The 2023 Farm Bill has been delayed until September 2024 as part of the emergency funding bill signed by President Joe Biden to avert a government shutdown. This extension provides Congress with one more year to carefully craft a new Farm Bill.
The Farm Bill typically gets renewed every five years, with the last one happening in 2018. That bill made hemp and hemp-derived products such as CBD oil legal across the country, opening the doors for a thriving industry.
However, it also set the stage for the emergence of unregulated hemp-derived products, including controversial delta-8 THC, which has been a source of concern for lawmakers and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
The delay in passing the 2023 Farm Bill leaves the hemp industry in a state of uncertainty. Advocates had hoped the new legislation would address crucial issues, such as the regulation of delta-8 THC and the potential increase in the THC limit for hemp to 1%. These changes are vital for steering the industry towards a more stable and regulated future.
The 2018 Farm Bill triggered a surge in products containing not only CBD but also hemp-derived intoxicating products that include delta-8, delta-9, and delta-10 THC, as well as other forms of THC like THC-O and HHC.
This has been a headache for the FDA, which has been actively issuing warning letters to companies making unsupported medical claims or marketing delta-8 THC products in packaging resembling popular snacks, raising concerns about unintentional consumption, especially by children.
In the absence of federal action, many states have passed their own laws restricting or banning delta-8 THC and other intoxicating products. This, in turn, prompted legal action from hemp companies seeking to overturn these restrictions and, in many cases, succeeding.
Gleb is a freelance writer from Vancouver, Canada specializing in CBD and cannabis. He’s read thousands of studies on CBD and other supplements, helping him translate complex science into plain language. Gleb has tried and reviewed dozens of CBD brands and products, written third-party testing reports, and knows the CBD industry inside and out. When not writing, he likes to kickbox, travel, and tell everyone how awesome intermittent fasting is.
