Newsom’s intoxicating hemp ban goes into effect

CALIFORNIA
Crack down on intoxicating hemp arrives

Driving the news: California Governor Gavin Newsom’s emergency ban on hemp-derived THC products officially went into effect yesterday, reports SFGate.

The ban is a powerful signal to the intoxicating hemp industry that more crackdowns might be coming. 

Some background: Many states, including Missouri and California, have looked to clamp down on intoxicating hemp-derived products in recent weeks. These products aren’t subject to the same taxes and regulatory requirements as regular cannabis products, and are able to be sold in all fifty states — for now. 

The 2018 Farm Bill legalized the production and sale of hemp, which is defined as cannabis plants that contain less than 0.3% THC. Companies, including those inside and outside of the traditional cannabis industry, have formulated intoxicating hemp-derived products with varying degrees of consumer safety and quality control in mind. 

Not just California: The glory days of the loosely regulated early days of the hemp industry look set to change as both states and federal lawmakers look to make changes. 

Missouri was pushing for a ban similar to California’s, but last week the Missouri Independent reported that the crackdown was going to be limited to beverages and edibles that mimic candy or regular food. 

Hemp vs. cannabis politics: And it isn’t just in state legislatures or governors’ offices that the hemp vs. cannabis battle is playing out. 

The hemp industry in Florida has taken a strong position against Florida’s legalization initiative — Amendment 3 — on this November’s ballot, aligning with Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis to try and kill the initiative.

What’s next? The effort to clamp down on hemp-derived THC products is taking different forms across the country, but as California goes, others may look to follow. Expect this battle to heat up and continue as long as regulatory uncertainty, and federal illegality of cannabis, persists.

Read more: The Reason Foundation has a new report that suggests ways to harmonize hemp and cannabis regulations. Read it.

- JR

“Illicit marijuana laced with illegal drugs like fentanyl have destroyed lives. I know because I've seen it firsthand.” So says Sheriff Morris Young from Gadsden County in Florida in the latest Yes on 3 campaign advertisement. “Amendment 3 will save lives by making marijuana safe, regulated, and lab tested. Amendment 3 will protect our community from dangerous, illegal drugs while allowing law enforcement to focus on serious crimes.”

Watch the full ad: 

Operation Padlock to Protect in NYC under scrutiny 🔒
The City Sheriff in New York is facing some tough questions about improper cash seizures as part of New York’s Operation Padlock to Protect. The Sheriff’s Office and NYPD have been cooperating on the efforts to shut down unlicensed cannabis retail in New York City, and how the cash (and cannabis) get “vouchered” and accounted for is part of a growing concern in NYC.

Missouri unpacking “predatory” Social Equity contracts 👀
In an effort to secure cannabis licenses in Missouri, cannabis investor Michael Harlow had would-be social equity licensees sign allegedly “predatory” deals for how the license would transfer once granted, reports The Missouri Independent. 

White House changing their language around cannabis 🏠
The White House released revised language on cannabis this week. Previously, the language was much more forceful, but given the timeline on rescheduling efforts at the DEA, the Administration is now using softer language – with qualifiers – like this: “...the Administration also launched the process to reclassify marijuana under federal law…” That is true, but not nearly as forceful as the “we did it!” language would have been, obviously. Marijuana Moment has the details.

New Hampshire getting ready to get legalization passed (maybe) ⛰️
The only New England legalization outlier — New Hampshire — is looking to give it another go in the next legislative session. Specifically, separate bills are being drafted to legalize possession, set up a legal market, and several other provisions to bring New Hampshire’s cannabis regulations up to all of their neighbors. Live free!

Cannabis tech company Springbig (SBIG) announced the appointment of Marc Shiffman to their Board of Directors yesterday. Shiffman is the former CEO of SMS Assist, according to Springbig’s press release. 

Each Thursday on Cultivated Live, friend of Cultivated Krista Raymer from Vetrina joins us to talk about best-practices for profitable cannabis retail. Now, they’re looking for someone to join their team. See Krista’s post on LinkedIn for a cannabis buyer. (We know most of our readers are “cannabis buyers” – but somehow, we don’t think that’s what Vetrina is looking for….)

Cannabis technology firm Leaflink shared their State of the Cannabis Industry. 

One thing that caught our eye in the report is how popular cannabis is in Alaska! So much so, that Alaska leads the nation — according to Leaflink’s report — in retail sales per resident. Download the full report.

Consequence put out the Best Weed Albums of All Time List. You can decide what you think of this list, but we’re not putting Black Sabbath above Bob Marley, or Pink Floyd, or Lauryn Hill.

The Bizarre Campaign to Legalize Cannabis in Florida | Cannabis Wire

OpEd from NORML: Newly Discovered Nixon Tapes Expose The Lies Behind Marijuana’s Criminalization | Marijuana Moment

Fourth California marijuana testing lab loses license as crackdown continues | MJBizDaily