Missouri’s hemp industry is fighting to prevent a comprehensive ban on all intoxicating hemp substances as tensions continue to rise between the nation’s hemp and cannabis industries.
On Friday, August 30, the Missouri Hemp Trade Association filed a lawsuit seeking an injunction against the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services (DHSS) efforts to classify foods containing hemp products as ‘adulterated, deleterious, or poisonous.’
It comes after state governor Mike Parson signed an ‘executive order’, directing the DHSS to reclassify compounds like delta-8 THC, delta-10 THC, HHC, THC-O, THCP, and THCV, and amend regulations to prohibit their sale in retail destinations licenced to sell alcohol.
This directive has proven controversial, not least because it comes just weeks after Parson accepted a $50,000 donation from the Missouri Cannabis Trade Association into his PAC, Uniting Missouri.
It marks the latest case of the cannabis industry’s aggressive lobbying in multiple states to stem the tide of unregulated, intoxicating hemp products, which are eating into their sales across the US.
The executive order has also caused divisions within the state government, seeing Missouri’s Secretary of State, Jay Ashcroft, reject the governor’s calls for an executive order.
According to Ashcroft, the ban, which was initially slated to take effect on September 01, the order did not meet the necessary ‘emergency’ requirements, meaning that the bill will now be delayed for around six months and will have to follow standard legislative procedures.
In response, Parson has accused Ashcroft of making a politically motivated decision, citing his choice to endorse another candidate for the GOP primary.
The lawsuit brought by the Missouri Hemp Trade Association, claims that the DHSS’s attempts to ban the manufacture, sales and distribution of intoxicating hemp products unless they come from DHSS lincenses sources have not followed the required rulemaking processes, rendering the policy void.
It has now called for a permanent injunction against the DHSS from enforcing the bill.
