The U.S. House Committee on Agriculture recently released a 942-page draft of the 2024 Farm Bill, also called the Farm, Food, and National Security Act of 2024, on May 17. Currently the bill is projected to cost $1.5 trillion over a 10-year period. During a Farm Bill hearing on May 23, the committee passed an group of amendments en bloc, one of which would essentially prohibit all hemp-derived products.
In its current form, the amendment would implement a ban on “all ingestible hemp products with any level of THC.” It would also redefine hemp to “only include naturally occurring, naturally derived, and non-intoxicating cannabinoids,” and remove cannabinoids “synthesized or manufactured outside of the plant” from the definition of legal hemp.
The amendment was proposed by Illinois Rep. Mary Miller. “My amendment will close the loophole created in the 2018 Farm Bill that allows intoxicating hemp products like delta-8 to be sold,” Miller said on May 23. “These products are being marketed to children and sending hundreds of them to the hospital. We must stop teenagers and young children from being exposed to addictive and harmful drugs.”
Some representatives expressed support for Miller’s amendment, but requested more information. Tennessee Rep. John Rose explained that more clarification is necessary to separate the “intentional and unintentional products” in the 2018 hemp definition. Virginia Rep. Abigail Spanberger added that she only seeks to make changes that would benefit farmers in her state. “Greater clarity is incredibly important, and particularly for fiber hemp producers, this amendment would make clear the valuable work that they do and make clear the viability of their product,” Spanberger added.
However, many more legislators opposed the amendment, such as Indiana Rep. Jim Baird. He argued that since the 2018 Farm Bill was passed, many farmers have invested everything they had into farm businesses. “American farmers deserve the …
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Author: Nicole Potter / High Times
