The company has issued at least 18 cease-and-desist letters, but more will follow.
By Rebecca Rivas, Missouri Independent
Missouri Attorney-General Andrew Bailey (R), has sent multiple cease-and desist letters to businesses selling a hemp flower called THCA that looks just like the marijuana flower available at dispensaries.
Bailey’s letter threatens legal action including civil penalties, injunctions and attorneys’ fees, if companies continue to market the products.
Missourians should know, before purchasing products, if there are any dangerous side-effects, such as psychotic episodes or hallucinations, that could be life-threatening. This was stated by Attorney General Bailey, in a press release to The Independent. We have sent 18 cease-and-desist letters and will be sending more.
Eapen Thampy, a cannabis lobbyist, said that about a dozen shops in St. Louis had received letters. In some cases, THCA flowers made up between 60 and 80 percent of their inventories.
Thampy told reporters that he is working closely with companies on a possible lawsuit and responding to letters.
This is the first significant move made since Bailey established a new unit in the fall to help the alcohol and tobacco regulators of the state crack down on hemp-based intoxicants.
Bailey vowed in September that his unit will work closely with Missouri Alcohol and Tobacco Control Division (ATC Division) to take legal action against those licensees who sell unregulated psychoactive marijuana products and violate Missouri Merchandising Practices Act.
Bailey, in September, said that „the ATC will help by making its agents available to be witnesses in any legal proceeding resulting from referrals which are actionable.” The enforcement toolkit of the ATC will include everything from letters to cease-and desist to investigations, subpoenas, lawsuits and referrals to criminal prosecution when appropriate.
According to the letter sent last month, companies have been „directed to cease selling” any hemp products that are higher than 0.3 percent THCA dry weight. THCA transforms from a naturally abundant cannabinoid into Delta-9 THC upon heating or smoking.
Chuck Hatfield of Jefferson City said that the order he received was not an official one.
Hatfield explained that it was an informal cease-and desist letter. This is not an official letter with legal force. The letter is a more formal request for the person to cease.
Under state law, if Bailey wanted to issue an official cease and desist order—as he did for Planned Parenthood in March—Hatfield said Bailey would have to issue a notice of intent first. It would be possible for the company to challenge the court order as well as appeal the decision through an administrative hearing.
Hatfield replied, „But he’s not done anything of the sort.”
Bailey can also sue under Missouri Merchandising Practices Act. This doesn’t need a stop and desist, he added.
Charles Alovisetti said, as a cannabis attorney at the Vincente law firm, that the state’s lack of support for the law could leave Bailey in a difficult situation.
In a LinkedIn posting, Alovisetti stated that „if the goal is control THCA flowers sales, then states should regulate all hemp products, including THCA Flower, in their final forms, by clear legislation.” Letters such as this one may not stand up in court.
By the end of May, lawmakers in the state failed for the third time in a year to pass legislation regulating intoxicating products made from hemp.
Bailey’s letter is about THCA which, in its unheated state, isn’t intoxicating. The majority of marijuana flowers sold in dispensaries contain between 20 and 40 percent THCA. This would not make a user high when consumed without being heated. The delta-9-THC is only produced when the marijuana flower is smoked. Decarboxylation is the process of heating.
The legal action taken against THCA has raised a debate on the distinctions between marijuana and hemp under federal law.
Rod Kight is a cannabis attorney who represents hemp businesses nationwide in court cases. He said Bailey’s statement was accurate, stating that the only difference between hemp grown legally and marijuana grown illegally is delta-9 THC concentration, which can not exceed 0.3 per cent for hemp.
Kight pointed out that Bailey is wrong when he claims the THCA factor is included in the calculations to determine whether hemp harvested or a product made from hemp is legal.
Kight explained that, „because Missouri law is silent on THCA, the attorney general relies heavily on letters sent by the DEA as evidence to back up its claim that the THCA content of hemp or hemp products must be considered in determining their legal status.”
He said that the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration interpretation of this law has created a great deal of confusion.
Kight explained that „hemp farmers must take into account THCA concentration before harvesting hemp crops.” „Thereafter, the THCA concentration does not matter under federal law or the laws of Missouri and the ‘post-decarboxylation’ test does not apply to harvested hemp or hemp products sold by wholesalers or retailers.”
Since the 2018 Farm Bill legalized hemp, botanists have figured out how to breed cannabis plants capable of passing the only federal checkpoint required on hemp plants—a visit from U.S. Department of Agriculture inspectors 30 days before harvest.
After 30 days, delta-9 THC levels and THCA levels are above the threshold set by the government, however, they both rise before harvest. Kight believes that hemp and marijuana flower are both sold at dispensaries. He said that this is a matter being debated in court.
He stated that THCA is by far the most prevalent cannabinoid produced by marijuana. THCA has been consumed by humans for thousands of year. „I’m happy that the hemp industry has moved back to a more natural state.”
First published in Missouri Independent.
Federal health officials revise marijuana-related terminology to reflect a nuanced understanding of cannabinoids such as THCA, Delta-8 THC and THCA.
WeedPornDaily.com is the source of this photo.