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Back in 2018 when Congress passed the current farm bill that legalized hemp, Congress seemed to have been under the belief that hemp was for making rope rather than intoxicating products. However, the current debate around hemp is almost solely rotating around intoxicants.
It has become abundantly clear that the law passed in 2018, in a way, spawned the current proliferation of derivatives, including THC products. There is a heated debate, with people on either side making arguments in support of their positions. For example, the hemp industry wants the current law to remain as it is, leaving makers of hemp-derived THC intoxicants to operate in the current legal gray area. They claim that the phrasing “all derivatives” opened the gate to THC products from hemp and the status quo should remain.
Opponents argue that THC products from hemp aren’t under the purview of any regulatory framework and that is untenable, since any product intended for the market should be regulated in one way or the other.
One factor has become clear as efforts are made to close the so-called “hemp loophole”: the congressional committees that are responsible for formulating hemp policy aren’t the right entities to make laws giving the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) power over any product. The committees simply oversee agriculture. This explains why, up until now, no regulations have been passed guiding the FDA on how CBD should make its way onto the market or into different consumable products.
Even if the upcoming farm bill was used to provide guidance on THC derived from hemp, it creates more challenges than it solves. For example, would states that have permitted hemp intoxicants renew their laws at least once every five years? Secondly, the Drug Enforcement Administration specifically categorizes synthetic THC as a schedule 1 substance, and not even the reclassification of marijuana would change this classification.
It is becoming increasingly clear that whether THC is derived from marijuana or hemp, it needs to be regulated by a single legal regime. This could mean that manufacturers of hemp-sourced THC products have to adhere to new or existing laws on product testing, advertising, marketing and more. Insisting that the product continue to exist within a “loophole” is counterproductive for the industry in more ways than one. For example, institutional investors are likely to be unwilling to fund such ventures since the segment is open to all manner of legal challenge.
Now may be the time to establish the right regulatory framework for hemp, so that the growth of the industry isn’t left to chance because this risks not only public health but also the very economic interests of those currently engaged in hemp derivative manufacturing.
Regulatory clarity on all forms of THC would help the hemp and cannabis industry, including companies such as Cresco Labs Inc. (CSE: CL) (OTCQX: CRLBF), to be more certain about the conditions under which they should expect to operate and make their future plans.
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