Texas Judge Confirms Delta-8 THC Ban, New Hearing Expected In November

By Nina Zdinjak

As more states adopt the cannabis plant in its “full form”, some are still questioning the legality of hemp-based products.

Cannabis company Hometown Hero filed a lawsuit against the Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS) last week, claiming its hemp policy had been improperly revised to ban products containing Delta-8 THC, Marijuana Moment reported. However, a Texas judge disagreed with the lawsuit and ruled that the state’s ban remains in place.

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What is Delta-8 THC all about?

Delta-8 THC is a chemical component of the cannabis plant. Although Delta-8-THC occurs naturally in very low concentrations, it can have mild psychoactive effects in some people, similar to Delta-9-THC. The new industrial methods enable the conversion of Delta-8-THC from CBD from hemp.

New ban or just a clarification?

Due to the novelty of Delta-8 products and legal issues surrounding them, the DSHS supposedly produces felt the need to take another step and ban products containing more than 0.3% of any type of THC. More precisely, it says on the DSHS website as follows:

Texas Health and Safety Code Chapter 443 (HSC 443), introduced by House Bill 1325 (86th Legislature), allows consumable hemp products in Texas that do not exceed 0.3% delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). All other forms of THC, including Delta-8 at any concentration and Delta-9 above 0.3%, are considered List I controlled substances. “

RELATED: FDA Warns Consumers Of Risks Associated With Delta-8 THC Products

Although Hometown Hero intended to obtain an injunction against DSHS to prevent them from taking action against companies selling Delta-8-THC, it appears that the cannabis company will now have to wait for the follow-up hearing in the next few months, the wrote Point of sale.

RELATED: RIP Delta-8 THC: Why States And DEA Want It To Be Banned

Plaintiff’s attorney said in court that “the DSHS stance is turning the hemp definition on its head,” while the department, on the other hand, claimed it made no policy change because Delta-8 THC has been legally classified as equal to Delta -9 since legalization of hemp in 2019. DSHS stressed that it only added clarifications on its website to respond to the many inquiries from hemp farmers who found the situation confusing.

More research needed, FDA and Reddit

More research is needed when it comes to the safety of Delta 8 THC products.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recently warned that Delta-8-THC products have undesirable health effects, although they still don’t seem to have the hard science to back up their claims to underpin.

Just last week, the FDA announced that it would use Reddit to learn more about cannabis-derived products like CBD and Delta-8.

This article originally appeared on Benzinga and was republished with permission.