Product shots of St. Louis-based Mighty Kind Co., which produces various types of hemp soda.
Handout photos
JEFFERSON CITY – Starting Sunday, the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services will impose an embargo and ban foods that contain unregulated and intoxicating cannabis products.
The Department of Health announced its tough approach despite Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft’s recent rejection of the Bureau of Alcohol and Tobacco’s emergency regulations banning the sale of embargoed goods in liquor stores.
“The denial of the request for an emergency ordinance has no impact on the September 1 implementation date for the DHSS,” said a DHSS press release on Thursday.
The move follows Governor Mike Parson’s August 1 executive order to combat unregulated psychoactive cannabis products.
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His office said the move was in response to increasing availability of the products and emerging health concerns, particularly among young people.
According to state health officials, national poison control centers have stated that about two out of five cases of exposure to delta-8 THC products involve children.
“Numerous Missourians have suffered adverse effects from consuming foods laced with these products,” said Paula Nickelson, director of DHSS. “It is disturbing that children in Missouri and across the country have been hospitalized after ingesting these substances, and this is unacceptable.”
The measure will not affect products sold in state-licensed dispensaries, as their sale is strictly regulated and restricted by the DHSS.
In a memo to businesses, the Health Department said the state will begin inspections of businesses starting Sept. 1 and that the department will “prioritize action based on complaints” received through an online form.
The state said that if officials encounter unregulated products, they will document the findings and ask retailers to voluntarily dispose of the items.
If this does not happen, the memo states, the state will impose an embargo on the products and they will be “held on site pending a court order for destruction.”
The DHSS said business owners can ask questions about a product by calling 866-219-0165 or emailing [email protected]. The health department has also posted answers to frequently asked questions online.
Although marijuana and hemp are the same plant (cannabis), federal law distinguishes between marijuana, which is grown for its high THC content, and hemp, which is defined by its low content. However, since Congress passed the 2018 farm bill authorizing federal hemp cultivation, there has been an unforeseen consequence. People, taking advantage of what they believe to be a loophole in the law, have taken hemp, extracted a non-intoxicating compound called CBD, and chemically altered it into various types of harmful THC. Chemically derived THC has ended up in candy, vape oils, and other products sold at gas stations, supermarkets, and online. At least 17 states have banned such products in the past year. Regulators in Michigan are considering rules that would allow processors to convert CBD into THC with prior written permission, and would also require them to label their product as synthetic.
