The front and back of a package of Nerdy Bears, which contain delta-8 THC. The candy was purchased at a Columbus corner store on Jan. 16, 2024. The gummies contain the font and branding of Nerds candies.
Tribune News Service
COLUMBUS, Ohio — The Ohio Division of Cannabis Control is warning consumers to be leery of delta-8 THC candy, cereals, potato chips and other products that are designed with cartoon characters and other elements to attract children.
The consumer alert is to make Ohioans aware of these products, which are sold on shelves at some gas stations, head shops and corner stores. They contain small amounts of THC, the psychoactive ingredient in cannabis, and are sold in Ohio and other states through a loophole in the federal hemp law. In large enough quantities, the products can get people high.
Ohio’s consumer alert comes after the U.S. Food and Drug administration and the Federal Trade Commission sent cease-and-desist warnings to five companies earlier this week that sell snacks that are designed as copycats of mainstream products.
Examples from these companies include Cookie Cat Crunch Delta-8 Cereal, made by a Pennsylvania company called Hippy Mood; Stoney Ranchers Hard Candy: 1,000 mg Delta-8 THC, produced by Mary Jane’s Bakery Co. LLC in Miami; and Cheetos Flamin’ Hot Crunchy, made by Grow God LLC in California. Together, the companies produce dozens of items with delta-8 THC in them.
In Ohio, Gov. Mike DeWine has been raising the alarm about delta-8 THC products for months, saying there isn’t much he can do to stop their sales, unless state or federal law changes. Two proposals in the Ohio legislature haven’t made it across the finish line, including one bill that was introduced more than six months ago. A proposal in the U.S. House would close the loophole using the 2024 Farm Bill, which is still in the legislative process.
DeWine would like to prohibit the sales of the delta-8 products altogether, he has said, although he supports legislation that would put the products in soon-to-open recreational marijuana dispensaries. That would require people to show ID proving they’re at least 21 years old to buy them.
The Ohio Department of Agriculture regulates a legal hemp market with around three dozen companies. The chocolates, candies, vape cartridges and other products that they produce cannot have labeling to appeal to children, according to state regulations.
While the products regulated by the Ohio Department of Agriculture have to undergo testing to show they don’t contain harmful pesticides or other chemicals, most products – including those that appeal to kids – are not necessarily tested.
James Canepa, superintendent of the Ohio Division of Cannabis Control, said there’s no guarantee that most of the delta-8 products on the shelves are safe.
“As the division prepares to introduce non-medical cannabis products that have met our highest standards of testing and safety, we must ensure dangerous, unregulated products such as Delta-8 are removed from circulation,” he said in a prepared statement. “The packaging of these products can make them look exactly like candy and the products themselves lack any testing requirements, so Ohio consumers, especially children, have no way of knowing exactly what they are purchasing, which is extremely dangerous.”
