With the calendar showing March 20, intoxicating hemp products are no longer legal in the state of Ohio.
“It means we can’t sell anything more,” said Scott Hand, founder of Urban Artifact. The brewery produces the fruit-flavored hemp soda, Coastalo.
“We can’t make it anymore,” he added.
THC drink manufacturers are still waiting on word from the Ohio Supreme Court if Governor Mike DeWine’s ban on these beverages can be overturned.
On Dec. 31, 2025, DeWine signed Senate Bill 56 into law, banning these types of drinks from being sold, among other things. The 90-day grace period ended Friday at midnight.
Bobby Slattery, founder of Fifty West Brewing Co. in Columbia Township, was forced to remove his most popular product from his brewery’s shelves late Thursday.
Slattery drove the final shipment of Sunflower, his company’s take on the beverage category, across the river and into Kentucky shortly before the ban went into effect.
“We’ve loaded four semi trucks,” he said
His brewery released Sunflower, 2024.
“Our team came up with a great idea to put this product out … I said, ‘I’m not sure guys. We’ll give it a try. We think there might be a customer,'” Slattery said. “Not only was there a customer, it was the fastest growing thing we’ve seen since probably opening Fifty West.”
The product sold more than an estimated 30,000 cases in 2025. This year, Slattery said it was outselling most of his craft beers.
“It’s frustrating, it’s hard, but we’re continuing the fight and are hopeful that ultimately the courts will rule in our favor and see what we see,” he said Tuesday afternoon about the ban’s deadline. “We see this as executive overreach. It’s not the way our country was designed.”
In a video posted Thursday afternoon on the brewery’s Facebook page, he tells his customers the drinks would be sent to Kentucky, where they are still legal.
The journey to March 20 has been difficult for Ohio THC beverage manufacturers.
Hand said the ban has caused staffing nightmares.
“We’ve had to make difficult decisions running up to this week that have not been fun,” Hand said.
Slattery fought vocally since Dec. 12, when DeWine announced his plan to ban these products.
“What we’re fighting for is people’s jobs. There’s a lot of people that help develop those products,” Slattery said. “There’s a lot of people that help make those products. And so if those go away, that puts us in a tough spot where we have to restructure our company.”
Dan Tierney, deputy director for DeWine’s office, said he didn’t see jobs being affected long term.
“If you are a business that has been in business since the 1980s and has well-regarded, well-sold products throughout the year, those jobs will not go away,” Tierney said. “If you’re in a canning line, you’re going to be canning beer, even if THC drinks go away. So I don’t think that anybody’s done the economic analysis of what will actually happen here.”
Slattery disagreed.
“I can say for my own company, that’s not correct,” he said. “This law will affect people’s jobs. There’s probably about 10 other craft breweries across the state that have been in regular communication, and this is already affecting jobs across the state, and we’ve communicated that.”
Moving forward, this ban could have an impact on local bars and restaurants.
Not consuming alcohol is a stance that many Americans, especially Gen Z and younger, are taking these days. A recent Gallup poll found that only 54% of U.S. citizens now drink alcohol on a moderate, regular basis, and those who do are drinking less. Hemp-derived THC products have allowed younger adults and nonalcoholic beverage seekers to still participate in bar culture.
Now, craft brewers will head back to the drawing board and work on creating the next big thing, legally.