Missouri Authorities Raid Shops Searching for Hemp
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Posted On: 09/17/2024 7:00:32 PM
Missouri Authorities Raid Shops Searching for Hemp Edibles Containing Intoxicants
Last week, health regulators in the state of Missouri visited Prime Fuel gas station in Sedalia, looking to see if the store had any intoxicating THC edibles in stock. In their report, the regulators revealed that the store had taken the products off the shelves, noting that they called the owner, who agreed to destroy the products voluntarily.
Craig Katz, Missouri Hemp Trade Association’s spokesman, claims this isn’t how the owner described the incident.
The owner explained to the regulators that the products were stored in the back, so he would return them to the wholesaler for a refund. This seemed to fall on deaf ears, however, as the regulators directed the manager to pour bleach over the products, which were valued at $5,000.
Following this incident, Chuck Hatfield, attorney for the Missouri Hemp Trade Association, penned a letter to the general counsel of the health department. In the letter, Hatfield explained that the health regulators stripped the owner of his right to tell his side of the story in court. He noted that the law was very clear that the government regulators weren’t authorized to destroy products or to direct others to do so, particularly without a court order.
Lisa Cox, spokesperson for the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services (DHSS) revealed that regulators had visited 44 establishments to look for banned products. Of the facilities visited, 23 of them had unregulated psychoactive marijuana products; 4 facilities refused to discard or embargo the products, with Cox noting that the officials had taken no court action.
These raids come after a ban on intoxicating products imposed by the governor went into effect on Sept. 1, 2024.
In August, Governor Mike Parson signed an order to have all hemp-derived THC products taken off store shelves. The order would also penalize any business that continued selling these products once the ban took effect. In addition, it directed regulators to identify products that contained unregulated psychoactives and label them as adulterated and deleterious.
In his announcement, Parson stated that because hemp wasn’t an illegal substance under federal law, there was no law preventing stores from selling these products to children or minors from purchasing these products. He added that the primary target of this executive order was companies that were selling intoxicating hemp edibles which looked like candy.
However, leaders in the hemp industry claimed that the order also affected products that had undergone laboratory testing, weren’t attractive to minors and were sold only to consumers aged 21 years of age and older.
The evolving regulatory landscape for various hemp derivatives is likely to impact how various entities, such as Software Effective Solutions Corp. (d/b/a MedCana) (OTC: SFWJ), pivot to different product lines in the foreseeable future.
NOTE TO INVESTORS: The latest news and updates relating to Software Effective Solutions Corp. (d/b/a MedCana) (OTC: SFWJ) are available in the company’s newsroom at https://cnw.fm/SFWJ
Please see full terms of use and disclaimers on the HempWire website applicable to all content provided by HW, wherever published or re-published: https://www.HempWire.com/Disclaimer
Last week, health regulators in the state of Missouri visited Prime Fuel gas station in Sedalia, looking to see if the store had any intoxicating THC edibles in stock. In their report, the regulators revealed that the store had taken the products off the shelves, noting that they called the owner, who agreed to destroy the products voluntarily.
Craig Katz, Missouri Hemp Trade Association’s spokesman, claims this isn’t how the owner described the incident.
The owner explained to the regulators that the products were stored in the back, so he would return them to the wholesaler for a refund. This seemed to fall on deaf ears, however, as the regulators directed the manager to pour bleach over the products, which were valued at $5,000.
Following this incident, Chuck Hatfield, attorney for the Missouri Hemp Trade Association, penned a letter to the general counsel of the health department. In the letter, Hatfield explained that the health regulators stripped the owner of his right to tell his side of the story in court. He noted that the law was very clear that the government regulators weren’t authorized to destroy products or to direct others to do so, particularly without a court order.
Lisa Cox, spokesperson for the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services (DHSS) revealed that regulators had visited 44 establishments to look for banned products. Of the facilities visited, 23 of them had unregulated psychoactive marijuana products; 4 facilities refused to discard or embargo the products, with Cox noting that the officials had taken no court action.
These raids come after a ban on intoxicating products imposed by the governor went into effect on Sept. 1, 2024.
In August, Governor Mike Parson signed an order to have all hemp-derived THC products taken off store shelves. The order would also penalize any business that continued selling these products once the ban took effect. In addition, it directed regulators to identify products that contained unregulated psychoactives and label them as adulterated and deleterious.
In his announcement, Parson stated that because hemp wasn’t an illegal substance under federal law, there was no law preventing stores from selling these products to children or minors from purchasing these products. He added that the primary target of this executive order was companies that were selling intoxicating hemp edibles which looked like candy.
However, leaders in the hemp industry claimed that the order also affected products that had undergone laboratory testing, weren’t attractive to minors and were sold only to consumers aged 21 years of age and older.
The evolving regulatory landscape for various hemp derivatives is likely to impact how various entities, such as Software Effective Solutions Corp. (d/b/a MedCana) (OTC: SFWJ), pivot to different product lines in the foreseeable future.
NOTE TO INVESTORS: The latest news and updates relating to Software Effective Solutions Corp. (d/b/a MedCana) (OTC: SFWJ) are available in the company’s newsroom at https://cnw.fm/SFWJ
Please see full terms of use and disclaimers on the HempWire website applicable to all content provided by HW, wherever published or re-published: https://www.HempWire.com/Disclaimer
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