FRANKLIN, Tenn. (WKRN) — On Tuesday, a group asked a Davidson County judge to pause a rule that would essentially ban hemp flower in the state of Tennessee.
The petition asked a Chancery Court judge to pause putting the rule into effect until pending legal challenges to play out.
“All fresh grown, organically grown, flower,” said Rodney Croteau, Owner of Green Daisy in Franklin, showing News 2 some of the products he sells.
If you have a question about the business, Croteau is the guy to ask. Green Daisy is a family-owned business run by Croteau, his wife and his son. They started the business five years ago after his wife went through health problems. Croteau said a majority of their customers tell him they use the products for health reasons.
Lately, though, he’s asked himself why and how he would move forward if a new rule goes into effect.
“Flowers and vapes [are] a significant portion of my business and most of us in this industry,” Croteau said. “It will, quite frankly, put a lot of people in jeopardy of losing their businesses.”
The rule, announced in September, prohibits products with more than 0.3% THC-A. When burned, THC-A turns into THC, the chemical that produces a high.
“Over a third of my business sales is from these products — THC-A flower and a lot of the vapes, so it’s a significant impact that will obviously impact us tremendously from a financial standpoint,” Croteau added. “And more importantly, my folks, my customers that rely on this medicine for various health issues.”
Hemp growers have also said the rule would have harsh consequences. In the petition filed on Tuesday, Tennessee Healthy Alternatives Association explained those in the industry would “suffer irreparable harm.” Further, the petition contends that many would “be forced to go out of business, and others will have to lay off much of their workforce.”
“This overreach with the THC-A flower is just a way of trying to ban a lot of these good products that these people need,” Croteau added.
Earlier this year, lawmakers went back and forth on the issue. House Majority Leader William Lamberth, R-Portland, said all the rules are necessary in order to ensure consumers are protected.
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“We wanted products to be available out there that are hemp-derived that, quite frankly, is not like what I see on the billboards now, [that say] ‘Real weed: buy it now in Tennessee.'” Lamberth said at the time.
Lawmakers hashed out the controversial rule for hours, but concluded they wouldn’t have the power to toss out one singular rule without getting rid of all the others until the next legislative session. However, owners like Croteau said that there are regulations in place to make sure the industry doesn’t get out of hand.
“We’ve put common sense things in place like child-proof packaging,” Croteau said. “You can’t have certain types of images [or] anything that would appeal to children. Edibles is really the risky area when it comes to kids and access and the regulations they are putting in place [are] going to restrict that.”
Retailers await the the judge’s decision before the rule takes effect in late December. In the meantime, Green Daisy is taking donations to help with the court battle, which they said would happen should the rule go into effect.
