Barney's Farm withdraws from merger with Sensi Seeds and ILGM

The highly publicized merger between Barney's Farm, Sensi Seeds and the American company ILoveGrowingMarijuana (ILGM) has officially failed, bringing to an end what had been billed as a historic consolidation of the global cannabis seeds.

The project had been unveiled with great fanfare at the MJBizCon trade show in December 2024. By joining forces, the three seed banks—each deeply rooted in the market and enjoying a solid reputation—planned to create a single dominant player. The consortium even aimed to become the first cannabis seed company to be publicly traded on a major U.S. stock exchange, thereby circumventing the restrictions that hinder cannabis-related businesses.

But nine months later, the silence surrounding the agreement came to an end with Barney’s Farm’s announcement on September 1, 2025: the company was pulling out.

PowerPlant at the Center of the Controversy

The main source of tension appears to be PowerPlant Inc., the group behind the merger. While PowerPlant presented itself as a consolidator in the cannabis genetics, his role had never been clearly explained. In fact, he was not mentioned in the initial announcements, nor did he appear on the websites of the companies supposedly involved.

Barney’s Farm founder Derry Brett clearly stated his position in a statement to Business of Cannabis : «The vehicle and engine that made the proposed merger possible is PowerPlant Inc.» He added that PowerPlant had failed to meet its contractual obligations, particularly regarding financing deadlines, which forced Barney’s Farm to protect itself by terminating the agreement.

According to Brett, the promise of a initial public offering in the United States was also misleading. He clarified that PowerPlant's actual strategy was a reverse takeover (RTO), not a traditional initial public offering.

Silence by Sensi Seeds and ILGM

So far, neither Sensi Seeds or ILGM have not clarified their position. PowerPlant, for its part, continues to state on its website that it has acquired the two companies and is preparing for an initial public offering. However, no independent verification of these acquisitions or any filings in the Netherlands or the United States have been found.

At this point, only one thing is certain: Barney’s Farm is out of the picture.

«It would be incorrect to say that the merger, including Barney’s Farm, is still intact. That is not the case,», Brett insisted.

The combination of Barney’s Farm’s breeding programs and the Sensi Seeds' Traditional Genetic Library and ILGM’s robust U.S. e-commerce platform would have created a formidable global player. Sharing expertise, streamlining operations, and integrating production and distribution networks promised economies of scale and new reach into emerging legal markets.

Industry observers have noted that the seed sector, valued in 2024 at between $464 million and $2.16 billion depending on the source, is on track to reach between $1.4 billion and $8.3 billion by 2032. A consolidated industry player would have been well-positioned to capitalize on this growth.

Barney’s Farm Looks to the Future

Despite the disappointment, Barney’s Farm insists that it is not slowing down. The company has reaffirmed its commitment to R&D programs and collaborations with other breeders to create new, innovative varieties.

«At Barney’s Farm, we focus on our R&D programs and our collaborations with other like-minded breeders and experts to create innovative new cannabis genetics,», Brett said. He also alluded to some «substantial and groundbreaking partnerships» which will be revealed in the coming weeks.

For now, the failure of the merger highlights both the opportunities and the risks of the cannabis seed market, caught between regulations that are often incomplete and predatory behavior by external players. Consolidation may be inevitable, but this attempt shows just how fragile such transactions can be when the Funding and Transparency are not firmly established.