News

On June 23, 2025, the House Appropriations Committee met to consider the Fiscal Year 2026 Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act. The measure was approved by the Committee with a vote of 35 to 27. The bill provides a total discretionary allocation of $25.523 billion, which is $1.163 billion (4.2%) below the FY25 enacted level. See Subcommittee Chairman Andy Harris’s (R-MD) press release on the bill here.

The FY26 bill includes language that would ban hemp-derived cannabinoid (CBD) products containing synthetic compounds and/or quantifiable amounts of THC or THCA—or other cannabinoids that have similar effects on humans or animals. This language is similar to the “Miller Amendment” that was included in a 2025 House draft of the Farm Bill that failed to pass last session championed by Congresswoman Mary Miller (R-IL).

The bill report includes language urging the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to expedite the Premarket Tobacco Applications process that states, “The Committee is concerned that many timely filed tobacco products still await review by FDA, and this delay in the review of filed applications is confusing consumers, distributors, and manufacturers. The Committee urges FDA to publish and regularly update guidance to communicate to manufacturers, distributors, and retailers an enforcement discretion policy for products with timely-filed and pending Premarket Tobacco Applications (PMTAs) and to prioritize any enforcement actions against products without pending PMTAs or that did not file timely applications.”

On June 20, 2025, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a decision that allows manufacturers and other businesses adversely affected by a U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) denial of a pre-market tobacco product application to file a lawsuit challenging the denial in any jurisdiction where the manufacturer or other businesses operate.

This decision was issued in response to a petition brought by the FDA against R.J. Reynolds Vapor Company, the Mississippi Petroleum Marketers and Convenience Store Association, and Avail Vapor, LLC. In the petition, the FDA claimed that only the manufacturer has the right to petition the courts when a marketing denial order is issued and that retail trade organizations and retailers are not adversely affected by such a denial order.

Originally, R.J. Reynolds Vapor Company, the Mississippi Petroleum Marketers and Convenience Store Association, and Avail Vapor, LLC, filed a lawsuit petition in a Texas federal district court seeking to overturn the FDA’s marketing denial order of pre-market tobacco applications for Vuse Alto electronic cigarette products. The Texas federal court venue was selected since Avail Vapor, LLC operates a retail store in Houston. Both Mississippi and Texas are located within the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals.

The Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act (TCA) authorizes “any person adversely affected” by an FDA marketing denial order to file a lawsuit for judicial review with a federal court in either the District of Columbia Circuit or “the circuit in which such person resides or has their principal place of business.”

In its decision, the Supreme Court held that: (1) the retailers also have the right to petition for review under the TCA “because Avail Vapor and the trade association have their principal places of business in Texas and Mississippi,” and (2) the retailers are adversely affected because “[i]f the FDA denies an application, the retailers lose the opportunity to profit from the sale of the new tobacco product—or, if they sell the product anyway, risk imprisonment and other sanctions.”

A full copy of the U.S. Supreme Court decision can be read here.

On June 24, 2025, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) sent out a reminder that twice every year – by June 30 and Dec. 31 – registered tobacco product manufacturers are required to report to FDA their tobacco product listings if they have made certain changes. Information previously submitted to FDA should not be resubmitted. If a manufacturer made any of the following changes, they must be reported:

• Introduced any tobacco products for commercial distribution that were not included in a previous listing;
• Discontinued manufacturing, preparation, compounding, or processing any tobacco products for commercial distribution;
• Resumed manufacturing, preparation, compounding or processing any tobacco products previously listed as discontinued; or
• Made any required or voluntary material change to any listing information previously submitted, such as a name, labeling, consumer information, or advertisement changes.

For resources on product listing submissions, please go to the Tobacco Registration and Product Listing - Next Generation (TRLM NG) Instructions page. Manufacturers can also read the Registration and Product Listing for Owners and Operators of Domestic Product Establishments page for more information.

On June 16, 2025, the Senate Finance Committee released the Senate version of the tax bill. Senate Parliamentarian Elizabeth MacDonough warned Senators that several provisions do not currently comply with the Byrd Rule limiting what can go into legislation considered under budget reconciliation. One of the provisions from the draft bill that does not comply and can be removed on the floor by a point of order is language barring noncitizens or permanent residents from receiving Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits, as well as a cost-share proposal with states regarding SNAP funds. The Senate Agriculture Committee has modified the bill in order to comply.

House and Senate Republicans have raised concerns over Medicaid cuts, the State and Local Tax (SALT) deduction, clean energy cuts and more. Meanwhile, several Senate committees are expected to release updated legislative text to reflect the Parliamentarian’s Byrd rulings. Read more here.

CDA is excited to introduce the CDA Business Academy, a dynamic 10-week virtual education program designed for emerging, rising leaders and middle managers in the convenience products distribution industry. The program’s curriculum focuses on the essentials of people management and business finance.

The eLearning experience blends self-paced online learning with live interactive sessions led by facilitators and industry experts. Structured to fit full-time schedules, the fully virtual format allows participants to learn at their convenience while still engaging in collaboration and networking with peers. The program equips learners with practical tools they can implement immediately on the job.

The CDA Business Academy will run from September 18 through December 4, with live sessions held every other Thursday. This program is open to all CDA members, supporting leadership development across the industry – registration closes July 31.

Don’t Miss the Early Bird Special: Buy 2, Get 1 Free
Register by July 9 to take advantage of this limited time offer and save big on team enrollment. Develop more leaders for less – register three, pay for two.

Ready to invest in your future leaders? Click here to learn more or contact Lauren Herbert for details.

Open exclusively to CDA members. Participants must be employed on an ongoing basis by a CDA member company in good standing.

Wednesday, July 23
1:00-1:30 pm ET
Register now!

Join us for the first in a series of exclusive CDA member webinars focused on the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) Section 204(d) – the FDA’s Food Traceability Rule. This initial session will break down what the rule entails, its implications for your business, and how CDA is championing a strategic approach to support members through education, advocacy, and practical resources.

Stay ahead of the curve of FSMA 204 - don’t miss this essential opportunity to get informed and prepared.

On June 17, 2025, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a filing letter to Swedish Match USA, Inc. for its modified risk tobacco product (MRTP) applications for 20 ZYN nicotine pouch products. This action initiates the substantive scientific review portion of the MRTP application review process. During FDA’s review, the agency will determine whether the applications provide the necessary evidence for these specific products to be marketed with a modified risk claim.

The tobacco products in these applications are commonly referred to as nicotine pouches, which are small fiber pouches containing nicotine designed to be placed between a person’s gum and lip. Following an extensive scientific review of the premarket tobacco product applications (PMTAs) for these 20 products, the FDA authorized them for sale in January 2025.

The manufacturer is now seeking to market the 20 ZYN nicotine pouch products with a modified risk claim, which requires by law an additional authorization from the FDA. The company is proposing to use the following claim: “Using ZYN instead of cigarettes puts you at a lower risk of mouth cancer, heart disease, lung cancer, stroke, emphysema, and chronic bronchitis.” FDA’s review will ultimately determine whether the scientific and legal standards are met to market the product as a modified risk tobacco product and will issue an order letter either granting or denying the application.

Starting June 18, 2025, the public may submit comments on these applications on regulations.gov to FDA-2025-N-0835. FDA will post application documents, including amendments, to the CTP website on a rolling basis, as documents will need to be redacted for any confidential information. Once all materials for these applications have been made publicly available, FDA will announce a closing date for the comment period. The closing date will be no earlier than 180 days from the date of the Federal Register notice and at least 30 days from the date FDA posts the last group of application materials.

In addition to the public comment, and consistent with requirements of the 2009 Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act, FDA’s Tobacco Product Scientific Advisory Committee (TPSAC) must also be convened to discuss the merits of the application. Details of the TPSAC meeting are forthcoming.

On June 16, 2025, the Senate Finance Committee released the Senate version of the tax bill. Many of the tax provisions in the Senate Finance bill are similar to the tax provisions found in the House-passed One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA). The bill preserves Trump’s tax cuts from his 2017 TCJA bill and creates several new tax breaks that Trump championed during his presidential campaign, such as eliminating certain taxes on tips and overtime. However, there are key differences in a range of areas including Medicare, green energy, higher education and business taxes. To offset the cost, the bill proposes to repeal some clean energy tax credits and scale back Medicaid benefits spending even more than the House-passed bill.

• Other key provisions can be found here.
• A full section-by-section can be found here.
• A high-level overview of the bill can be found here.
• The bill text can be found here.

Senate Republicans have raised concerns over some of the provisions in the tax bill and many have spoken out saying they will not vote for the legislation as currently drafted. Senate Republicans can only lose three votes and still pass the legislation.

The Reagan-Udall Foundation for the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) will host a webinar on July 10, 2025, at 12:30pm ET titled, "FDA's Final Rule on Requirements for Additional Traceability Records for Certain Foods." The public webinar will be hosted in cooperation with the FDA and will have experts from various sectors of the food industry and FDA to discuss pilot initiatives, approaches to outbreak investigations and other key traceability topics. Individuals can register here.

Arlington, TX
February 16-18, 2026

Exhibitors: register online today!

Register now to increase your opportunity of being assigned a preferred booth location through the CDA priority point system. The CDA priority point system expires July 31. Exhibit space is assigned on a first-come first-served basis after July 31.

At Marketplace, the focus is to bring together distributors with their top trading partners and suppliers over a three-day period, featuring a one-day turnkey trade show, focused education sessions, a distributor showcase and enhanced networking opportunities.

Attendee registration opens in September.

By attending Marketplace 2026, you agree to the CDA Notices & Disclaimers.

About Marketplace | Exhibitor Prospectus | Trade Show

On June 6, 2025, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) posted six updated or new forms that are required for submitting new tobacco product applications under the premarket tobacco product application (PMTA) and Substantial Equivalence (SE) pathways. Starting July 6, 2025, applicants must use these forms in their PMTA and SE Report submissions. If applicants do not use the latest version of the forms or do not complete them properly, FDA generally intends to refuse to accept the application.

The updated forms reflect public comments and are part of FDA’s work to promote efficiency, effectiveness, and transparency to improve its tobacco product application review process. The latest versions of the forms offer new instructions and additional details on information applicants are required to include. Ultimately, these forms can help applicants submit higher quality applications to facilitate FDA’s review. Read more here.

Public health experts and former government health officials are speaking out against the lack of mention of tobacco in President Trump’s Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) Commission report. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert Kennedy, Jr. led the commission report, which doesn’t mention smoking or cigarettes; and the word “tobacco” appears only within the context of his concerns about food marketing.

Dr. Brian King, the former director of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) Center for Tobacco Products (CTP) said of the report, “Attempting to combat chronic disease without tobacco control is like attempting a triathlon without a bicycle. You’re destined for failure before leaving the starting line.” An HHS spokesperson said the department “remains steadfast in its mission to protect and promote public health,” adding that the MAHA report is not an “exhaustive inventory of every HHS program or public health challenge…HHS agencies continue to carry out their responsibilities, including work on tobacco control, with the highest level of integrity and commitment to the American public,” the spokesperson said. Read more here.

As both chambers of Congress reconvened after Memorial Day, all eyes are on the Senate as they prepare to pass the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” (OBBBA), which passed the House on May 22, 2025. Different factions of Senate Republicans have expressed opposition (or at least skepticism) about various aspects of the OBBBA as passed by the House. Some are concerned about Medicaid cuts, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) cuts, the overall price tag of the bill and a host of other topics.

President Trump, Senate Republican Leader John Thune (R-SD), Senate committee chairs, and even some House leaders, are trying to resolve these disputes behind closed doors. As a result, the Medicaid and SNAP portions of the Senate bill could look very different from the House’s position. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) released its full budgetary impact of the OBBBA, which says it would increase the deficit by $3 trillion over the next decade. Senate Republicans seem to be making major changes, which could destabilize the fragile coalition of support in the Senate, as well as the House. But what those changes entail and when it might be made public remains unknown at this stage. President Trump wants the bill on his desk for signature by July 4th. More realistically, the Senate will try to pass their version by July 4th and spend July negotiating with the House on a final version to be signed into law before the federal debt limit could be reached in mid-August. Read more here.

House Republican appropriators have revived efforts to ban the sale of intoxicating hemp products in the Fiscal Year 2026 Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies (Ag/FDA) appropriations bill. The language proposes to redefine “hemp” under federal law in a manner that would restrict the types and variety of consumable hemp products that would be legal under federal law.

The spending bill's proposal to redefine hemp is similar to the “Miller Amendment” that was included in a 2025 House draft of the Farm Bill that failed to pass last session championed by Rep. Mary Miller (R-IL). Current law, codified in the 2018 Farm Bill, defines hemp by reference to its concentration of Delta-9 THC. The draft House spending bill changes: 1) would redefine hemp by reference to the concentration of “total THC” (including THCA); 2) exclude all forms of consumable hemp products with quantifiable amounts of THC and other similar intoxicating cannabinoids; and 3) exclude all forms of “synthetic” hemp-derived cannabinoids. Read more here.

Arlington, TX
February 16-18, 2026

Exhibitors: register online today!

Register now to increase your opportunity of being assigned a preferred booth location through the CDA priority point system. The CDA priority point system expires July 31. Exhibit space is assigned on a first-come first-served basis after July 31.

At Marketplace, the focus is to bring together distributors with their top trading partners and suppliers over a three-day period, featuring a one-day turnkey trade show, focused education sessions, a distributor showcase and enhanced networking opportunities.

Attendee registration opens in September.

By attending Marketplace 2026, you agree to the CDA Notices & Disclaimers.

About Marketplace | Exhibitor Prospectus | Trade Show

After the House passed the reconciliation tax package in a narrow vote of 215-214 on May 22, 2025, all eyes are now on the Senate as they prepare to take up the legislation. Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) is tasked with shepherding the One Big Beautiful Bill (OBBB) Act through the Senate while seeking to address a range of concerns from Republican members. The legislation will also undergo a “Byrd Bath” to ensure it complies with Senate reconciliation rules. The Byrd rules require that provisions have a budget impact and do not increase the budget outside of the 10-year window without offsets. Several senators, including Mike Lee (R-UT) and Ron Johnson (R-WI), have called for significantly larger spending cuts to help address the country’s growing debt. Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) has said he will not vote to increase the debt ceiling and Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO) has emerged as a strong opponent of Medicaid cuts.

Thune told reporters on June 4, 2025, that a repeal of the estate tax will not likely be in the Senate’s version of the tax bill. Thune said he expects the estate tax to stay at the level set in the House bill. The House bill permanently extends a higher estate tax exemption from the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 (TCJA), which expires after 2025 and sets the exemption at $15 million in 2026, adjusted for inflation thereafter.

Complicating matters, Elon Musk, who announced he is stepping down as head of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), expressed his dissatisfaction with the tax bill. Musk argued the tax bill undercuts his recent efforts to slash government spending due to the significant increase to the budget deficit that the bill includes. Read more here.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has paused its request to collect the personal data of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) recipients after a coalition of groups filed a lawsuit on May 22, 2025, alleging the directive violated federal privacy laws. The lawsuit is in response to the May 6, 2025, USDA request that states turn over data to the agency, through their third-party payment processors, "including but not limited to" names, birth dates, Social Security numbers and addresses of all SNAP applicants and recipients going back more than five years. More than 40 million people utilize the SNAP program each month. Despite the lawsuit and pause from USDA, some states are preparing to comply with the request, which could be used to achieve Trump administration priorities, such as immigration enforcement. Read more here and here.

CDA is pleased to announce the recipients of the 2025 CDA Distributors Education Foundation (DEF) Ray Foley Memorial Scholarships. The scholarship was established in June 1983 to honor the late National Candy Wholesalers Association executive vice president, Ray Foley. Applicants must be employed on an ongoing basis by a CDA distributor member company or be an immediate family member (spouse or child) of an employee of a CDA distributor member company in good standing.

After a rigorous and anonymous selection process, the judging panel has chosen four exceptional students who have demonstrated outstanding academic achievements, leadership skills, and community involvement. The scholarship winners are Gabrielle Boudreaux, Jackson Clemmons, Tanya Elasmar, and Nathan Grabenstein. Each recipient will receive $5,000 in financial aid to pursue their academic goals.

	Gabrielle Boudreaux is an administrative assistant at Church Point Wholesale in Church Point, Louisiana. Boudreaux is currently pursuing a medical degree from Louisiana State University Eunice, with a particular interest in radiology and nursing. In high school, she was a top-performing student and multi-sport varsity athlete, including her role on the softball state championship team. Following an ankle injury, the care received from her clinical team deepened her love for the medical field. As Boudreaux continues her studies, she strives to one day open her own clinic, aiming to improve the health and well-being of her community and loved ones.
	Jackson Clemmons is the son of Jeff Clemmons, sales and business development manager at Grocery Supply Company in Sulphur Springs, Texas. Clemmons graduated from high school with honors, receiving endorsements from the science magnet program in STEM, arts and humanities, and multi-disciplinary studies. He was active in Spanish Club, Eagle Flight Advisory, National Honor Society, and Junior Varsity Tennis. Outside of school, he committed his time to his church and Boy Scout troop and worked on his family farm. He is most proud of earning the rank of Eagle Scout and receiving the Rotary Youth Leadership Award. Clemmons will attend the University of Denver this fall, majoring in psychology and Spanish.
	Tanya Elasmar is the daughter of Tanios Elasmar, territory sales manager at Gummer Wholesale, Inc. in Cleveland, Ohio. Elasmar is a first-generation college student entering her senior year as a Marketing major at Cleveland State University, completing her four-year degree in just three years while working full-time as a licensed real estate agent and a marketing director. Outside of school and work, she finds joy in music and playing the drums and stays active in her church community as a youth leader and director of cultural dance groups. After graduation, Elasmar’s goal is to continue building a career that blends marketing, real estate, and community impact.
	Nathan Grabenstein is the son of Ryan Grabenstein, WordPress developer and administrator at Cash-Wa Distributing Co., Inc. in Kearney, Nebraska. Grabenstein attends the University of Nebraska at Kearney, majoring in Business Administration with an emphasis in Finance, and minoring in Agribusiness. As an engaged member of the campus community, he is a member of Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity, serving as the vice president of finance. He also is a student ambassador for the College of Business and Technology. Grabenstein’s academic achievements have granted him access to the prestigious Mortar Board organization, and he was inducted into the Beta Gamma Sigma International Business Honor Society.

CDA believes investing in education is one of the most important things that we can do to empower future leaders and make a positive impact in our community. We are honored to support these bright and talented students on their journeys toward success. Congratulations to all our scholarship winners, and we wish them the best of luck in their future endeavors.

Those who qualify for the CDA DEF Ray Foley Memorial Scholarship are encouraged to apply in 2026. To learn more about this scholarship program and the impact Ray Foley had on the industry, visit www.cdaweb.net/RayFoley.