Backers of hemp regulation bill say intoxicating hemp products threaten Ohio's marijuana industry
Flowers of hemp plants that contain less that 0.3 percent tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) the primary psychoactive substance in marijuana, to be used for student instruction at the Cleveland School of Cannabis, October 30, 2023, in Independence, Ohio. (Photo by Graham Stokes for Ohio Capital Journal. Republish photo only with original article.)
Ohioans in the marijuana business, poison control workers, and religious organizations testified Tuesday in support of a bill that would regulate intoxicating hemp and drinkable cannabinoid products.
Ohio Senate Bill 86 would require intoxicating hemp products to only be sold at adult-use dispensaries instead of allowing them to be sold at convenience stores, smoke shops, or gas stations. The bill would also impose a 15% tax on intoxicating hemp products and ban sales to anyone under 21.
'Ohio's legal cannabis industry is facing a growing crisis,' said Joshua Smith, the owner of Southern Ohio Botanicals, a licensed dispensary in Pike County. 'Fake, pop-up, poser dispensaries are exploiting loopholes in hemp laws to sell legitimate cannabis while misleading consumers into believing they are licensed establishments.'
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Eleven people, including Smith, submitted testimony in support of S.B. 86 during Tuesday's Ohio Senate General Government Committee meeting.
Ohio state Sens. Steve Huffman, R-Tipp City, and Shane Wilkin, R-Hillsboro, introduced S.B. 86, which would only allow intoxicating hemp products to be sold at dispensaries if the products have been tested and comply with standards for packaging, labeling, and advertising. It would only apply to products that can be ingested or inhaled.
The 2018 U.S. Farm Bill says hemp can be legally grown if it contains less than 0.3% THC. Ohio is one of about 20 states that does have any regulations around intoxicating hemp products, according to an Ohio State University Drug Enforcement and Policy Center study from November 2024.
'These unregulated dispensaries demonstrate a failure in Ohio's marijuana program,' Smith said. 'Without oversight, we have no way of verifying where their cannabis is sourced from or if it has been properly tested for safety. Unlike regulated dispensaries, where all products are prepackaged and lab-tested, these rogue shops weigh out cannabis in front of customers with no quality control measures in place.'
Fadi Boumitri, CEO of Ascension BioMedical, a licensed cannabis cultivator in Oberlin, said there are 10 shops within a 1.5 mile radius of his house that sells intoxicating hemp products.
'As a small company that is a cultivation only, we are disproportionately impacted by the large and growing market for intoxicating hemp products,' he said.
Dr. Hannah Hays, medical director of the Central Ohio Poison Center and chief of toxicology at Nationwide Children's Hospital, said accidental cannabis-related poisonings reported to the Ohio Poison Centers has increased 20-fold for all age groups since 2019. Exposure to cannabinoid products, including Delta 8, has increased more than 330% for young children since 2021, she said.
'When young children access these products, they can experience severe symptoms including hallucinations, confusion, loss of consciousness, seizures, and respiratory failure,' Hays said. 'I've cared for children exposed to intoxicating hemp products who have experienced severe and prolonged symptoms, including coma.'
Chris Lindsey, director of state advocacy and public policy for the American Trade Association for Cannabis and Hemp, shared test results of intoxicating hemp products he purchased at a Columbus convenience store last year.
'There was one that was a piece of candy and that one simple piece had 500 milligrams of THC in it, so that would put a horse in the hospital,' Lindsey said. 'You literally have to take just individual small bites of this candy to avoid overdose.'
Will Kuehnle, an associate director with the Catholic Conference of Ohio, called the spread of intoxicating hemp products a threat to the 'moral fabric' of Ohio.
'These products, chemically altered to maximize intoxication, are marketed in ways that confuse consumers, evade regulatory oversight, and, most alarmingly, end up in the hands of minors,' he said.
Follow Capital Journal Reporter Megan Henry on Bluesky.
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