Good afternoon and welcome to Leafly’s delta-8 THC news roundup.
Users consider Delta-8 “marijuana light”—it’s only slightly different from delta-9 THC, which remains prohibited in most states. But due to a loophole in hemp legalization, hemp-derived CBD that’s chemically converted into delta-8 is legal in many states with marijuana prohibition. That’s triggered a billion-dollar hemp oil rush as the industry moves to satisfy Americans’ high demand to get high.
Is delta-8 THC still legal in your state or even county? What’s the science say about safety? What do consumers report? Delta-8 news comes out daily, as regulators seek to keep pace with the new products legalized alongside hemp. What about Delta-10, THC-O, or other novel cannabinoids synthesized from the CBD in hemp?
The answer? Anything but simple or static. Here’s your Leafly delta-8 update for March.
D-8 culture news
Activ8, a D-8 drinks company, will sponsor rapper Riff Raff’s national spring tour. [Icon vs. Icon]
Missouri has a hot dog store, T-N-T Weiners, doing D-8 infused sauce and drink. “With the delta-8 supplements and infusions, we’re trying to bring the comfort back to comfort food by helping people relieve depression, anxiety, and stress … the supplements come in 0.2-milliliter (10-milligram) syringes, which can be purchased to insert directly into any sauce or food by the consumer.” [Ladue News]
Chicago has a D-8 infused cafe called the Wake and Bakery that’s “Tik-Tok famous.” [Daily Herald]
Legalization updates—Is delta-8 still legal?
Federal news
A Maine congressperson has introduced a hemp legalization cleanup bill to close the D-8 loophole that legalized getting high in prohibition states, while also easing testing and hiring rules for hemp growers. It would limit all forms of THC to under 0.3% by weight. [Dallas Observer; Marijuana Moment]
“My view of this is that Congress realizes that the existing law is ambiguous, and so they’re clarifying the text to get back to the original intent, which didn’t include legalizing psychoactive substances,” writes one legal expert.
State news
An Alabama lawmaker wants to set an age limit of 18 on D-8. “It is everywhere,” the lawmaker said of the products in their state. The Alabama Poison Information Center has recorded 116 exposures to delta-8 since March 2021. [AL.com]
Arizona lawmakers introduced a legal cannabis industry-backed bill to stop unregulated D-8 from flooding the state, calling it “a rapidly expanding crisis.” The ADA told reporters “Right now, we have operators not understanding what they can and can’t buy, but it has always been our contention that the conversion of hemp is not legal.” [Tuscon Weekly]
Two Arkansas head shop owners caught a case for D-8 that actually tested 6% delta-9 THC—which is banned in that state. [Camden Ark News]
Looks like Indiana will study, not ban D-8 this year. [The Statehouse File]
The state of Kansas’ Johnson County has a March 20 deadline to remove D-8 from store shelves. “Delta-8 THC is a hallucinogenic drug and thus cannot be sold to the public,” Johnson County’s DA stated. [Kansas City]
Kentucky lawmakers are ready to throw the book at D-8 and ban all of it, including delta-10, THCO, and THCP. The Kentucky Hemp Association opposes the bill. [Benzinga]
Maryland lawmakers moved to regulate the state’s D-8 supply under its medical system. [WMDT]
The medical cannabis state of Oklahoma is riding a D-8 wave, too. A new bill would require a medical card to buy it. [OKCFOX]
Related
I tried delta-8 THC: Here’s what it feels like
D-8 licensing may come the prohibition state of Tennessee. [News Channel 5]
The Utah Cannabinoid Product Board voted unanimously to not support synthetic cannabinoids in the absence of medical studies showing that they work. [KUER]
Virginia lawmakers are moving to ban D-8 until it can be regulated under their new recreational market. [Virginia Mercury]
Washington state lawmakers have two new bills to ban or tightly regulate delta-8. “These are being sold right now, without any regulation, without any oversight,” said Democratic Sen. Karen Keiser. “It’s a public health danger and a threat, and it needs to be removed.” [The Ganjapreneur] [Hemp Industry Daily]
Other D-8 news around the web
The D-8 boom has pushed some hemp cannabinoid sellers to pitch delta-9-THC extracted or synthesized from hemp as a legal product. A crackdown looms. [MJBizDaily]
The US Hemp Roundtable condemned the selling of synthetic D-9 as hemp. “This kind of marketing is not simply a threat to public health and safety—particularly for kids that might purchase these products at retail—it undermines the integrity of the legal hemp industry, and ultimately threatens the livelihoods of farmers themselves,” said Ethics Counsel to the U.S. Hemp Roundtable Russell Coleman. [Hemp Gazette]
Canadian e-commerce vendor Shopify has given D-8 sellers the boot. [Hemp Gazette]
Industry expert opinion: The time has arrived for voluntary D-8 testing and child-proof packaging. “If we continue down this road, consumers could be harmed, businesses will be impacted and our industry’s reputation could be permanently damaged.” [Green Entrepreneur]
Journalists found that a Virginia lawmaker’s spouse sold dodgy D-8 in a state with just four medical dispensaries and no adult-use sales yet. All but one of 66 tested products were mislabeled. [Marijuana Moment]
There is definitely delta-9 in untested delta-8 vapes, a Tennessee lab concludes. [WLOS] That’s important to know because taking D-8 can violate the terms of probation. You’ll test positive for pot and go right back to prison. [WAAYTV]
One more time for the people in the back—Again, yes, delta-8 will show up on a drug test. [Art Voice]
US News and World Report did a great D-8 FAQ. “If you’re going to consume delta-8 products, you must assume you’re consuming a delta-9 (marijuana) product.” [USNews]
Related
How to find and buy quality delta-8 THC products
Delta-8 is not safe for pets. “If you are not sure about your pet’s exposure to delta-8 THC, you need to look out for symptoms such as inactivity, lack of coordination, dilated pupils, hypersalivation, sensitivity to movements, sounds, and touch, and incontinence.” [Plants Before Pills]
Speaking of accidents, teen exposures to D-8 drove a round of bad headlines in Texas, as well as a round of bad headlines in Tennessee. [Star-Telegram]
And the Missouri Poison Control Center is sounding the alarm on D-8 exposures. “Delta-8 products can look like children’s cereal or gummy bears. The packaging can be flimsy, and people can even sell open items, cookies, in stores.” [KSDK]
PsychCentral tried some D-8, researched it, and has qualms. “If you’re interested in using delta-8 to manage a mental health condition, you may want to do some more research and talk with your doctor first.” [PsychCentral]
MJBizDaily spends its February issue on D-8, with an infographic on how it’s made—a lot of chemicals. [MJBizDaily]
Leafly’s Max Savage Levenson made a timeline of D-8’s history in science and culture. [Leafly]
D-8 news roundup number of the month: $10 billion
The size of the synthetic cannabinoid market by 2025, According to the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM International). [Tuscon Weekly]
THC-O, THC-P, delta-10 news and reviews
What is HHC? Hemp Grower explains; hydrogenating THC using metal catalysts “Working with these reactions is serious chemistry.” [Hemp Grower]
A Florida lab announced HHC testing. “HHC is an unregulated chemical class known as hexahydrocannabinol, produced through hydrogenating delta-8 using metal catalysts.” [PR Newswire]
Delta-8 press release and sponsored content
And that’s it for Leafly’s monthly novel cannabinoids news roundup. It’s the wild west out there. We’ll keep an eye on the topic and see you next month for more.
David Downs
David Downs directs news and lifestyle coverage as the California Bureau Chief for Leafly.com. He’s written for WIRED, Rolling Stone and Billboard, and is the former cannabis editor of the San Francisco Chronicle, as well as the author of several cannabis books including ‘Marijuana Harvest’ by Ed Rosenthal and David Downs. He co-hosts The Hash podcast. TW: @davidrdowns | IG @daviddowns
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