By: Jake Stofan | Captiol News Service
January 7, 2020
Multiple other localities in Florida have passed ordinances creating civil penalties, rather than criminal charges, for people who are caught with small amounts of marijuana.
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (CNS) — CBD businesses are undergoing their first round of inspections now under newly finalized state regulations for the hemp based products.
The regulations are meant to ensure consumers are being sold quality products and help weed out bad actors in the marketplace.
Inspections at Natural Life in the state’s capital city began this week, just days after the Department of Agriculture published its new rules regulating CBD products in the state.
“We’ll be completely inspected and done by the end of this week,” said Natural Life owner, Gabe Suarez. “Having all players have to play by these rules will weed out the bad dishonest players and shed light on the proper honest players.”
The goal of the inspections is to ensure products properly labeled, free of contaminants like pesticides and contain the CBD levels advertised.
Suarez said those are all quality controls his company had already implemented.
“So it have a very minimal effect on us,” said Suarez.
But as Taylor Biehl with the Florida Hemp Association points out, for smaller retailers, compliance may be more difficult.
“From a quality control standpoint I mean this is imperative. You know you had a lot of quote unquote snake oil out there,” said Biehl.
Companies found to be out of compliance will have between 30 and 45 days to conform with the new rules.
Businesses that want to sell CBD will be required to purchase an annual permit from the department of agriculture.
That comes with a price tag of $650.
The state is still waiting on the Federal Government to finalize its rules for hemp cultivation, the plant from which CBD is derived.
Once finalized CBD retailers like Suarez hope their products will be able to carry the fresh from Florida label.
The Department of Agriculture expects to have hemp cultivation rules finalized early this year.
FAMU ad UF are already cultivating some test plots as part of the learning curve to growing the crop in Florida.