Hey, there! Log in / Register
State to restaurants and bars serving THC-infused stuff: Cut that out
By adamg on Wed, 06/12/2024 - 11:05am
The state is warning restaurants and bars experimenting with food and drinks infused with THC or CBD are breaking the law.
These products must be taken off the shelf immediately. Any licensee found in violation of importing, manufacturing, transporting, selling, and/or possessing on its licensed premises food and/or beverages containing hemp derived CBD and/or THC faces potential suspension or revocation of its license. Wholesalers must retrieve all food and beverages containing hemp derived CBD and/or THC sold and/or delivered by them to retail licensed premises at or before their next delivery to each establishment.
The advisory, issued by the state Alcoholic Beverages Control Commission and Department of Public Health, does not apply to edibles sold at dispensaries licensed by the state Cannabis Control Commission, but does apply to bottled water and seltzer that might be sold by non-dispensary retailers.
The advisory notes that while the feds removed hemp from the nationwide list of controlled substances so it could be sold as an agricultural product, THC and CBD derived from hemp - or marijuana, for that matter - is still barred from application to foods and drinks.
Hjulled hemp seeds, hemp seed protein and hemp seed oil, however, can be added for extra hempy goodness to foods and drinks sold at retail, the state adds.
Topics:
Free tagging:
Ad:
Support Universal Hub
Help keep Universal Hub going. If you like what we're up to and want to help out, please consider a (completely non-deductible) contribution.
Comments
Who asked?
Who is government serving?
People who don't want to die from impaired drivers
That's one important group.
CBD is pretty benign but it can interact with other drugs, including muscle relaxants and alcohol.
Mixing THC into drinks served in bars and restaurants has bad idea written all over it. The whole server system is built around spotting limits of alcohol-only exposure. Not only do THC and alcohol amplify each other, the impacts of THC are more varied by individual and there are time lags involved with ingestion. You could drink a THC booze mixed drink, down two other drinks in an hour and BAM - THC kicks in on top of all that alcohol.
If you want to mix them, you can do it at home or in private. I like taking the blueberry THC syrup and adding it to a bees knees for a summer libation enjoyed in a backyard hammock.
People who don't want to die from impaired drivers
Wait, people in Massachusetts care about that now?
But the state does next to
But the state does next to nothing about alcohol or phone impaired drivers, who kill many more people each year. Not to mention speeders, people who run red lights and stop signs, etc. MA politicians gets so uptight about anything “new” (or new to be legal) while always throwing out the pretense of safety, even though in all other cases they don’t care at all any safety.
You mean
Other then throwing them in prison or imposing onorous financial penalties that can effectively cripple their ability to meaningfully participate in society.
Other then that, what do they do, exactly?
Ha ha
Also lol
"The State" or was it "The
"The State" or was it "The City"??? abolished happy hours @Ari O. That helped a lot with alcohol impaired driving.
You must be pretty young
You must be pretty young if you believe that. Less than it could be doing? Perhaps. Next to nothing? Absolutely not. Accountability used to be next to nothing, before groups like MADD pushed the issue. And they did get somewhere. Holding serving establishments liable for damage done by their patrons is one big step, and if you don't think that has an impact, you're just wrong.
I get high with a little help...
From my friend (Swirly)
agree on general principle, but perhaps overstated
I agree that it makes sense to be cautious while our culture learns how to responsibly use and enjoy various cannabinoids. It may take us a while to figure out good rules-of-thumb for how to integrate their use into our shared social lives. However, we should also try not to overstate or misdirect where the most critical risks lie.
I feel like the use of terms like ‘interaction’ and ‘amplify’ imply a clinically recognized relationship. But I’m unaware of well-regarded research supporting such claims between cannabinoids and muscle relaxants or alcohol.
It’s true that CBD can slow the metabolization of other compounds in the liver, but only in very large dosages and to a much lesser extent than other so-called ‘competitive inhibitors’ - like grapefruit juice (available in pretty much every market or alcohol-serving establishment in the country).
In counterpoint, caffeine and alcohol have very large bodies of evidence of significant, potentially adverse interactions and yet are commonly served together. Alcohol is far far more toxic and dangerous than any of the cannabinoids - to refer to your example, anyone having three ‘merely’ alcoholic drinks in an hour would be almost certainly legally intoxicated, and the slowing of their reactions and decrease in inhibition is what would make them a danger behind the wheel.
Never assume effective drugs are without interactions
While research study numbers and size is hampered by earlier bans on doing that research, there are some studies:
Wead,booze and impact on driving ability: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22871272/
Special Issue on various impacts of mixing: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34591513
Good lay explanation of what meds do not mix with CBD: https://www.theportlandclinic.com/cbd-might-not-mix-with-your-meds/
But I have a Ph.D. in epidemiology so what do I know?
Is this epidemiology?
I do have to ask, is this an epidemiology thing?
Imagine thinking hemp derived
Imagine thinking hemp derived THC will impair you in any way…
What could possibly go wrong?
What could possibly go wrong?
Same goes for the whole
Same goes for the whole “legalize pot” law.
Same goes for the whole 21st
Same goes for the whole 21st Amendment to the US Constitution.
Except for that bit where legalization was intended to curb rampant black market profiteering in both cases.
Cool, let's restart the War
Cool, let's restart the War On Some Drugs then. Sure, the first one was a massive failure over decades that corrupted everything it touched, but hey, this time might be different.
Come on
If the state weren’t dragging its feet on social consumption for years this unregulated sale wouldn’t need to exist.
Instead of a ban
I would rather see the state require accurate labeling, including dosage of both THC and CBD. Then consumers could make their own decisions.
Agreed
But that doesn't work unless the bar is vending pre-mixed or packaged items - which isn't always the case.
I've seen such drinks on menus in other states, particularly in taprooms. They typically list both the alcohol and THC or CBD dosage.
Based on what data, though?
The federal ban on marijuana means that there's a lack of research that would give consumers any idea of what a "safe" dosage is. So, while labeling in terms of units is great, I don't think the data exists to support labeling in terms of "dosage".
It does
Go to a dispensary some time. You don’t need the feds to do basic science.
I've been, thanks
Unless I'm mistaken, the product information at dispensaries does not have the science, basic or otherwise, to support statements about levels of intoxication, and thus does not make any such statements. Contrast that with the rules of thumb that have been established re: alcohol intake and intoxication I'd love to hear that I'm wrong about this and see this information.
the main issue here
The CCC exists for a reason, people pay shloads of cash for licenses with them, and then these bozos come along and undermine all of that with their hemp loophole.
Furthermore, the CCC requires
Furthermore, the CCC requires testing on all products. I don't trust the manufacturers of these hemp based products at all.