D.E.A. EXTENDS ITS DEADLINE FOR BANNING HEMP IN FOOD

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

In early October, shortly after Asa Hutchinson became D.E.A.
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 rule still applied to the
dozens of pretzels, snack bars and other food products that are made
with hemp seed oil, and stores and manufacturers were given until
early this month to dispose of them all.

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

But the nascent hemp food industry cried foul, asserting that the
agency has the authority to control only substances with a "high
potential for abuse." The industry filed an appeal last year with the
United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, which handles
appeals of administrative rulings like this one.

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

Though 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.

Representatives Ron Paul, Republican of Texas, and George Miller,
Democrat of California, sent letters to fellow lawmakers last week,
criticizing the D.E.A. for erecting "unwarranted barriers" to a
legitimate business and imploring Mr. Hutchinson to follow "a more
reasonable approach."

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

Notwithstanding the delay, the D.E.A. said it had no intention of
softening its prohibition on food made with hemp.

"We take our responsibility seriously," a D.E.A. spokeswoman, Rogene
Waite, said.