Texas is the 45th state to approve hemp farming and will work on regulations for the 2020 growing season, reported Vote Hemp, a nonprofit advocacy organization.

Josh Long, Associate editorial director, Natural Products Insider

June 11, 2019

2 Min Read
Texas OKs hemp farming, Louisiana imposes restrictions on CBD products

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott on Monday signed into law a bill that allows farmers in the state to grow hemp commercially.

House Bill 1325 also authorized the retail sale of hemp-derived products, including cannabidiol (CBD), that contain no more than 0.3 percent THC, the psychoactive compound found in large quantities in marijuana.

Texas is the 45th state to approve hemp farming and will work on regulations for the 2020 growing season, reported Vote Hemp, a nonprofit advocacy organization.

On June 6, Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards signed a bill providing for the regulation of industrial hemp. But the bill prohibited the sale of inhalable hemp, alcoholic beverages containing CBD and the marketing of CBD products as a dietary supplement.

Also forbidden: the sale of any CBD-containing food or beverage unless FDA approves CBD as a food additive.

Some state legislatures and regulatory bodies have adopted a position taken by FDA that CBD cannot be added to conventional food or marketed as a dietary supplement. FDA, however, is now exploring a regulatory framework that would allow CBD to be lawfully marketed in such products.

Its exploration follows passage of the 2018 Farm Bill, which removed hemp from the federal Controlled Substances Act (CSA) and treated it as an agricultural commodity subject to USDA’s jurisdiction.

But an absence of uniformity in regulations governing CBD is creating an atmosphere resembling the Wild West, said Brenda Morris of the Association of Food & Drug Officials (AFDO) during a recent public hearing hosted by FDA.

“Currently, a patchwork of laws exist for CBD across the nation,” she said.

Meanwhile, state officials may be encountering difficulties enforcing FDA’s position.

“With the widespread distribution and usage of CBD across the U.S., it’s making it very difficult for state and local regulators to continue with our stance that CBD cannot be used in food products,” Pam Miles, past president of AFDO, told FDA officials during the same public hearing.

About the Author(s)

Josh Long

Associate editorial director, Natural Products Insider, Informa Markets Health and Nutrition

Josh Long directs the online news, feature and op-ed coverage at Natural Products Insider, which targets the health and wellness industry. He has been reporting on developments in the dietary supplement industry for over a decade, with a focus on regulatory issues, including at the Food and Drug Administration.

He has moderated and/or presented at industry trade shows, including SupplySide East, SupplySide West, Natural Products Expo West, NBJ Summit and the annual Dietary Supplement Regulatory Summit.

Connect with Josh on LinkedIn and ping him with story ideas at [email protected]

Education and previous experience

Josh majored in journalism and graduated from Arizona State University the same year "Jake the Snake" Plummer led the Sun Devils to the Rose Bowl against the Ohio State Buckeyes. He also holds a J.D. from the University of Wyoming College of Law, was admitted in 2008 to practice law in the state of Colorado and spent a year clerking for a state district court judge.

Over more than a quarter century, he’s written on various topics for newspapers and business-to-business publications – from the Yavapai in Arizona and a controversial plan for a nuclear-waste incinerator in Idaho to nuanced issues, including FDA enforcement of the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act of 1994 (DSHEA).

Since the late 1990s, his articles have been published in a variety of media, including but not limited to, the Cape Cod Times (in Massachusetts), Sedona Red Rock News (in Arizona), Denver Post (in Colorado), Casper Star-Tribune (in Wyoming), now-defunct Jackson Hole Guide (in Wyoming), Colorado Lawyer (published by the Colorado Bar Association) and Nutrition Business Journal.

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