The Sixth Circuit partly granted Ohio's request to stay a federal injunction against Senate Bill 56, and a Cleveland brewer says it must again pull its THC seltzers from Ohio shelves.
OHIO, September 29, 2026: A federal appeals court has narrowed the injunction that had shielded ten hemp companies from Ohio's Senate Bill 56, restoring enforcement of much of the state's restrictions on intoxicating hemp products sold outside licensed dispensaries.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit granted in part Ohio's request to stay the preliminary injunction that U.S. District Judge Jeffrey J. Helmick issued July 13, Forbes reported September 26, citing Bloomberg Law. The court found the injunction was too broad but said Ohio had not made a strong enough case that it would win the lawsuit, and it narrowed the order rather than lifting it. Law360 reported the order blocks enforcement of geographic sourcing restrictions against certain companies while allowing state officials to enforce most of the law. The plaintiffs argue SB 56's 0.4 milligram total THC per-container limit violates the dormant Commerce Clause by discriminating against out-of-state businesses.
The exact issuance date and panel were not available in the reporting reviewed. News 5 Cleveland described the ruling as issued Friday, which would be September 25. How the order affects a separate September 4 injunction won by another group of plaintiffs in *Delta Beverages Inc. et al. v. Canepa et al.* was not addressed in the reports.
In Cleveland, Saucy Brew Works, which has sold THC seltzers since January and says they account for nearly 25 percent of beverage sales across its five pubs, said the ruling requires it to halt Ohio hemp beverage sales for the third time. The company plans to redirect product to other states such as Indiana. "It's impossible to run a business like this," CEO Brent Zimmerman told News 5. He said layoffs are likely and the company is weighing "more drastic options," including leaving Ohio, and he called on the state to create a licensing path for hemp beverage manufacturers. The article does not say whether the company is a party to either lawsuit.
Hemp business owners have separately said the state enforces SB 56 unevenly. Wesley Bryant, who runs a craft beverage and hemp manufacturing company, told the Statehouse News Bureau on September 21 that "Ohio has created two different standards, one standard for big marijuana and the other standard for Ohio's hemp industry." A Department of Commerce spokesperson said Issue 2 did not legalize intoxicating hemp products and that the Division of Cannabis Control's authority is limited to marijuana.
Elsewhere in the region, Missouri's federal judge has yet to rule on the state's motion to dismiss the House Bill 2641 lawsuit, and the Seventh Circuit has not acted on Wisconsin's hemp vape directory appeal. The Sixth Circuit appeal of the original injunction (docket 26-3648) remains pending on the merits.
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*Not legal advice. Regulatory status changes frequently and sources sometimes disagree on effective dates; verify against primary sources before acting.*
Forma works embedded on hemp and THC beverage formulation and commercial scale-up, from compliant dosing and label claims through co-packer qualification. This wire is a byproduct of the same regulatory tracking that informs that work.
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