Missouri voluntarily eases enforcement against hemp-based THC products
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (KMIZ)
The state agreed Tuesday to curtail its regulation of products that contain THC derived from hemp and are sold at stores without the need for a special license.
Richard Moore, deputy director and general counsel for the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services, wrote in a letter to Chuck Hatfield, who represents the Missouri Hemp Trade Association, that the state would now only focus on identification of misbranded products.
Gov. Mike Parson displayed some of those products -- THC edibles meant to mimic the packaging of popular candies -- earlier this year when he said the state was banning the sales of all food products containing THC derived from hemp. THC is the active ingredient in marijuana. It's present in small amounts in hemp and can be extracted from the plant in a lab.
THC derived from hemp doesn't have the kind of regulations on the books that legal recreational and medical marijuana have. Parson says children have been hospitalized from mistakenly eating THC-infused products sold to the general public.
The letter came up at a Tuesday hearing in a court case the trade association filed against the health department. The judge denied a restraining order to end state enforcement of the ban because the parties had reached an agreement.
Craig Katz, spokesman for the trade association, said Wednesday that the group's filing for a temporary restraining order last week pushed the state to ease its enforcement.
Katz said the association and state had been talking since Parson unveiled an executive order Aug. 1 but the restraining order was the push needed to get things done. Parson's order has since been delayed by Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft.
"We appreciate the renewed focus on the problem of misbranded and misleading products and those that are compromising the health and well-being of children," Katz said. He said the association looks forward to working with state officials and the General Assembly to create regulations that protect public health without hurting the industry.
The lawsuit is ongoing. A conference to check in on the status of the case is set for November.
