegal, and submitting information to the DEA is a little frightening,” she said.

Hayes and Gillian, both of whom previously worked in California’s cannabis industry, said high taxes there in the past on adult-use cannabis had allowed an illegal market to continue to flourish. That is not the case in Maryland, which charges a 12 percent sales tax on the use of recreational cannabis, they said,

“There is no longer like a local weed guy [in Maryland], everyone just goes to the dispensary,” Gillian said. “It’s safe, it’s clean.”

“We’re in a state that has supported us,” Peters said. “I think Maryland does want us to be successful, so I’m hoping that they will support us going forward and moving through this whole process.”

As Peters moves forward, she said she hopes the unique perspective of social equity licensees can fulfill the program’s purpose.

“We’re intentionally trying to hire returning citizens, we’re intentionally trying to hire people of the underserved communities, and we’re intentionally trying to get the products out to those people as well,” she said. “I think as we destigmatize this, we’re only going to get more people that are using cannabis in a safe way.”

This story was first published by Maryland Matters.

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Major retailer Target is expanding its participation in the hemp-derived THC beverage market, even as a federal law is set to ban the products later this year.

Last year, the company began a pilot program involving sales of cannabis drinks at 10 select stores in Minnesota. That apparently went well, and now the company has obtained licenses from Minnesota regulators to sell lower-potency hemp edible products—including THC drinks—at all 72 of its stores in the state.

According to a review of Office of Cannabis Management data, Target, which is headquartered in Minnesota, now holds more lower-potency hemp edible licenses in the state than any other company.

The new licenses were obtained on April 1 and will last for a year.

The move comes months after Congress passed and President Donald Trump signed legislation that will recriminalize hemp-derived products containing more than 0.4 milligrams of THC per container.

Bipartisan lawmakers in the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives have pushed for a delay in the scheduled ban, which is set to take effect in November, but those efforts have not gained traction with congressional leadership.

Under Minnesota law, holders of lower-potency hemp edible licenses can sell products containing up to 5 milligrams of THC per serving, with a maximum of 50 milligrams of THC per package. Beverages can have a maximum of up to 10 milligrams of THC per container.

THC drink brands that were included in Target’s initial launch included Birdie, Cann, Find Wunder, Gigli, Hi Seltzer, Indeed, Señorita, Stigma, Surly, Trail Magic, Wyld and Wynk.

It’s not clear whether Target’s involvement in the hemp market at a greater number of its stores with the new licenses will stay focused on the beverage category or if it will involve other kinds of products, and representatives for the company did not immediately respond to Marijuana Moment’s request for comment.

A poll from the cannabis telehealth platform NuggMD last year found that marijuana consumers were encouraged by Target’s decision to start selling THC beverages—with a majority saying the marketing move makes them more likely to shop at the retail giant’s stores.

Respondents were asked: “Does knowing this make you more likely to shop at Target in the future?”

A total of 50.5 percent said they would be more likely—though that notably includes 34.4 percent who said they’d only be more inclined to patronize Target if their local store carried the THC beverages. Another 16.1 percent said “yes” because they “want to support the retailer more now regardless of which locations sell the products.”

About half of respondents (49.5 percent) said Target’s embrace of a THC drink pilot program wouldn’t affect where they shop.

Here’s a full list of Target’s new hemp licenses in Minnesota:

Target’s new license expansion was first reported by Brewbound.

In Minnesota in particular, hemp beverages have been a mainstay even before the state moved to legalize marijuana for adult use.

Gov. Tim Walz (D) signed legislation in 2022 making it so all hemp-derived cannabinoids including CBD could be legally sold in food items, beverages, topicals and more—as long as the products contain less than the federal limit of 0.3 percent THC. Edible and beverage products are limited to a total of 5 mg THC per serving and 50 mg per package.

About a year later, former Minnesota House Majority Leader Ryan Winkler (DFL), who championed the state’s legalization law over multiple sessions, announced plans to launch his own hemp beverage company.

The mainstreaming of cannabis beverages comes as recent poll shows that a majority of Americans believe marijuana represents a “healthier option” than alcohol—and that most also expect cannabis to be legal in all 50 states within the next five years.

Another survey found that four in five adults who drink cannabis-infused beverages say they’ve reduced their alcohol intake—and more than a fifth have quit drinking alcohol altogether.

Target isn’t alone in joining the cannabis train as state laws continue to evolve.

Home Depot, one of the largest employers in the United States, last year shifted its employee drug testing policies to remove cannabis from screening panels entirely and stop pre-employment drug testing of most of its workers, according to a document obtained by Marijuana Moment.

In 2022, Amazon, the second largest private employer in the U.S., also backed a Republican-led bill to federally legalize, tax and regulate marijuana. It previously expressed support for a separate, Democratic-led legalization bill. Amazon has also worked to adapt to changing marijuana policies internally as it’s backed congressional reform, enacting an employment policy change in 2021 to end drug testing for cannabis for most workers, for example.

Meanwhile, Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) of the United States recently entered a first-of-its-kind partnership with a hemp THC beverage company, with a licensing branding deal that will support a variety of veterans services and promote cannabis drinks as a potential alcohol alternative with the drinks being available at VFW posts across the country.

Separately, while Target is apparently moving into the THC drink space, the airline Virgin Atlantic denied satirical and false claims earlier this year from a cannabis beverage company about a deal to sell its THC-infused beverages on flights.

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Before Nature’s Heritage was a premium cannabis brand, it was a lesson learned the hard way—through a failed California venture that sparked something more enduring.

MariMed, the company behind Nature’s Heritage, has roots that stretch back to 2008, when co-founders Bob Fireman and Jon Levine entered the cannabis industry through an investment in a California operation. The venture ultimately folded, but it left a lasting impression.

“They learned a ton about the industry and became passionate about the benefits of the plant in improving people’s lives,” said Tami Kirlis, Brand Director at Nature’s Heritage.

That early experience laid the groundwork for the brand’s more measured East Coast rollout. What began as an advisory firm for startup cannabis businesses evolved into a multi-state operation with a focus on cultivation, packaging, and retail. The company now operates across Massachusetts, Maryland, Illinois, and Delaware.

Genetics as Philosophy

At the center of Nature’s Heritage’s ethos is a commitment to plant genetics—both preserving legacy strains and introducing new cultivars with distinctive profiles. That direction came largely from COO Tim Shaw, a longtime grower whose experience informs the company’s strain selection and cultivation processes.

“Our mission is to curate an archive of genetics from around the world, cultivating strains that capture the finest elements of the plant,” Kirlis explained. “We care for our plants like Mother Nature would.”

The team also emphasizes a longer-than-average dry and cure process—an often-overlooked step that can make or break terpene expression and cannabinoid stability. “The importance of the dry and cure process cannot be understated,” said Kirlis. “It’s one of the longest in the industry, and the results are a potent blend of terpene and cannabinoid-rich flower.”

Nature’s Heritage has built a reputation around less common strains and robust phenotypes. “Lamb’s Bread is a big one,” Kirlis said. “She’s a landrace strain native to Jamaica and notoriously hard to find.” Known for its earthy, pungent aroma and historical connection to Bob Marley, Lamb’s Bread occupies a unique niche in the market.

More contemporary favorites include Double Krush and Chocolatina, strains with strong potency and unconventional flavor notes. The brand’s recent release, Strawberry Jelly, leans into a sweeter profile, offering what Kirlis described as “an energetic, happy high.”

Between Purism and Innovation

While infused products continue to gain traction across the market, Nature’s Heritage maintains a focus on flower-driven experiences. “We’re purists and believe our customers want to experience a strain’s natural aromas and flavors,” said Kirlis. Still, the company has developed a double-infused preroll—featuring flower, live resin, and bubble hash—for those seeking a more layered experience.

Another area of experimentation is variety packs, a format still relatively uncommon in the cannabis space. “Consumers love when they can get multiple strains and experiences in one pack like our Fresh Flight Variety Pack,” Kirlis noted.

Balancing Growth With Quality Control

As with many cultivation-focused brands, scale introduces risk—particularly when it comes to maintaining consistency. “Cannabis is a plant and it’s hard to control Mother Nature,” said Kirlis. “We let the plants be the boss.”

To manage variability, Nature’s Heritage conducts monthly internal product reviews via a task force made up of cultivation staff, lab technicians, and brand ambassadors. That feedback loop, along with customer and buyer insights, helps inform iterative improvements in everything from grow methods to packaging.

Rethinking the Metrics of Quality

Kirlis pointed to the industry’s preoccupation with total active cannabinoids (TAC) as a trend the brand is looking to push back on. “We’re hoping to overcome that with more education around terpenes and their effects on experience,” she said. “It’s not just about getting blasted.”

Instead, the team is working to shift the conversation toward experience-based consumption: choosing strains not for the numbers on the label, but for the effects and sensory characteristics they offer.

Later this year, Nature’s Heritage plans to launch a product line that reflects a broader trend in wellness: the fusion of cannabis and functional mushrooms. Called MycroDose, the product includes four formulations—Spark, Chill, G’Night, and Remedy—each designed to support specific moods or outcomes.

“There’s a mushroom movement gaining momentum,” Kirlis said, referencing brands like Host Defense and LemmeLive. “We’re excited to join that conversation.”

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The European medical cannabis sector is experiencing unprecedented growth, driven by progressive legislation, expanding patient access, and a maturing supply chain, according to a new report. 

Findings from The European Cannabis Report: 10th Edition, published today (Tuesday 29 July), reflect a decade of immense change across European cannabis markets — from early medical pilot programs to the emergence of adult-use frameworks in countries like Germany and Malta.

Germany continues to lead the European medical cannabis market, now valued at over €670 million, thanks to the transformative MedCanG law enacted in April 2024. By removing cannabis from the narcotics list and eliminating bureaucratic hurdles, Germany has created Europe’s most open medical cannabis ecosystem. The market is now supported by over 20 telemedicine clinics, a robust import and distribution network, and falling flower prices, further boosting accessibility.

The Czech Republic and Denmark are establishing themselves as rising European exporters. Czech reforms have enabled commercial cultivation and a significant increase in exports – over 1,300 kg of medical cannabis was shipped to Germany in 2024. In Denmark, a decision to make its pilot programme permanent has cemented the country’s role as a major exporter, with over 7 tonnes sent to Germany in 2024 alone.

Poland is now Europe’s fourth-largest market, projected at €72 million in 2025. Recent regulatory improvements, product approvals, and telemedicine adoption spurred rapid growth, although a 2024 ban on online-first consultations has introduced new friction.

In the UK, the medical cannabis market—entirely private—is expected to exceed €300 million in 2025. Over 30 telehealth platforms serve a rapidly expanding patient base, although high treatment prices and a lack of public reimbursement remain key challenges. Domestic production is ramping up, with several UK-based producers now supplying locally cultivated cannabis.

“The UK medical cannabis market is entering a new phase—defined by scale, sophistication, and strong signals of long-term viability,” said Lawrence Purkiss, senior analyst at Prohibition Partners. “As domestic cultivation scales and digital access becomes more embedded, the market is evolving rapidly from niche to mainstream—creating opportunity for global players and local pioneers alike.”

Meanwhile, Italy remains tightly regulated, with state-controlled cultivation and procurement largely restricting market growth. Despite being one of the first movers in Europe, the market remains dominated by a few suppliers, led by Bedrocan.

Across the continent, flowers remain the dominant product format, but oils, extracts, and even vape cartridges are gaining traction—especially in markets like Germany and the UK. Canadian, Portuguese, and Danish producers continue to dominate exports into the region.

As Europe edges closer to harmonised frameworks and broader patient access, the medical cannabis sector is poised for continued acceleration, potentially surpassing €1.5 billion in combined value across leading markets by the end of the decade.

The 10th edition of the European Cannabis Report, long regarded as the go-to European resource for investors, regulators, operators, and policymakers across the global cannabis landscape, is now available to view via Prohibition Partners’ Insights Hub, a dynamic new digital platform unveiled today, that transforms traditional industry reporting into a live, continuously evolving intelligence experience.

“Since 2017, we’ve been charting the evolution of cannabis markets across Europe, we knew it was time for something new that matched the pace, scale, and complexity of what’s happening on the ground,” Prohibition Partners CEO, Stephen Murphy, explained. 

“This isn’t just a new edition of our report—it’s a complete reimagining of how we deliver insights and data. The Insights Hub gives businesses, policymakers, and patients real-time access to the data and analysis they need to navigate an industry that is no longer changing year by year, but week by week.”

Prohibition Partners’ Insights Hub is now live and available to access for free. To access and explore, visit: insightshub.prohibitionpartners.com

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