DEA EXTENDS DEADLINE TO DUMP HEMP 40-DAY REPRIEVE FOR FOOD INDUSTRY

Hoping to give an appeals court time to rule, the Drug Enforcement
Administration said yesterday that it will extend a grace period for
companies to dispose of food products made with hemp, a plant containing
small amounts of the same psychoactive substance found in marijuana.

In early October, shortly after Asa Hutchinson became DEA administrator,
the agency issued a rule that effectively banned "any product that contains
any amount" of the active substance in marijuana, known as
tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC.

Hemp, a close relative of the marijuana plant, does not contain enough of
the substance to have a mind-altering effect or to show up on most drug
tests. Nevertheless, the guidelines still applied to the dozens of
pretzels, snack bars and other food products that are made with hemp seed
oil, giving stores and manufacturers until early this month to dispose of
them all.

In explaining the rule, the DEA said it was merely interpreting existing
drug laws, not expanding them to cover previously acceptable products.

But the nascent hemp food industry cried foul, arguing that the agency only
has the authority to control substances with a "high potential for abuse,"
and filed an appeal last year with the U.S. Court of Appeals in San
Francisco, which handles appeals of administrative rulings like this one.

The court has yet to rule, but the DEA agreed this week to suspend its
prohibition for another 40 days to give the panel of judges more time and
information to decide.

Although the hemp foods industry in the United States is small, with sales
of no more than $7 million a year, the drug agency's stance has elicited a
surprisingly forceful response.

Reps. Ron Paul, R-Texas, and George Miller, D-Martinez, sent letters to
fellow lawmakers last week, criticizing the DEA for erecting "unwarranted
barriers" to a legitimate business and imploring Hutchinson to follow "a
more reasonable approach."

Last month, a major Canadian importer also filed a complaint with the State
Department over the rule, arguing that the United States had violated
provisions of the North American Free Trade Agreement by banning a product
without consulting its trade partners.

Notwithstanding the delay, the DEA said it has no intention of softening
its prohibition on food made with hemp.

"We take our responsibility seriously," said DEA spokeswoman Rogene Waite.