Kentucky law proposing to ban Delta-8 products could cost the state billions of dollars

By Jelena Martinovic

The Kentucky legislature is trying to ban all forms of “intoxicating products” made from industrial hemp, such as delta-8-THC, a form of THC distinct from the delta-9-THC more commonly found in cannabis plants, writes Hemp Today.

Under a bill proposed this week, smokable hemp — in the form of cigarettes or cigars — as well as smokeless products such as chews or dips, whole hemp buds, hemp tea, and ground hemp flowers and leaves would be outlawed.

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RELATED: Hemp Industries Association Calls for Regulation, Not Ban, of Delta-8 THC

The legislation, which expands on existing language in state law, is also expected to ban other hemp-derived minor cannabinoids such as delta-10-THC, THC-O and THC-P, according to an unofficial copy of the proposal.

While hemp players in the state of bluegrass have taken the 2018 Farm Bill in their favor and claimed that delta-8-THC is legal under the law, regulators have pushed back, emphasizing that the compound is not naturally derived from the hemp plant.

RELATED: RIP Delta-8 THC: Why States and DEA Want It Banned

The Kentucky Hemp Association emphasized that a ban on delta-8-THC would potentially cost the Kentucky cannabis economy, including breeders, producers and retailers, billions of dollars.

This article originally appeared on Benzinga and has been republished with permission.