Hemp-based CBD helped get my life back after my vaccine injury, Maryland is taking that away (Opinion)

The recent Washington County court ruling against the Maryland hemp industry is an absolute tragedy for Maryland, in that stores must stop selling delta-8 and delta-10 products. And while this is a huge win for Maryland’s cannabis industry by eliminating competition from hemp based products, it’s a loss for consumer choice, especially those of us who rely on hemp-based products for medical purposes, and want less potent products than what is available at dispensaries.

Believe it or not, there’s a large number of people, including myself, who use hemp-based products for health benefits but don’t enjoy the more potent cannabis products available at dispensaries. Personally, hemp-based products are the only thing that helps me manage my pain caused by the COVID vaccine, which I’ve been struggling with since 2021.

However, the appellate court decision in Moore v. Maryland Hemp Coalition has taken away my choice for what in my opinion is a safer CBD product. Now, I must either travel to Pennsylvania (where ironically marijuana is still not legal recreationally), or order online through what might not be as reliable supplier as what was available to me locally.

The harsh reality is that Maryland backed the wrong hemp bill. Instead of embracing what would be an eco-friendly option for cannabis, Maryland chose focus on marijuana and not hemp, resulting in large warehouses with significant HVAC expenses to maintain proper temperature and humidity for the marijuana. Meanwhile, hemp is much more suitable for Maryland’s climate and able to be grown outdoors.

To further complicate things, the State of Maryland setup an extremely restrictive program for commercial grow licensing, creating high barriers of entry and allowing only a select few companies in Maryland to grow and distribute marijuana and marijuana derivatives such as edibles. And now, just like Maryland shut down small businesses during the COVID pandemic, it’s the small businesses once again been hurt by Maryland’s actions, while the large marijuana dispensaries thrive from the decreased competition.

There’s nothing I would love more than to become a small scale producer of hemp products for Honeypot Acres Farm. Don’t get me wrong, I love growing peppers and selling hot sauce, but where I really would love for the farm to go is selling not just healthy products, but healing products at an affordable cost, so I can help educate others on the health benefits of natural products like hemp, elderberry, and many many more. But I can’t do that as long as Maryland makes it too restrictive.

Hopefully, if this isn’t overturned in the courts, it will be corrected in the legislature. But for me, this is yet another example of where government is not only failing to best serve the people, but actively working against my efforts to be healthy.

Ken is the President of Radio Free Hub City and owns Honeypot Acres Farm. All opinions are his own and do not reflect those of our clients or sponsors.

---