Republicans are seeking to ban hemp compounds such as Delta-8 THC nationwide through an amendment included in a massive spending bill.
Last month, the House Agriculture Committee approved an amendment to a $1.5 trillion Federal Farm Bill that proposes a ban on most hemp products, including all cannabinoids synthesized or manufactured outside of the plant, such as delta-8 THC. However, with the vote on the farm bill likely delayed until 2025, Republicans on a House Appropriations subcommittee have included an identical version of the amendment in a Fiscal Year 2025 Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Bill, the text of which was published today. A vote on the bill is expected tomorrow.
The proposed amendment would prohibit nearly all products containing delta-8 and delta-9 THC, as well as other novel cannabinoids derived from hemp.
The U.S. Hemp Roundtable says the amendment “would federally ban all ingestible hemp products with any level of THC”, saying the amendment “would not only ban potentially impairing products like Delta-8, but it would bring under a new prohibition all non-intoxicating CBD products with any quantifiable amount of THC – meaning 90-95% of the hemp products market would be federally banned.”
The group says “Even animal feed – which has been approved by FDA for these uses – would be banned. Redefining hemp to include a calculation of THC-A would even wreak havoc in the fiber and grain market.”