Why Mitch McConnell helped kill the hemp buzz

American hemp farmers are reeling after Republicans repealed a provision banning intoxicants hemp products An agreement was reached to reopen the government. Now, industry insiders say the hemp industry is about to take action to repeal prohibition or face ruin.

Lukas Gilkey is the co-founder and CEO of Hometown Hero, a cannabis business based in Austin, Texas, that employs nearly 200 people across three locations and two states. He told Salon that the new law would destroy his business if allowed to take effect.

“We’re currently looking at a potential limit of 0.4 milligrams of THC per container, which would effectively ban full-spectrum oil, pet treats, a lot of things that aren’t necessarily psychoactive,” Gilkey said. “I think that’s what they’re after. But if this actually goes into effect, it’s actually game over for the entire industry.”

Gilkey is referring to the key provision of the new law, which is scheduled to come into force next year. It sets a limit of up to 0.4 milligrams per container on the total amount of THC allowed per container; not enough to feel a buzz when most adult-use cannabis products. Contains 20% THC or more. This measure specifically targets psychoactive compounds such as delta-8 THC, which is a variant of delta-9 THC, the main intoxicating compound in marijuana. Both delta-8 and delta-9 occur naturally in the plant. difference the location of the double carbon bond on the molecule – but this distinction means that each drug is regulated differently. Until this latest bill was passed, hemp products were regulated based on delta-9 THC content, creating a market for other hemp-derived products such as delta-8 and non-intoxicating CBD.

This particular regulation is also based on an existing legal distinction between hemp and hemp. cannabis sativaThe plant buds are used to produce cannabis extracts such as tinctures and concentrates. Although hemp and marijuana are the same plant species, it is quite difficult to get high from the hemp version. The law distinguishes between the two based on the plant’s natural THC content; Hemp refers to marijuana that is very low in THC, while marijuana refers to marijuana that is high in THC content—usually high enough to “stone” a person.

Hemp, as well as marijuana, had been banned in the United States for decades, but that changed drastically in 2018. farm billSigned by President Donald Trump, it legalized the crop in the U.S. A loophole in the law allows the sale of almost any product derived from hemp, encouraging some companies to extract high amounts of THC (higher than what hemp produces naturally) or create hemp. semi-synthetic cannabinoids It’s like HHC selling something to get people drunk.

Even in states without medical marijuana laws, cannabis products are a common sight at gas stations, smoke shops and online stores. less stringent quality control. Hemp regulation varies by state, both in terms of farming and product standards.

In fact, it was Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., who championed both the legalization of cannabis in 2018 and the new law that effectively bans psychoactive cannabis products. was and explained that this law “restores the original intent” of 2018. invoice.

“Unfortunately, some companies looking to make a quick buck are taking advantage of a loophole in the 2018 Farm Bill by taking legal amounts of THC from hemp and turning it into intoxicants. They are taking these synthetic chemicals and using them as ingredients in attractive, snack- and candy-like products and distributing them in familiar packaging,” McConnell said in an email to Salon. “Industrial hemp and CBD will remain legal for industrial applications such as seed, stock, fiber, grain oil, or for use in drug trials. This language simply clarifies the true intent of the 2018 farm bill, eliminating bad actors and protecting the growing hemp industry.”

In any case, the new law sent shockwaves through the cannabis industry, which has been ballooning since 2018. Whitney Economics Sales of the hemp-derived cannabinoid industry are estimated to exceed $28 billion in 2023, with approximately 328,000 workers in the industry earning wages of approximately $13 billion. The new law questions the sustainability of many businesses.

That’s why Gilkey says the hemp industry is pushing to repeal the new law and reach a compromise with lawmakers.

“I don’t believe this will continue. This industry is huge and there are a lot of well-funded companies that are already creating strategies to combat this,” Gilkey said. “And I would argue that in 12 months this industry will be much bigger than it is now.”

The predicament those in the cannabis business find themselves in is that they are caught between both the alcohol lobby and, perhaps counterintuitively, the state-level cannabis lobby. The alcohol industry is pushing for bans and regulations on hemp and marijuana products due to competition. to represent. Meanwhile, the marijuana industry has largely welcomed bans or regulations on hemp because marijuana is subject to a different and often more restrictive regulatory regime in the states where it has been legalized.

Even so, farmers like Ann Guager, who runs Caprock Family Farms with her son Zack Guager, said she’s optimistic because she believes the public is on their side.

“We know it’s important to speak out and call out your legislators and take the time to let people know that these products are actually helping people and changing people’s lives,” Guager said. “We’ve seen how power builds in a mass movement of people. We hope the same thing can happen in this case.”

Guager said that in Texas, for example, many people are turning to hemp products rather than medical marijuana products, not just for recreational purposes, explaining that many people do not want to be tracked by the government or enter the medical marijuana system just to use THC products. He also said hemp products are becoming more widely available.

Robert Mikos, an expert on federalism in drug law and a professor at Vanderbilt University, told Salon that despite the optimism of people in the cannabis industry, they may face objections from lawmakers who say legalizing psychoactive cannabis products in 2018 was a mistake.

“[The drafters of the bill] I thought, ‘Hey, you can grow hemp, sell it to people who will use it for CBD.’ And that’s okay.’ “I don’t think the drafters of this bill or anyone associated with the bill envisioned that people would be able to convert chemicals from hemp into psychoactive chemicals and continue to call them hemp,” Mikos said.

Mikos also pushed back on what many hemp farmers have said about the bill’s impact on their businesses, saying that if the bill destroys the hemp industry it would be “another unintended consequence of this.”

“I don’t think Congress is trying to destroy the industrial hemp market. I don’t think people are even trying to destroy the CBD market using hemp-derived CBD. I just haven’t seen any basis for it,” Mikos said. “I have not seen any laboratory assays or chemical chromatograph reports showing that there are no cultivable marijuana plants that fall below the new limits. And most of the new limits actually target some form of synthetic THC.”

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Mikos also emphasized that regardless of whether the new law is allowed to go into effect, most enforcement will remain within the jurisdiction of states unless the federal government requests a crackdown from the DEA or FDA. Mikos said the question for states is “How do we regulate this?” He added that it had become.

“These hemp products that used to be federally legal and are now classified as marijuana if they want to, are states like Tennessee that don’t have a marijuana market but have a very strong market for psychoactive hemp,” Mikos said. “They can continue to do what they’re doing and still call it hemp, even though it’s marijuana in terms of federal law, but they can continue to regulate it the same way.”

At the same time, states with a strong legal marijuana market may choose to regulate hemp more tightly.

“States need to decide on the treatment of marijuana and what is considered hemp,” Mikos said.

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