Letters submitted by BDN readers are verified by BDN Opinion Page staff. Send your letters to [email protected]
Congress finally shut the door on a loophole that turned hemp into a back alley for intoxicating products. For years, clever marketers twisted the 2018 Farm Bill’s definition of hemp into a license to sell psychoactive substances like Delta-8 THC at gas stations and convenience stores, with basically no oversight and branding that can resemble harmless sodas or seltzers. That was never the vision for legalizing hemp. The goal was industrial fiber and non-intoxicating CBD, not an unregulated “diet weed” industry.
The new law draws a clear line: THC is capped at 0.4 milligrams per container; synthetic cannabinoids are banned. I believe it’s a smart fix that will keep legitimate hemp and CBD products on shelves while pulling unregulated intoxicating items out of circulation.
Closing this loophole is basic consumer protection. Hemp should stand for wellness and agriculture, not an industry that skirts regulation to sell harmful products.
Without common-sense guardrails on hemp, bad actors’ profit and responsible businesses and our communities pay the price. I think Congress made the right call — protecting communities while giving businesses a year to adapt.
Vikki Swan
Rockland
