I love this industry. I wouldn’t still be here if I didn’t. Through all of the wild experiences and cannabis PTSD, these are my people.
We (the cannabis industry) love to talk about progress. We talk about legalization wins, market expansion, normalization, and what comes next. We talk about culture, community, and how far we’ve come from the days when none of this felt possible. And to be fair, a lot of that pride is earned.
But here’s the part we don’t linger on long enough: cannabis has reached a turning point federally, culturally, and economically, and consumer safety hasn’t caught up yet. That’s not a hot take or an accusation. It’s just where we are.
I didn’t come to this conclusion overnight or by looking for a new project. And I certainly couldn’t have done any of this alone. It came from years of working across the supply chain, sitting in rooms with operators, labs, regulators, scientists, and policymakers, and realizing that everyone sees the same cracks, but we rarely stop long enough to look at them together. That realization is what ultimately led to the Cannabis Consumer Protection Alliance, or CCPA.
How We Built an Industry Before We Aligned on Safety
State legalization moved fast. In many ways, it had to. Programs were built under political pressure, limited timelines, and evolving science. Regulators made tradeoffs while operators adapted. Labs worked within frameworks that were often rewritten midstream. No one set out to build a fragmented system, but that’s what happens when policy, commerce, and public health evolve at different speeds.
The result is an industry where testing rules, lab methodologies, labeling standards, and enforcement practices can vary widely from state to state. Most people inside cannabis understand this intuitively. It shows up in COAs, recalls, potency debates, and quiet side conversations at conferences.
Cannabis consumer safety exists today, but not consistently, and not in a way the public fully understands. That matters more now than it ever has.
Federal Momentum Changes the Conversation
Federal reform is no longer theoretical. Whether it comes from the recent rescheduling, hemp reform, research expansion, banking, or broader legislative frameworks, cannabis is clearly entering a new phase.
Here’s the uncomfortable part. When federal conversations accelerate, inconsistencies that were once contained inside state borders get exposed quickly. If the industry hasn’t aligned on what consumer safety actually means, those definitions will still get written, just not by us. History isn’t subtle about how that usually plays out.
This isn’t about fear-mongering. It’s about timing. The cannabis community has a narrow window to show that it’s capable of handling consumer protection with the same seriousness it expects from policymakers.
The Work That Sparked the Cannabis Consumer Protection Alliance
The shift from conversation to obligation happened in real rooms with real people. It happened while touring advanced manufacturing and robotics facilities, where precision and accountability aren’t optional. It happened through conversations with lab professionals sitting on years of testing data that clearly show how outcomes change when standards tighten or loosen. It happened while walking the halls of Congress, dropping off leave-behind flyers, having real conversations with staffers who were genuinely trying to understand cannabis without the benefit of industry context.
What became obvious, very quickly, was that there is common ground everyone can agree on: consumer safety. That’s what the Cannabis Consumer Protection Alliance is built around. No solutions yet. Not mandates. Just alignment that a public health and consumer protection issue exists and deserves to be addressed before larger decisions get locked in.
The memo behind the Alliance lays that out in detail, drawing from documented patterns across states and internationally, without proposing regulatory outcomes or enforcement mechanisms.
Who Helped Shape the CCPA (And Why That Matters)
Before the Cannabis Consumer Protection Alliance ever had a name, it had conversations. My friends Morgan Fox and Jen Lamboy gave me the Lobbying 101 course and showed me the ropes to hit 100+ doors during one of my D.C. visits.
As my first draft was out to the public, I started getting feedback from outside perspectives, and one of them deserves a ton of credit. Elliot Friedman commented with a pretty sweet-sounding acronym… CCPA. That stuck, as did his other additions to the memo, and I’m thankful to use others’ contributions and credit their efforts.
Over the past few months, I spoke with multiple trade associations, industry leaders, and legislative offices who were generous with their time and, more importantly, honest with their feedback. Those conversations made one thing very clear. If this effort was going to work, it needed to be tighter, more focused, and easier for people to engage with meaningfully.
That guidance is what led me to significantly cut down the size and scope of the original memo over the holiday break, shaping it into what it is today. Less noise. More clarity. A stronger foundation for collaboration and a very easy means of participating.
I want to specifically thank Yasha Kahn for his integrity and years of testing data collection and analysis. Without him uncovering these leaves for me, I wouldn’t have found the door I was meant to go through. Also, Doug Fischer from Vape Safer for his perspective and advice early on. He led me to convert this initiative from an Act to an Alliance to best position us (the industry) for success. Doug knows how I operate, how I’m positioned, and what it actually takes to move an industry conversation forward without lighting unnecessary fires. His guidance helped ensure this stayed grounded, practical, and credible.
I’d also like to thank Dave Vaillencourt from ASTM and GMP Collective for his support and direction early in this process. His experience around standards, quality systems, and real-world implementation helped reinforce why an education-first approach was the right place to start.
This work is better because of those conversations. The more we listen to each other as we progress, the stronger and smarter the Alliance will become.
What the CCPA is – and What it Intentionally Isn’t
The Cannabis Consumer Protection Alliance isn’t a draft or finished bill, and it isn’t a lobbying trap.
It’s an open, education-first framework that invites stakeholders to help acknowledge the problem together. Participation is voluntary. It’s non-binding. Joining doesn’t mean endorsing policy language or future legislation at this time.
What it does mean is raising your hand and saying, “I want a voice or a seat at the table while this is still being written.”
The CCPA connects policymakers, regulators, labs, medical professionals, operators, researchers, and public interest voices into a shared conversation, because safety definitions are the common denominator for every version of cannabis reform, whether that’s medical use, adult use, banking, interstate commerce, or international engagement.
This is the Moment to Get on the Dance Floor
Movements don’t start when the room is full. They start when a few people are willing to step onto the floor early and make it easier for others to join. That’s where we are right now.
If you’ve ever complained about inconsistent testing, confusing labels, or policymakers misunderstanding cannabis, this is your chance to be part of the conversation before decisions are made without industry input. And if you haven’t, but still care about consumer safety, let’s do this. After you read the memo and see the data, I’m sure you’ll be aligned!
Joining is simple. Reviewing the memo takes less time than most Zoom meetings. Contributing can mean adding perspective, data, feedback, or simply lending your name and voice to the effort like a petition.
As the CCPA evolves, contributors will have the opportunity to help shape language, priorities, and the future direction of cannabis consumer safety in real time. That’s rare, and it’s worth showing up for.
What Happens Next
We’re officially kicking this off on January 15, 2026. For the next 180 days, the focus is simple: get as many thoughtful, experienced people on the dance floor as possible. Operators. Labs. Regulators. Clinicians. Executives. Culture carriers. Legislative offices. Anyone who cares about consumer safety and wants to help write the future instead of reacting to it later.
To keep this transparent and inclusive, the CCPA will be sending out a monthly email update to all participants. We’ll also be hosting an optional monthly call where participants can hear updates, ask questions, and discuss next steps together. No pressure. No obligation. Just an open forum to keep the conversation moving forward.
We’ve already got a strong head start, and participation is open. If this resonates with you, feel free to share it with industry friends who should be part of this conversation too. The more people who show up early, the stronger this becomes!
Why I’m Personally Committed to This
I didn’t start this because it was easy, profitable, or guaranteed to work. I started it because after years of building businesses in cannabis, I couldn’t keep asking what regulators should do without asking what we should do. I firmly believe that consumer safety is the foundation for the cannabis industry’s future reform and success.
The Cannabis Consumer Protection Alliance is a chance to write the future together instead of reacting to it later. If you care about consumer trust, public health, and an industry that lasts, I’d love to have you be part of this. Let’s build it the right way, together.
How to be a Part of the Movement 👉
- Read the CCPA Memo
- Join the Cannabis Consumer Protection Alliance
- Add your voice to the conversation on consumer safety (optional)
Again, participation is voluntary, non-binding, and open now.
Read the Cannabis Consumer Protection Alliance memo and learn more.
To join, please send your full name, organization and preferred email address to Adam Rothstein.
About the Author
Adam Rothstein has spent more than eight years in the legal cannabis industry. The last five were spent working across the cannabis supply chain, partnering with operators and manufacturers across the U.S. and other parts of the world. Known for being the “Suits & Roots” combo, Adam bridges the gap with the ability to effectively communicate on both sides of the conversation. With collaborative guidance and support, Adam is the author and coordinator of the Cannabis Consumer Protection Act, an open, education-first effort inviting the industry to help define safety before federal reform defines it for us.
