MJBizMag February 2022 - 40

LIQUID
GOLD?
Not Your Mama's CBD
Is hemp-derived delta-8 THC causing consumer confusion?
By Laura Drotleff
D
elta-8 THC dominated sales in
hemp shops around the country
in recent years. But is this trend
affecting CBD sales? Are consumers
confusing delta-8 THC with CBD
products?
Megan Duvall believes so. The
chief business officer for FSOil,
an industrial hemp extractor in
Woodburn, Oregon, said delta-8 THC
product manufacturers and retailers
are promoting the isomer as a legal
product because it is made from
hemp-derived CBD.
But that's a stretch for Duvall.
" It is not in the spirit of the (2018)
Farm Bill as it was written, " she said. " It
was not written so that you can convert
(hemp-derived products) into something
that is intoxicating. "
Hemp-derived Uncertainty
Adding to the confusion is that consumers
see hemp-derived CBD brands
at national retailers and-upon hearing
delta-8 THC is made of the same
substance-might assume that D-8 is
nonintoxicating, Duvall noted.
That confusion likely contributes
to the number of delta-8 THC-related
hospitalizations reported to the
Centers for Disease Control and the
U.S. Food and Drug Administration,
reinforcing why regulation of hempderived
products is so important,
she said.
More than 100 people in the United
States were hospitalized last year after
consuming delta-8 THC products,
federal health regulators reported in
September.
40 February 2022 | MJBizMagazine
Regulating CBD and
byproducts such as delta-8
THC similarly to other food
and dietary supplement
ingredients could increase
consumer confidence.
Courtesy Photo
Duvall said regulating hempderived
cannabinoids like a dietary
supplement would:
* Mandate product manufacturing
under the FDA's current Good
Manufacturing Practice standards.
* Allow manufacturers to conduct
rapid product tracebacks in case of
a recall.
* Make consumer packaged goods
companies and mass merchant retailers
more comfortable investing
in the industry.
" That is why we support some of these
bills that treat it like a dietary supplement,
so that these facilities that are
producing ingredients have a plan, have
critical control points, have all the things
that we would expect in a food-processing
plant or dietary supplements and nutraceutical
processing facility, " she said.
Turning hemp-based cannabinoids
into intoxicants hurts the hemp industry's
credibility because it " is not in the
spirit of the 2018 Agricultural Improvement
Act, " Duvall said.
Because " it is not regulated, anybody
can be (making delta-8 THC) and
not checking the boxes for consumer
safety, which is a large concern because
you do use a lot of chemicals and harsh
solvents to create delta-8 THC. "
Duvall said more adverse events are
bound to happen if product manufacturers
aren't ensuring final product
testing, yet are selling delta-8 THC
products in retail outlets such as convenience
stores and gas stations, where
consumers of any age can access them.
Mixed Reaction
Retailer Larry Shor, who owns
Cleveland Botanical Destination in
Ohio, said most of his customers who
MJBizMag February 2022

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