Ohio Lawmakers Must Close Hemp Loophole And Limit Intoxicating Products To Marijuana Dispensaries (Op-Ed)

*“If these products are to exist in Ohio’s marketplace, they…should be sold
only through licensed dispensaries with appropriate age restrictions,
testing requirements and consumer safeguards.”*

*By Chris Lindsey, American Trade Association for Cannabis and Hemp via
Ohio Capital Journal*

More than five years after Congress passed the 2018 Farm Bill, Ohio faces a
growing public health crisis. What was designed as legislation to support
American farmers has instead spawned an unregulated market of lab-created
intoxicants sold without oversight in gas stations, convenience stores and
smoke shops across the state.

The 2018 Farm Bill removed hemp, defined as containing less than 0.3
percent delta-9 THC, from the federal Controlled Substances Act. This was
intended to revitalize American hemp farming for industrial purposes, but
the law created an unintended loophole that chemical manufacturers quickly
exploited.

As I recently testified before the Ohio Senate General Government Committee,
these intoxicating hemp products are often marketed as “hemp-derived” or
“Farm Bill compliant” but the truth is much darker. In most cases, these
intoxicants crowding gas station shelves are not derived from
American-grown hemp. Rather, they often start with hemp-derived CBD
imported primarily from countries like China and India, which is then
synthetically converted through chemical processes involving acids and
solvents into artificial THC.

This process essentially breaks down the CBD molecule and rebuilds it into
a synthetic compound like delta-8 THC. This is a far cry from the natural
plant compounds found in traditional cannabis.

When I visited Ohio stores late last year, I purchased numerous “Farm Bill
compliant” products containing these synthetic compounds from stores within
walking distance to the Ohio Statehouse. Laboratory testing revealed these
products had inconsistent potency, extremely high doses, unlisted
ingredients and chemical contaminants left over from the manufacturing
process.

This is fundamentally a public health problem. These are not merely
“marijuana-lite” products, as some proponents suggest, and they have little
to do with actual hemp. The chemical conversion process introduces unknown
compounds and contaminants that have shown time and again they pose
significant health risks.

The synthetic nature of these products means they often contain compounds
that have never been studied for safety in humans or even named by science.
Reports of adverse reactions continue to increase, with poison control
centers documenting rising incidents of accidental ingestion, particularly
among children attracted to brightly colored packaging resembling candy.

Data from the University of Michigan’s Monitoring the Future study recently
revealed that 11% of high school seniors report using delta-8 THC. That is
troubling, since delta-8 didn’t exist in the marketplace five years ago.

The FDA has repeatedly warned manufacturers about illegal sales and unsafe
products, issuing dozens of warning letters. All THC edibles are federally
illegal under the Food, Drug and Cosmetics Act—a fact that hemp intoxicants
manufacturers and retailers conveniently overlook. However, without clear
enforcement authority or resources, these warnings have done little to stem
the tide of unregulated intoxicants flooding into communities across Ohio.

Ohio voters made their desires clear by approving adult-use cannabis in
2023. The state is now implementing a comprehensive regulatory system for
cannabis products that includes rigorous testing, packaging requirements,
age verification and consumer protections.

This existing framework presents the most logical path forward for
regulating hemp intoxicants. If these products are to exist in Ohio’s
marketplace, they should be subject to the same rigorous oversight as other
intoxicating cannabis products and should be sold only through licensed
dispensaries with appropriate age restrictions, testing requirements and
consumer safeguards.

We’ve heard opponents in every state argue that such regulation hurts small
businesses. Yet these products have only been around for a handful of
years, and convenience stores and gas stations have thrived without
resorting to selling artificial THC before.

More importantly, the dangers they present, especially to young people who
can currently purchase them with little or no age verification, far
outweigh any economic arguments.

Ohio would not be blazing a new trail by regulating these products. Even
deeply conservative states recognize the need for oversight. Just this
month, both Tennessee and Alabama, hardly progressive strongholds, signed
laws into place regulating hemp-derived intoxicants. Their law specifically
prohibits synthetic cannabinoids created “by a chemical synthesis,
modification or chemical conversion from another cannabinoid,” precisely
the type of products currently flooding Ohio’s unregulated market in the
form of gas station weed.

The hemp intoxicant problem represents a rare opportunity for bipartisan
action in our divided political landscape. This isn’t about cannabis
legalization, Ohio voters have already decided that question. It’s about
ensuring that all intoxicating products, particularly synthetic ones, are
properly regulated to protect public health.

Federal regulators failed to anticipate or address this problem. Now it
falls to state lawmakers to protect their constituents. Other states,
including many led by conservative majorities, have already taken action.
It’s time for Ohio to do the same.

*Chris Lindsey is the VP of State Advocacy and Public Policy for the
American Trade Association for Cannabis and Hemp (ATACH).*

*This piece was first published by Ohio Capital Journal.*

Attorneys General Group Hosts Meeting On State-Level Regulation Of
Intoxicating Hemp Products

The post Ohio Lawmakers Must Close Hemp Loophole And Limit Intoxicating
Products To Marijuana Dispensaries (Op-Ed) appeared first on Marijuana
Moment.