Hemp

A new law capping the amount of THC included in hemp products could be “a death blow” to businesses like Plift and Emerald Med CBD that use them to create alternatives to alcohol and health supplements for doctor’s offices

More than 40,000 Missouri food establishments and stores are estimated to be impacted by federal regulations on hemp products, which were included in the new spending package that reopened the federal government.

After the 2018 Farm Bill legalized hemp, THC products made from the plant have grown into a multi-billion-dollar industry. Now, more state and federal lawmakers are working to limit or ban the products.

Despite efforts to develop markets and genetics, Missouri's industrial hemp industry is at its lowest point in years. “Most of the farmers who started with hemp — they lost money,” says a Missouri agricultural economist.

Lincoln University in Missouri is heading a USDA-funded project researching the commodity, but its prohibition created high hurdles for getting the crop off the ground.

Following a lawsuit from the state's hemp industry, Missouri health regulators will stop embargoing products simply because they contain hemp-derived THC. Instead, they'll focus on identifying "misbranded" products.

Military members and their families are especially vulnerable to food insecurity, but Kansas City groups are providing a safety net. Plus: Missouri hemp producers are stuck in confusion after the delay of Gov. Mike Parson's ban on hemp-derived edibles.

Parson says psychoactive hemp-derived edibles are dangerous to children. But Missouri hemp producers say they're trying to run legitimate businesses.

Gov. Mike Parson signed an executive order to remove all hemp-derived THC edibles and beverages from store shelves and threatening penalties to any establishment that continues selling them. But industry leaders say the ban goes too far.

Missouri Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft contends that Gov. Mike Parson did not prove that restricting establishments with liquor licenses from selling hemp-derived edibles and drinks was an emergency.

“As best I can tell, you denied this emergency rulemaking because you believe hurt feelings are more important than protecting children,” Gov. Mike Parson wrote in a letter to Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft.

Gov. Mike Parson signed an executive order this month banning intoxicating hemp products and threatening penalties to any establishment with a Missouri liquor license or that sells food products for selling them. Details of how it will be enforced are still being written.