The Houston Chronicle reports
The entire hemp industry in Texas is a genie you can’t put “back in the bottle” due to difficulties in product regulation, Senator Charles Perry said in a Senate Committee on State Affairs hearing this past week.
Perry told the committee that regulating the hemp industry, which generates $8 billion annually in the state, through state agencies and law enforcement, is “not a reality.” Perry argued the products should just be taken off the market.
“Don’t deceive yourself. There’s nothing good in this product because you’re not able to control it,” Perry said. “It’s been exploited for money and profit.”
But if you ask Hometown Hero, an Austin-based cannabusiness currently fighting before the Texas Supreme Court to keep Delta-8 products legal, they’ll tell you THC products are in fact regulated in the state of Texas. And technically, they’re right.
Bearing the responsibility of regulation
Cynthia Cabrera, chief strategy officer for Hometown Hero, said their business’ products have been inspected several times and they’ve had their facilities checked out through state agencies.
Texas Administrative code states hemp products need to be tested for the concentration of cannabinoids and contaminants by an accredited laboratory. Sellers must make the certificate of analysis available to the Department of Health if asked.
“Anybody can scan the QR code, and the law says that you should be able to find the COA that goes to that product. If that’s not happening, then there needs to be enforcement, but that’s on the state’s side.”
But DSHS, the governmental agency responsible for performing inspections on hemp products, is stretched thin with just three sanitarians able to perform inspections for the entire state.
