Hemp stakeholders in Tennessee have gone to court to protect their interests in intoxicating hemp substances – following the lead of similar groups in other U.S. states.
The lawsuit, led by hemp producers in the Tennessee Growers Coalition (TGC), alleges the Tennessee Department of Agriculture (TDA) skirted its own protocols and state law when it instituted emergency rules meant to tamp down on hemp-derived intoxicants such as delta-8, delta-9 and delta-10 THC found in edibles that have been widely available under no restrictions in Tennessee.
By redefining hemp cannabinoids, the state “placed extensive restrictions on their manufacture and sale,” according to the lawsuit, filed in Davidson County Chancery Court.
The case in Tennessee is just the latest among many across the country as stakeholders clash with state regulators, police and drug agencies, which are working to get trade in the hemp-derived intoxicants under control.
Some states have banned the products altogether. Tennessee has instead allowed them but under strict regulations. State officials estimate that the sales of products containing intoxicating hemp substances represent as much as $180 million in economic value for Tennessee.
Licenses required
In addition to the emergency rules, the state established a licensing program for businesses working with hemp-derived cannabinoids, given the acronym “HDC.”
“HDC product” is defined as a product that contains or that is labeled to contain a hemp-derived cannabinoid and that is produced, marketed, or otherwise intended to be consumed orally, inhaled, or absorbed through the skin. HDC products also include intermediate products intended for subsequent use as a component in a later finished product.
According to the new regulations, an HDC product license is required per person per location for any person who manufactures, distributes or sells an HDC product at retail.
Other wording changes were also made. Previously in Tennessee law, “manufacture” meant to compound, blend, extract, infuse, cook, or otherwise make or prepare products containing a hemp-derived cannabinoid, including the processes of extraction, infusion, packaging, repackaging, labeling, and relabeling of products containing a hemp-derived cannabinoid.”
Under the new regulations, “manufacture” also includes any action that transforms cannabis physically or chemically beyond its principal form as a farm product or that filters, cleans, or trims that product to isolate any of its particular parts or components.
Topicals exempted
Topical products, defined as products solely intended to be applied to the skin or hair and are not intended to be absorbed through transdermal application, are not under the emergency rules and are not included within the definition of an HDC product even if they contain a hemp-derived cannabinoid.
The rules also prohibit the sale of HDC products to individuals under 21 and limit the amount of intoxicating substances allowed per serving in products such as edibles.
Additionally, labeling and testing requirements have become more stringent, with mandates for detailed ingredient lists, QR codes linking to test results, and warnings on packaging.
The rules also redefine what qualifies as THC by including hemp-derived THC-A, a precursor that converts to THC when heated. This change could lead to a ban on THC-A and certain CBD flower products, as they are often indistinguishable from marijuana except when tested in a lab.
Growers’ argument
The Tennessee Growers Coalition complaint leans on the argument that existing rules in Tennessee comply with the 2018 Farm Bill passed by the U.S. Congress. That bill redefined industrial hemp and hemp-derived products, removing them from the Schedule I Controlled Substances Act and making hemp an “ordinary (and legal) agricultural commodity,” the suit states.
But intoxicating, psychoactive, or “high”-producing products made from industrial hemp were not understood or envisioned by Congress when it passed the 2018 Farm Bill. That lack of vision left a loophole that unscrupulous CBD and intoxicating hemp operators have taken advantage of, and along the way re-associated non-drug cannabis (hemp) with psychoactive cannabis (marijuana).
The Tennessee Department of Agriculture first issued the emergency rules in December 2023. The lawsuit argues that the Department violated its own protocols because while it held a public hearing, it failed to propose draft regulations and instituted the emergency rules three days before they went into effect on July 1, 2024.
Joining the TGC as plaintiffs in the suit are Saylor Enterprises LLC (d/b/a CBD Plus USA) and Gold Spectrum CBD LLC.
In addition to the emergency rules, the state established a licensing program for businesses working with hemp-derived cannabinoids. Read More