When Missouri Gov. Mike Parson issued an executive order banning the sale of psychoactive hemp-derived edibles outside of marijuana dispensaries, he said manufacturers are endangering children with deceptive packaging and unregulated substances.

But he didn’t mention the effect the ban would have on Missouri hemp producers, who say they’re trying to run a legitimate business and feel burned by the governor.

Even after Missouri Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft blocked the emergency order, delaying the ban by at least six months, local hemp sellers feel attacked by the looming threat to their businesses.

“We’re in limbo,” said Brian Riegel, owner of South Point Hemp in Union, Missouri. “Bankers are calling asking what’s going on, what’s going to happen, how we’re going to cover the bills. I don’t have those answers.”

Hemp-derived compounds rose to prominence following the 2018 Farm Bill.

Before 2018, the cannabis plant was basically illegal to grow in any form. The bill opened the door to growing it by classifying cannabis with less than .3% delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, as hemp and cannabis with any more as marijuana.

This allowed farmers to grow hemp to use as fiber and grain. But it also opened the door for two types of hemp-derived psychoactive products to hit the market.

The first is any product that has low amounts of delta-9. For example, if an edible weighs a total of 10 grams, it could have up to 30 milligrams of delta-9. Riegel sells a line of drinks with 5 milligrams of delta-9 at bars and concerts.

“When we’re talking about a beverage like this, this is .0005% [THC concentration],” he said. “It’s way low because of the volume.”

Though the governor’s order didn’t explicitly ban products with hemp-derived delta-9, a spokesperson with the Missouri Department of Health & Senior Services confirmed to KBIA via email that they are illegal as well.

The other types are other psychoactive chemical compounds found in cannabis, such as delta-8 and delta-10. While some of these appear in faint amounts in cannabis, they are most often made by chemically converting compounds like CBD, which is naturally plentiful in cannabis.

Hemp producers and advocates say because these compounds aren’t delta-9 specifically, it’s legal hemp instead of illegal marijuana.

“I think the law means what it says,” said Dan Viets, a Columbia lawyer who chairs the Board of Directors of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, or NORML. “And the people who are manufacturing intoxicating products from hemp are doing what was or should have been foreseeable. I’m not sure if anyone foresaw it or not, but that they are abiding by the law as it now stands.”

Others disagree. Eric Leas is an assistant professor at the University of California, San Diego. He studies cannabis and works with officials to draft regulations. Leas is in favor of closing what he calls the “hemp loophole.”

“I wasn’t in the room when they were writing the law, but to me, and lots of states are deciding, the intent of this was for industrial uses and not a work-around to get psychoactive cannabis products to consumers,” Leas said. “So that’s kind of what I see as the loophole.”

Leas is in favor of a total ban on psychoactive hemp-derived compounds, especially in places with a legal market for marijuana, a drug he says has much more research indicating it’s safe.

“There’s all sorts of consumer safety checks that happen in a recreational use system,” he said. “The thing that the industry doesn’t like is it makes it more expensive, and you have to submit your products to this system. But to me, as a public health researcher, with a really potent substance, it seems worth the additional costs to ensure safety for the products in a way that we can’t do for the hemp-derived market.”

The Missouri Hemp Trade Association says they have been calling for regulations for years to no avail, which is partly why Parson’s outright ban was such a shock.

“I think it’s important that we do age restrictions on the purchase of it, 21 and over,” Riegel said. “Make sure the labels are right, make sure there’s testing on it.”

Missouri Hemp Trade Association Executive Director Courtney Allen Curtis said that despite legislation failing to pass, the state’s hemp industry has been self-regulating.

“If it’s a Missouri Hemp Trade member company that’s making these products, you won’t find that they are labeled as marijuana, and you will find that they are tested,” he said. “They are properly labeled. And then they have the certificate of analysis that shows you that they are tested, and it shows what ingredients and other things are in it, and that they have been tested for things such as heavy metals, and they pass those tests.”

Those in the Missouri hemp industry say they feel lumped together with the out-of-state and overseas manufacturers that don’t abide by the same rules, and the executive order wouldn’t do much to stop them anyway.

“They can’t stop the online ordering of it, and they’re not making it illegal to possess,” Riegel said. “So it’s the actual selling of it. If you’re a merchant in the state, that’s the person who becomes a criminal in this act.”

Riegel said if the ban goes through, he’s considering moving his business out of state and selling his products online.

Earlier this month, Columbia hemp boutique Hemp Hemp Hooray closed its doors after five years in business. Owner Kevin Halderman said about 50% of the products he sells would be impacted by the ban, and he made the decision to close on the same day it was announced.

“It was definitely the nail that sealed the deal,” he said.

 After Ashcroft blocked the emergency order, the ban is now expected to take at least six months to come to fruition.

Copyright 2024 KBIA

Data Skrive

The No. 9 Missouri Tigers (1-0) are an overwhelming 34.5-point favorite heading into their matchup on Saturday, September 7, 2024 against the Buffalo Bulls (1-0). The game has a point total set at 51.5.

Last time out, the Tigers defeated the Murray State Racers, with 51-0 being the final score. Facing the Lafayette Leopards in their last contest, the Bulls won 30-13.

Keep up with college football all season on FOX Sports.

Missouri vs. Buffalo Game Information & Odds

• When: Saturday, September 7, 2024 at 7:00 p.m. ET
• Location: Memorial Stadium/Faurot Field in Columbia, Missouri
• TV: SEC Network+
• Live Box Score on FOX Sports

Missouri vs. Buffalo Prediction

• Pick ATS:

  Missouri (-34.5)
  
  

• Pick OU: Under (51.5)
  
• Prediction:
  Missouri 46, Buffalo 4
  

Predictions are made by the Data Skrive betting model.

Learn more about the Missouri Tigers vs. the Buffalo Bulls game on FOX Sports!

Missouri vs. Buffalo Betting Insights

• Based on the spread and over/under, the implied score for the matchup is Tigers 43, Bulls 8.
• The Tigers have a 99.5% chance to claim victory in this game per the moneyline’s implied probability. The Bulls hold a 4.8% implied probability.
• Missouri has covered in its only game with a spread this season.
• Buffalo compiled a 5-7-0 ATS record last year.

Missouri vs. Buffalo: 2024 Stats Comparison

Missouri 2024 Key Players

Buffalo 2024 Key Players

FOX Sports created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.

Want great stories delivered right to your inbox?

Create or log in to your FOX Sports account, follow leagues, teams and players to receive a personalized newsletter daily.

FOLLOW Follow your favorites to personalize your FOX Sports experience

Advertisement

Missouri Tigers

Buffalo Bulls

College Football

By Rachel Bowman For Dailymail.Com

Published: 20:25 BST, 4 September 2024 | Updated: 20:33 BST, 4 September 2024

A father and daughter have died in a boat crash on a Missouri river that left the remaining family members hospitalized in a serious condition.

The Missouri State Highway Patrol said the family of six and a friend were riding along Gasconade River around 7pm on Sunday.

Reven Newbound, 30, was driving a 2002 Gaterboat upstream when they struck a root that caused the vessel to crash into a rock bluff. 

The young father and his seven-year-old daughter were pronounced dead at the scene.

His wife, 29-year-old Samantha Newbound, was transported to the University of Missouri Hospital by air ambulance. Their three other children – an infant boy, 4-year-old girl and 9-year-old girl – were taken to the hospital by EMS.

Advertisement

Reven Newbound (right), 30, and his seven-year-old daughter (center left) died in a boat crash on a Missouri river that left the remaining family members (pictured) hospitalized

The family was in a 2002 Gaterboat driving upstream along the Gasconade River (pictured) when they struck a root that caused the vessel to crash into a rock bluff

Family friend Taylor McClure, 21, was treated for minor injuries at the scene.

According to the incident report, all four of the children were wearing safety devices while the adults were not. 

Reven worked as a laborer foreman at Kolb Grading and was beloved by the community. 

‘A huge loss. The schools especially. Losing a little girl. Losing your friend. Losing your classmate,’ Jeff Arnold, Chief of Owensville Volunteer Fire Department, told Fox 2.

‘Reven was a very well known around the community, doing the demolition derbies and such. Overall, well-rounded guy; great loss for the community.’ 

Advertisement

Reven (right) was well known in the community and participated in demolition derbies

The young mother and her three children are expected to make a full recovery

The family from Owensville had purchased a new home in August, their real estate broker said on Facebook.

Samantha shared a tribute to her husband and daughter Tuesday, saying ‘Reality is hitting hard this morning… Reven was one who knew the river so good I was never afraid of him ever putting us in danger, I just don’t get why this had to happened to my family. I love you both so much.’

A GoFundMe set up for the family said the mother and her three children are expected to make a full recovery.

‘The journey ahead will be long and challenging. We want to ensure that financial burdens are the last thing on Sam’s mind during this difficult time,’ the fundraiser said.