The birthplace of blues, barbecue capital of the world, and home of rock-and-roll, Memphis is a uniquely vibrant city famous for constantly innovating. Recently, it embraced one of the biggest trends sweeping the nation: THC drinks, a buzzy alternative to alcohol that offers a new way to party.
Because they’re made with hemp-derived cannabinoids, THC drinks are legal for adults throughout the country to enjoy. One of the most popular brands in the nation, Crescent 9 THC Seltzer, is now available at many Memphis locations.
Memphis and Cannabis
Both medical marijuana and recreational marijuana are fully illegal in Memphis. This is something of a surprise considering the fact that, according to a 2024 Vanderbilt Poll, 60 percent of Tennesseans support legalizing marijuana.
Although Tennesseans lack access to marijuana, they do have access to hemp thanks to various bills passed by the state legislature. In 2019, SB357 legalized hemp products, including those containing a psychoactive quantity of THC. In 2023, HB403 further regulated and supported Tennessee’s hemp industry.
Hemp products are federally legal if they contain hemp-derived cannabinoids and less than 0.3 percent Delta-9 THC. These products must also meet Tennessee’s safety and potency requirements to be sold in Memphis. Despite these restrictions, the hemp industry is flourishing.
Hemp-derived THC beverages have become especially popular. One big reason for their success is the fact that many people have given up alcohol in favor of cannabis; indeed, the popularity of cannabis may soon eclipse that of alcohol. A recent study found that by 2022, more people were using cannabis daily than were using alcohol daily.
What is Crescent 9 THC Seltzer?
Flavored with real fruit and infused with a satisfying dose of cannabis, Crescent 9 THC Seltzer is a deliciously refreshing alternative to alcohol. Unlike edibles, Crescent 9 THC Seltzer takes effect in about 15 to 30 minutes, about as fast as alcohol so that you can enjoy Crescent 9 socially.
There are four flavors of Crescent 9 THC Seltzer. ● Ginger Lemonade. Sweet and tart with 5 mg of THC and 4 mg of CBD. ● Tropical. Citrusy and sweet with 6 mg of THC, 3 mg of CBD, and a splash of caffeine. ● Sour Watermelon. Nostalgically sweet and sour with 10 mg of THC. ● Strawberry Lemonade. Deliciously refreshing with a potent 50 mg of THC.
Whether you’re just curious about cannabis or an experienced consumer, there’s a perfect Crescent 9 for you.
Where to Find Crescent 9 THC Seltzer
Crescent 9 THC Seltzer is available at stores and music venues throughout Memphis and surrounding areas. Below are some of the most popular locations to enjoy a cold can on-site or pick up a pack of Crescent 9 to unwind at home. Find Crescent 9 at:
● Minglewood Hall ● Bud & Hal’s Liquors ● Buster’s Liquors & Wines ● Ceasar’s Wine & Liquor ● Gaslight Liquor Shoppe ● High Point Grocery ● Joe’s Wines & Liquor ● Kimbrough Ine Wine & Spirits ● Kirby Wines & Liquors ● Liquor Barn ● Southwind Liquor ● Wayne’s Wine & Liquor ● Yorkshire Liquors ● Bartlett Wine & Spirits ● Corks Wine and Spirits ● Germantown Village Wine and Liquor ● Hemp2oh ● Mad Hatters Tea Room & Gifts ● Natalie’s Liquor Warehouse ● Vintage By Corks ● Lake District Wine & Liquor
But you don’t have to leave your home to order Crescent 9. Adults across the country can order Crescent 9 THC Seltzer online at crescentcanna.com. You must be 21 or older to buy THC- infused hemp products.
This article is sponsored by the Crescent 9 THC Seltzers.
Tennessee Republicans cannot stand the federal government telling them what to do — especially when a Democrat’s in the White House — but they do love telling Tennessee’s biggest cities what to do.
Republicans cry “overreach,” in general, when the feds “impose” rules that “overrule the will of the people of Tennessee.” (All of those quoted words came from just one statement on abortion from Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti, who yells “overreach!” the loudest.) But they call it “preemption” when they do it to Memphis and Nashville — their favorite targets — leaving big-city locals to bemoan that same overreach.
When punching up at the federal government, Tennessee conservatives send angry letters to the president lamenting rules they have to follow to get big “seductive” tax dollars. But they don’t often win much in this process.
When they punch down at cities, the power struggle really comes down to rural conservatives exerting whatever influence they have to temper (squash) the sometimes “woke” ideas of urban progressives. They have a lot of power to do this, as state law does, usually, preempt local law.
So, Republicans do what they want in the Tennessee General Assembly and say, “See you in court,” because cities don’t typically give up their authority without a legal fist fight. (This happens so much state Democrats say Republicans pass lawsuits, not laws.)
But cities lose these fights often. Some of that is thanks to the powerful state AG’s office, who gets in the ring for state conservatives. That office has even more punching power with a brand-new $2.25 million, 10-member unit. It force-feeds conservative priorities in Tennessee cities and blocks D.C.’s liberal agenda.
Here’s an example of this double-edged subversion: Skrmetti, the Republican AG, cried “overreach” when a 2022 USDA rule said LGTBQ kids had to have access to lunch at school. But when Memphis and Nashville tried to decriminalize cannabis in 2016, a state Republican said, “You just can’t have cities creating their own criminal code, willy-nilly.”
Same coin. Two sides. Yes, state law rules most times, but the premise of the argument is the same. State citizens and city locals know what’s best for them and pick their leaders accordingly. Then, an outsider who, maybe, doesn’t share their values, swoops in to make locals comply with theirs. It’s like, “Hi, you don’t know me but you’re doing it wrong and are going to do it my way.”
In this game, Memphis has been on the ropes at the legislature this year. State Republicans want to take away some of the power from the Shelby County district attorney. They want to remove a Memphis City Council decision on when Memphis Police Department (MPD) officers make traffic stops. They also wanted to dilute local control of the Memphis-Shelby County School (MSCS) board with members appointed by the governor. But they decided against it. Details on many of these and some from the past are below.
Meanwhile, some Republican lawmakers have looked up, wondering if they could really cut ties with the federal government. They took a serious, hard look at giving up $1 billion in federal education funding for state schools. They wanted to do it “the Tennessee way.” Left to guess what that meant, many concluded they hoped to eschew national discrimination protections for LGBTQ students.
This year, a state Republican hopes to establish state sovereignty. He wants to draw a clear line between state and fed powers and to install a committee to watch that line. It’s not a new idea, but it’s always had “don’t tread on me” vibes.
The road from Memphis City Hall, to the State Capitol, to Congress and the White House is littered with complaints (usually court papers) about political subversion. All the hollering and legal fights along the way have to leave voters wondering, who’s got the power?
Steve Mulroy (Photo: Steve Mulroy | Facebook)
District Attorney Power Battle
A legal battle over who has the power to decide on some death penalty cases has been waged since Republicans passed a bill here last year.
That bill stripped local control of post-conviction proceedings from local district attorneys and gave it to Skrmetti, the state AG. In Memphis, the bill seemed largely aimed at Shelby County District Attorney Steve Mulroy, with some concerned he may be lenient for those facing the death penalty.
“This sudden move appears to be a response to the choices of voters in both Davidson County and Shelby County, who elected prosecutors to support more restorative and less punitive policies,” Tennesseans for Alternatives to the Death Penalty said at the time.
Larry McKay, who received two death sentences for the murders of two store clerks in Shelby County in 1981, requested a court review of previously unexamined evidence in his case. Despite the new law, McKay’s attorney sought to disqualify Skremtti’s office from reviewing the case because he was not elected.
His attorney argued the new law infringes on the responsibilities of local district attorneys. The big changes made in the legislation also violated the state constitution, the attorney said.
Mulroy agreed.
“The newly enacted statute is an unconstitutional effort to divest and diminish the authority granted to Tennessee’s district attorneys general by the Tennessee Constitution,” Mulroy said at the time. “The new statute violates the voting rights of such voters because it strips material discretion from district attorneys, who are elected by the qualified voters of the judicial district.”
But state attorneys did not agree.
“The General Assembly was entitled to take that statuary power away from the district attorneys and give it to the Attorney General in capital cases,” reads the court document. “They have done just that and their mandate must be followed.”
But in July Shelby County Judge Paula Skahan ruled the Republican legislation did violate the state constitution. New arguments on the case were heard by the Tennessee Criminal Court of Appeals earlier this month. No ruling was issued as of press time. However, an appeal of that ruling seems inevitable, likely pushing the case to the Tennessee Supreme Court.
Pretextual Stops
State Republicans are actively trying to undermine a unanimous decision of the Memphis City Council to stop police from pulling over motorists for minor things like a broken taillight, a loose bumper, and more.
This council move came three months after MPD officers beat and killed Tyre Nichols, who was stopped for a minor traffic infraction. The local law is called the Driving Equality Act in Honor of Tyre Nichols.
Council members said police time could be better spent, that the stops expose more people to the criminal justice system, and, as in the Nichols’ case, could be dangerous. The stops also disproportionately affect Black people, who make up about 64 percent of Memphis’ population but receive 74 percent of its traffic tickets, according to Decarcerate Memphis.
The council’s decision made national headlines. But it found no favor with Republican lawmakers.
Rep. John Gillespie (R-Bartlett) introduced a controversial bill this year that would end that practice and reestablish state control over local decisions on criminal justice.
“We’re simply saying a state law that’s been on the books for decades is what we’re going by here,” Gillespie told Tennessee Lookout earlier this month. “And if there are people that have problems with what state law is, then maybe they should change state law instead of enacting local ordinances that are in conflict with state law.”
He initially cooled on the matter, promising to pause his bill for further review after Nichols’ parents spoke at a press conference.
“I am just appalled by what Republicans are trying to do in this state,” Nichols’ father, Rodney Wells, said at the event.
Gillespie promised Nichols’ family he’d hold the bill but surprised many earlier this month when he brought it to the House floor for a vote, which it won. Some said Gillespie acted in bad faith. State Rep. Justin Pearson (D-Memphis) said he straight-up lied to Nichols’ family and subverted local power to boot.
“You, as a person who lives in Shelby County, seek to undo the will of the people of Memphis and Shelby County,” Pearson said on the House floor. “The Wells family spoke with him briefly; he told them this bill wouldn’t come up until probably next Thursday.”
The Senate approved the bill last Thursday. It now heads to Gov. Lee for signature.
Six school board members for Memphis-Shelby County Schools met with three state lawmakers representing Memphis on Feb. 14, 2024, at the state Capitol. Their agenda included pending legislation from Rep. Mark White and Sen. Brent Taylor, both Republicans, to authorize Gov. Bill Lee to appoint additional members to the board. (Photo: Courtesy Memphis-Shelby County Schools | Chalkbeat)
MSCS School Board
State Republicans want to control schools here, too.
Rep. Mark White (R-Memphis), chair of the House Education Committee, filed a bill earlier this year that would add six governor-appointed members (read: more Republican influence) to the MSCS board. When he filed the legislation, he said he was unimpressed with the slate of those vying for the district’s superintendent job and concerned about students falling behind state standards on reading and math.
“I’m very concerned about the district’s direction, and I just can’t sit back any longer,” White told Chalkbeat Tennessee. “I think we’re at a critical juncture.”
However, MSCS board chair Althea Greene said at the time that White’s proposal was unnecessary.
“We may have had some challenges, but more interference from the General Assembly is not warranted at this time,” she said. “We have to stop experimenting with our children.”
Since then, the MSCS board chose Marie Feagins as the district’s superintendent and she got to work early, before her contract was supposed to start. Also, White paused his bill earlier this month to give board members a chance to submit an improvement plan. White said the plan should show how they’ll improve on literacy, truancy, graduation rates, teacher recruitment, underutilized school buildings, and a backlog of building maintenance needs, among other things, according to Chalkbeat.
While it’s the newest move in state “overreach” into schools here, it’s hardly the first. State Republicans once seized dozens of schools in Memphis and Nashville as laboratories for what they called “Achievement School Districts.” After more than a decade, these schools only angered locals, showed abysmal student performance, and now seem to be on their way out.
Cannabis
For six weeks back in 2016, Memphis City Council members debated a move that would have decriminalized possession of small amounts of cannabis in the city.
Hundreds were (and are) arrested each year on simple possession charges, and most of those arrested were (and are) Black. Council members didn’t want cannabis legalization; they wanted to steer folks away from the criminal justice system. They hoped to keep them out of jail and avoid a criminal record, which could hurt their chances at housing, employment, and more.
The city council — even though some had reservations about it — said yes to this. So did the Nashville Metropolitan Council. State Republicans said no.
Upon their return to the Capitol in 2017, they got to work ensuring their control over local decisions on the matter. A bill to strip this control easily won support in the legislature and was signed by then-Gov. Bill Haslam, who said he acted on the will of state lawmakers.
“You just can’t have cities creating their own criminal code, willy-nilly,” Rep. William Lamberth (R-Cottontown), the bill’s House sponsor, told The Tennessean at the time.
Then-Tennessee Attorney General Herbert Slatery issued an opinion that said, basically, cities can’t make laws that preempt state law. With that, Memphis resumed regular enforcement of cannabis laws.
Ranked Choice Voting
In two elections — 2008 and 2018 — Memphians chose how they wanted to pick their politicians, but they never got a chance to use it. State Republicans said no.
Ranked Choice Voting (RCV) would have allowed voters here to rank candidates on a ballot, doing away with the need for run-off elections that always see lower voter turnout. It was new and different but voters here “decided, over and over again, to give it a try,” reads a Commercial Appeal op-ed from 2022 by Mark Luttrell, former Shelby County mayor, and Erika Sugarmon, now a Shelby County commissioner.
However, state Republicans then-Sen. Brian Kelsey (R-Germantown) and Rep. Nathan Vaughan (R-Collierville) filed a bill to upend the voters’ decision for good with a bill to end RCV in Tennessee. Kelsey said it was about voter clarity. Opponents said it was about more.
“If the bill passes, it will disrespect Memphis voters, make a mockery of local control,” Luttrell and Sugarmon said in the op-ed.
In the end, the state won. The bill passed and RCV was banned, with added support and sponsorship of Memphis Democrats Rep. Joe Towns Jr. and the late Rep. Barbara Cooper.
State Sovereignty
“So, you hoe in your little garden and stay out of our garden,” said Rep. Bud Hulsey (R-Kingsport).
He was explaining to the House Public Service Committee last year how the country’s founders designed the separation of powers between the state and the federal governments, how it was supposed to work, anyway.
But federal government agencies — not elected officials — issue rules pushed on to “we, the people,” he said. They tear families apart. They split marriages. They end lifelong friendships, he said. They bring bankruptcy and suicide. He gave no more details than that. But he was sick of it and said the bill he brought would fix it.
When some Republicans here aren’t busy in committee or court, rending control from local governments, they like to think about state sovereignty. They want to defend Tennessee from the feds, especially when a Democrat is in the White House. They want to know what the exact rules are and to tell D.C. “don’t tread on me.”
Since at least 1995, bills like these have been filed here and there in the state legislature. There’s a new one pending now. In them, “sovereignty” sometimes sounds like a preamble to “secession.”
Hulsey’s bill didn’t go that far. He really wanted to set out a way to nullify D.C. rules he didn’t like. Lee’s office was against it, though. Senate Republicans were, too. The idea failed to even get a review in the Republican-packed Senate State and Local Government Committee. Conservatives worried “nullification” could also nullify big federal tax dollars.
That 1995 bill demanded, “The federal government, as our agent, to cease and desist, effective immediately, mandates that are beyond the scope of its constitutionally delegated powers.” Another Republican sovereignty bill later would have voided the powers of any representative of the United Nations once they entered the state.
One in 2014 (that was signed by the governor) simply expressed the state’s sovereignty to set educational standards. A 2016 bill said the feds “seduce” states to go along with their new rules with federal funds they treat as grants, not as tax funds for the state. Another in 2013 would have formed a committee to see what financial and legal troubles could be in store for Tennessee if it scaled back or quit the “state’s participation in the various federal programs.”
Ten years later, this idea is back. The “Tennessee State Sovereignty Act of 2024” would form a 10-person committee to watch and see if any federal rule violates the Tennessee State Constitution. If it does, “it is the duty of both the residents of this state and the General Assembly to resist.”
Now, if that don’t say “don’t tread on me” …
In the Senate, the bill was deferred until near the end of session (usually meaning they’ll get to it if they can). A House review of the idea was slated for this week, after press time.
Education Funding
Sovereignty bills rarely go anywhere but in talking points for reelection campaigns.
However, last year high-ranking Republicans took state sovereignty a step beyond rattling a saber. They announced a bold plan to have a serious look at if and how Tennessee could cut ties with the feds and their $1 billion in education funding. If it did, Tennessee would have been the first state in history to decline such funds.
“We as a state can lead the nation once again in telling the federal government that they can keep their money and we’ll just do things the Tennessee way,” House Speaker Rep. Cameron Sexton said at an event in February last year.
He didn’t outline what the “Tennessee way” entailed, though he complained about testing mandates and strings attached to funding. Many said the big federal string Republicans wanted to cut was the one attached to Title IX mandates. Title IX prohibits discrimination based on sex in education programs and activities that get federal money. The Biden administration has promised an update to these that could strengthen protections for LGTBQ students.
Tennessee has passed more anti-LGBTQ laws than any other state, according to the Human Rights Campaign. The week of March 4th alone, 18 such bills were before state lawmakers and targeted diversity, equity, and inclusion programs; made it easier to ban books; and attempted to legalize discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity.
State Republicans have passed bills to mandate transgender students only play on sports teams that match their gender at birth. They have mandated which bathrooms trans people have to use (a decision struck down by a federal judge). They’ve allowed teachers to go unpunished if they refuse to use pronouns that students identify with. They’ve wanted certain books with LGBTQ themes banned at school. They’ve wanted LGBTQ, especially gender identity, issues banned from discussion in sex-ed classes. This list goes on and on.
However, the precise motive for looking into cutting those federal education dollars was never stated. Some said it was always good to review the relationship between nation and state. In the end, Republicans spent a lot of time and money to research the idea but set it aside. They took the federal money and the strings attached anyway. But taking it so seriously was maybe that “don’t tread on me snake” just shaking its rattle.
“Deep in my Soul”
Separation of powers is a doubled-edge sword. It’s that cartoon drawing of a big fish eating a small fish that is getting eaten by the even bigger fish. It’s a “layer cake” form of federalism.
Call it what you will, but it’s clear locals want to make their own decisions. For Hulsey, the Republican talking about who tends whose garden, the idea runs deep.
“I stood up on that House floor over there a few weeks ago and we raised our hand, and we swore to 7 million people in this state, we swore not that we would rake in all the federal money we could get,” Hulsey told committee members. “We swore that we would always defend the inalienable rights of Tennessee people by defending and upholding the Constitution of the United States and the constitution of the state of Tennessee.
“We should not be for sale. I want to tell you that deep in my soul, I have a conviction that is deep-seated. I believe that if state legislatures in this country do not stand up and hold the federal government to obey the Constitution of the United States, we could very easily lose this republic.”
Cannabis flower products could disappear from store shelves in Tennessee next year thanks to new state rules, a threat to businesses and consumers, advocates say.
State lawmakers passed new laws this year to regulate the growing cannabis industry in Tennessee. Some of those rules went into effect in July. For example, cannabis products are moved behind shelves of stores that aren’t 21 and up. A new, 6-percent tax on cannabis products was levied, too.
The new law also made the Tennessee Department of Agriculture (TDA) responsible for regulating the cannabis industry here. On Monday, the department issued new rules for cannabis producers and products.
They immediately drew the ire from the Tennessee Growers Coalition (TGC), the advocacy and lobby agency for the state’s cannabis industry. The group is now organizing its members to fight the new rules.
TGC’s executive director Kelley Hess said the new law focused only on the Delta 9 cannabinoid and said that’s how hemp is defined on the federal level. But state agriculture officials added new THC standards for THCA and CBD flower. This could pinch producers and retailers as these products are “at least 70 percent of the market right now” and “what people have been building their businesses around.”
The new rules won’t affect edible products, like gummies, she said. Those products are made with cannabis oils that can be measured, fine-tuned all along the production process, and remain stable on the shelf. Cannabinoid profiles in flower products, however, can change.
“The organic, raw flower is what’s really at jeopardy,” Hess said. “[The TDA is] just calculating the cannabinoids differently than what we’ve been calculating them for the last five years.”
The TDA has overseen the state’s hemp industry since 2015. However, that oversight began as an industrial hemp program, when the crop was most likely intended to make rope, concrete, and those hippy hemp pullovers.
That changed with the federal Farm Bill and the discovery of cannabinoids that could be pulled from hemp. The word “industrial” was all but phased out and TDA teams now travel the state testing hemp plants to ensure the THC levels in them are below a federally mandated .3 percent.
In the past, that’s where the department left it. Whatever happened to that legal hemp and its cannabinoids afterward was up to the farmer and the market. The new law now mandates TDA to manage cannabis and an edible foods program (like gummies) from the plant all the way to the shelf. The new rules issued Monday basically outline the structure of that program.
Hess said her group and producers across the state offered ideas for state officials for the program but they did not listen. The new THC standard, she said, is a “misinterpretation of the bill” and warned agirculture officials that “you cannot do that.” But “they still did not take that seriously.”
Hemp growers already have to meet those strict state guidelines in the field, she said. The move cut the number of producers from around 4,000 in the state to around 400. Hess said the TDA is now trying to “copy/paste” similar rules to the product side.
“It’s another standard that these growers and producers have to meet, which is completely unrealistic and unattainable,” Hess said. “So, they can’t do it. Then, all of these products that are on the shelf now will become illegal and noncompliant. So, law enforcement can come with criminal charges.
A public hearing on the matter is scheduled for February. That hearing comes during the next session of the Tennessee General Assembly.
A Tennessee company with ties to Memphis launched a new cannabis product this summer to help consumers “make better bad decisions.”
Tipsy Tabs appeared in stores throughout Memphis around August. Locals may have noticed colorful signs in liquor or cannabis shops inviting them to “bite into the party” for an experience that ”feels like a cocktail in a tablet.”
The sweet, colorful, little tablets (about the size of dime) pack 25 milligrams of hemp-derived THC apiece. For this, the company suggests consumers start by taking half a tablet to start and add another half every half hour until they reach their desired euphoric effect.
Tipsy Tabs were created as a sublingual edible, meaning they are meant to dissolve under the tongue. This method helps with the fast onset of effects, within 10 minutes the company says. But the packaging is quick to note you take a Tab however you prefer. “Bite me,” it reads. “Chew me. Suck me.”
With Tipsy Tabs, the company hopes to tap into a growing (but slow) movement away from alcohol consumption and the rise of “California sober,” indulging in cannabis but not in booze.
The product comes from Volunteer Botanicals, based in Christiana, Tennessee, just outside Murfreesboro. But company co-founder Jason Pickle and Matt Hale, vice president of retail sales for the company, are both originally from Germantown. Volunteer Botanicals started about six years ago, Hale said, specializing in converting hemp oils into a pharmaceutical-grade powder.
Hale told us more about Tipsy Tabs in a recent interview. — Toby Sells
Memphis Flyer: Tell me about Tipsy Tabs.
Matt Hale: The way we look at this thing is [most] of the cannabis products on the market are, “How high can we get you? How blasted can we get you?” In the grand scheme of things, that’s a small portion of the country or that industry.
You’ve got all these functional, working parents — yoga moms, and people like that — that don’t want to get blasted. They’re scared of a lot of these products. So, what we saw the opportunity to do was, “let’s do this on a metered format.”
If you think about a gummy, a gummy filled with sugar, it melts. It’s inconsistent. I hear it all the time: “I don’t really want to eat a gummy because one time I eat it and I don’t feel anything and then the next time I eat it and I’m blasted.” With what we do, with every one of these, you feel the same thing every time and that’s what this industry is missing.
So, just like a cocktail, [consumers can] figure out their sweet spot. It’s not guessing every time. It’s like, “I’m going to my kid’s T-ball game. So, I’m going to pop half of one of these and I’m just going to relax.” Or, if you want to go out and party, eat two or three of them and — just like a cocktail — the more you drink, the more you feel.
How long has Tipsy Tabs been on the market?
We launched the product a little over a month ago. It’s blowing up! It’s just a great product.
Where can you get Tipsy Tabs?
We are in about 15 stores in Memphis and growing everyday. We’re in discussions with a big distributor out of Nashville. We’re in the Carolinas. We’re in Texas. We’re in Georgia. And it’s just gong to keep growing.
Anything you want to add?
A lot of people are intimidated by [cannabis products]. Tipsy Tabs gives them a chance to to dip their feet in the water and actually try something without taking it too far.
Last year, President Joe Biden promised to reevaluate cannabis’ placement on Schedule I. On Thursday, two frustrated Congressmen wanted to know what is taking so long.
Schedule I is the federal government’s classification for some of the worst drugs like meth and heroin. These drugs are highly addictive and have no medical use, according to the government.
Biden promised cannabis reform in a statement in October. It outlined three steps his adminstration would take to end what he called the government’s “failed approach” on cannabis so far.
With a stroke of a pen, he pardoned all federal offenses of simple possession and urged governors to do the same. (Tennessee Governor Bill Lee did not even consider making these pardons here.) Biden’s third step was to ask the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the U.S. Attorney General to “expeditiously” review how cannabis is scheduled under federal law.
“Federal law currently classifies marijuana in Schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act, the classification meant for the most dangerous substances,” Biden wrote in the statement. “This is the same schedule as for heroin and LSD, and even higher than the classification of fentanyl and methamphetamine — the drugs that are driving our overdose epidemic.”
No word has yet emerged from the adminstration on the re-classification of cannabis. On Thursday, U.S. Rep. Steve Cohen and U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz grilled Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) Administrator Anne Milgram for details during a meeting of the House Judiciary Crime and Federal Government Surveillance Subcommittee. They got very few.
Milgram said her agency cannot move on the matter without word from HHS. She said DEA has not heard anything and had not even heard of a timeline for when HHS might send word.
“Well, that’s unsettling, isn’t it?” Gaetz asked Milgram. “When you don’t even know a timeline, it doesn’t really make it seem like something’s front of mind.”
Gaetz asked Milgram to encourage HHS for a timeline on the re-classification of cannabis and she agreed she would.
Should HHS recommend removing cannabis from Schedule I, that would trigger a DEA review. That review could be lengthy. The agency considers eight factors in the process, including potential for abuse, public health risks, dependency risks, and more. From there, the DEA would also allow for a public comment period on re-classifiying cannabis. Then, a decision would be made.
The unknown length of this process could push a decision past next year’s presidential election and that could send removing cannabis from the Schedule I back to the drawing board.
Keeping cannabis on Schedule I means Tennessee won’t likely see any sort of cannabis reform. Lawmakers here have said no reforms will (or should) happen unless the drug is re-classified on the federal level. The law that created the Tennessee Medical Cannabis Commission, for example, is predicated on this fact. That means, Tennesseans should not expect medical cannabis — or any other kind — until the drug is moved on the federal level.
Cohen, a longtime advocate for cannabis reform, was clearly frustrated by the delay Thursday.
“I’ve been here 17 years … and I’ve seen DEA heads, I’ve seen [Federal Bureau of Investigation] directors, I’ve seen attorney[s] general, exactly where you’re sitting and say governmental gibberish about marijuana. They’ve done nothing for 17 years, and for years before that. It goes back to the [1930s].
“The government has messed this up forever and you need to get ahead of the railroad. You’re going to get something from HHS. Biden understands [cannabis] should be reclassified. He said from [Schedule I to Schedule III] and it should be classified from [Schedule I] to 420. We ought to just clean it up and get over with it.”
Tennessee’s legal cannabis industry is in a sort of Wild West phase.
The frontier is fresh. The rules are loose. Peril is possible. Good folks outnumber the bad. And fortune awaits those brave enough to grab it.
But there may be a new (well, first) sheriff in town next year. His orders? Bring order to an industry now operating largely outside of government oversight by pioneers living by code if not by law.
Loose laws are evident all over the state. Look no further than the convenience store down the street or just about any truck stop along I-40. Colorful, psychedelic signs and posters promise mellow times with Delta-8 gummies, CBD vapes, and more.
The original hemp plants for those products do not have to be tested in a lab for heavy metals or pesticides. Processing facilities (that make the oil for the product) are unlicensed and not registered with the state. No license is required to sell hemp products. To make them, Tennessee companies need only register as a food manufacturing facility.
Those colorful labels on gummies and such can list a dosage (like 25 milligrams), but no one is checking that. So, it could be more, could be less, or could be nothing at all. Those labels can also say the product is for medicinal use (or anything at all) but no one is checking that either.
The products — many of which look like candy and which people typically buy because a small dose can get you high — are within a child’s grasp on store shelves. The packaging is, many times, appealing to children and can usually be opened as easily as a bag of gummy bears.
Photo: Adobe Stock | F42PIX
How did we get here?
Plenty of states were legalizing cannabis in some form before the 2018 Farm Bill. When the federal legislation legalized nationwide hemp production, many minds turned first to products like those rough-hewn pullovers from the stoner store at the mall.
But legalization opened an unexpected door. Scientists pulled hemp samples, examined them under microscopes, and found cannabinoids. These chemicals came with confusing, exotic-sounding names like Delta-8 and THC-O. But two things were not confusing. No. 1: Those chemicals found in perfectly legal hemp could produce drug-like effects in the body, similar to those in federally illegal cannabis. No. 2: People wanted that.
From there, pioneers poured into Tennessee’s new, green frontier. First, local head shops began carrying these new products, most of the time in tinctures or oils — still pretty far-out-there stuff for workaday parents who might usually have turned to a glass of wine to ease anxiety.
Then, hemp stores, CBD shops, and even upscale Delta-8 lounges popped up in strip malls everywhere, promising “legal weed” from neon signs to those who sought it out. Somewhere along the way, these products became ubiquitous, routine, as normal at the Mapco as chips and beer. Also, those workaday parents began not thinking twice about turning to the once-taboo THC to ease that anxiety.
No one locally allowed these products in the state. The Farm Bill passed and then they just sort of showed up, initially leaving lawmakers (especially conservative lawmakers leery of that wacky tobacky) scratching their heads.
The law firm Bass, Berry & Sims said on its blog, “Without any parameters in state law, Tennessee found itself with a completely unregulated product market rife with false advertising, consumer misuse, and a sustained spike of nonlethal overdoses.” The overdosing is real, especially among children.
Last year, Dr. Rebecca Bruccoleri, director of the Tennessee Poison Control Center, told Knoxville’s WBIR-TV that her team received 115 calls from people concerned about consuming Delta-8 last year — 32 of those calls concerned children under age 5. Doctors at Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC) saw an increase of child-related THC visits, too. Children would present to the emergency room with “excessive vomiting, seizures, altered states of consciousness, and severe depression in breathing that … led to the need for intubation and admission to the pediatric intensive care unit,” the hospital said on its blog last year.
“These edibles resemble candy, and, to young children, they probably even taste like candy,” said VUMC’s Dr. Marla Levine. “They are not stopping at one bite or a nibble. They are consuming the entire piece or possibly pieces. They have no understanding that there are drugs inside.
“The doses that are in these products vary. There is no standardization. Children are exposed to a much higher dose of the drugs leading to a dangerous and oftentimes toxic level in their systems.”
Legislators made much of these reports during this year’s session and they may have, in fact, tipped the scales on this year’s cannabis regulation bill.
The new cannabis bill
While the market here matured around new attitudes toward hemp and all of its products, regulation has been promised (if not threatened) for the Tennessee industry. It came this year.
A bill from GOP House Majority Leader Representative William Lamberth (R-Portland) opened the discussion on the state’s loose cannabis laws last year. (A previous bill from him sought to outlaw all hemp-derived products here.) Even with several committee meetings, testimony from industry leaders, and much work done behind the scenes, the bill failed but work on it continued.
The refined version of this year’s bill was passed on April 20th (*chef’s kiss*) and sent over to Tennessee Governor Bill Lee’s office last Wednesday, May 3rd. That gave him 10 days (excepting Sunday) to move on it. So, Lee has until Saturday, May 13th, to sign the bill, veto it, or let it pass without his signature.
Should the bill pass, the Tennessee Department of Agriculture (TDA) will control the state’s effort to regulate hemp products. If it does, hemp companies, retailers, and hemp consumers will find Tennessee’s Wild West frontier tamed by a man with a badge — a state employee’s ID badge.
That man’s name is Danny Sutton. He has the un-Wild-West job title of assistant commissioner of the Consumer and Industry Services Division of the TDA. It’s a regulatory division of the department that inspects and permits everything from bottled water and retail food stores to dairy farms and beekeepers.
Back in 2015 Sutton’s division of the TDA began oversight of what was then the state’s brand-new industrial hemp program, when the crop was most likely intended to make rope, concrete, and those hippy pullovers.
That changed with the Farm Bill and the discovery of those cannabinoids. The word “industrial” was all but phased out and Sutton’s team now travels the state testing hemp plants to ensure the THC levels in them are below the mandated .3 percent.
Once that testing has been done and the plants have passed inspection, the TDA is out. (If they don’t pass, the plants are legally destroyed.) Whatever happens to that legal hemp and its cannabinoids after a TDA test is up to the farmer and the market. As Sutton said, “It’s just another crop,” and it’s one that thrives here.
“I’ll be brutally honest,” Sutton told members of the Tennessee Medical Cannabis Commission (more on them later) last month. “The state of Tennessee has the perfect weather and the perfect dirt to grow pot. It’s a good crop here. It used to be one of the largest crops grown in our state, along with barley.”
The hemp regulation bill on Lee’s desk would task Sutton’s team with a new program to manage cannabis and an edible foods program (like gummies) from the plant all the way to the shelf.
Should the bill pass, the TDA will begin to register and license every company up and down the hemp supply chain from farmers, transporters, laboratories, to retailers. This is expected to be the first line of defense to root out bad actors and bootleg operations.
Each batch of cannabis would have to be tested by a third-party lab for toxins, but also for “the presence and amounts of cannabinoids.” This is important for consumers who could then trust that the 10 milligram brownie they bought actually contains THC and actually contains 10 milligrams of it. This is also expected to filter out more of those bootleg operators.
New retail stores could not be established within 1,000 feet of a K-12 public, private, or charter school. In stores that aren’t 21-and-up, all of the cannabis products would have to be behind a counter and inaccessible to customers.
No single serving of a product could contain more than 25 milligrams of any cannabinoid. Product labels would have to list dosage amounts, ingredients, possible allergens, and a nutritional fact panel.
Product containers would have to be child-resistant. Nothing about those containers or their marketing could depict or signify “characters or symbols known to appeal primarily to persons under 21.” No ingestible hemp product could be made “into the shape of an animal or cartoon character.” So long, hemp gummy bears.
At work, employers would not have to accommodate the use of hemp products or accommodate an employee working under the influence of it. Employers could also continue to “enforce a drug-free workplace” program. This means firings for positive drug tests are still on the table, and the bill does not allow for any cause of action against employers for wrongful discharge or discrimination in hemp-related firings. So you can’t sue your asshole boss because you failed a piss test, bro.
Homeowners and business owners don’t have to allow or admit guests or customers carrying hemp products or who are under the influence of them. That means if you’re carrying or high, neither your neighbor nor your local watering hole has to let you in.
Driving high? Nope. The bill outlaws operating “a motor vehicle, aircraft, motorized watercraft, or another vehicle while under the influence of a hemp-derived cannabinoid.” It says you can be prosecuted for a criminal offense related to being high on hemp and you must “submit to a breath, blood, urine, or other test to detect the presence” of the substance. However, it does not lay out penalties for getting caught.
Also, the law would restrict hemp sales to those over 21. Sell it to a minor, buy it for a minor, or get caught with it as a minor, and you’ll get popped with a Class A misdemeanor. In Tennessee, that can get you up to 11 months and 29 days in jail, fines of up to $2,500, or both.
The law also sets a bar for hemp businesses. Caught operating outside the state’s new law, owners could face a Class A misdemeanor charge, the same criminal charge for theft under $1,000.
Kelley Mathis Hess, CEO and lobbyist for the Tennessee Growers Coalition, worked with legislators on the regulation bill. She said it will, ultimately, solidify the industry here and give it some credibility. But she thinks the misdemeanor charge is a step too far.
“There are already penalties for operating a business outside of the law,” Hess said. “We don’t support other levels of criminalization when there’s already systems in place for that.”
Collin Bercier, founder and owner of Memphis-based Ounce of Hope dispensary and aquaponic farm, said he has mixed feelings about the new regulations. The industry largely self-regulates, he said, on things like not selling products to those under 21. The 6 percent privilege tax will impact the industry and its customers, but “it is what it is.” Bercier said he’s at least glad lawmakers didn’t try to (once again) kill the industry completely.
“As far as what we are currently operating under in Tennessee, it’s probably the best rules and regulations on the hemp side in any of the states,” Bercier said.
But what about medical?
While work on hemp legislation has continued over the past few years, the Tennessee Medical Cannabis Commission has only watched from the sidelines. But they may get in the game sometime soon, and what some have suggested to them recently could blow the lid for cannabis in Tennessee.
The group was created by the legislature in 2021 to study other states’ medical cannabis programs (not hemp derivatives like Delta-8, but full-bore THC), to build a framework of a program here, and to see if Tennessee even needs a program at all. Since September of that year, the commission has studied. And that’s all they’ve done. And they’re kind of bored.
Members have quit because they just didn’t make it to many meetings. The group has a hard time raising a quorum even if they should ever need to vote on anything. They have money to hire an executive director. But they haven’t because they’re not sure exactly what that person would do and fear they may not get great candidates given the uncertainty around the state ever getting a medical cannabis program.
Members say, “We’re currently regulating nothing,” and that the mixed signals from the legislature — the body that created the group — range from silence, calls for them to slow down, or even the cold shoulder. They are “begging for direction,” they say, and get none.
Should they even keep meeting monthly, they asked last month? They’re knowledgeable in the field by now, but lawmakers just gave the reins of a hemp program to the agriculture department, not the health department. Medical cannabis bills rise and fall with regularity at the state house. What does the legislature even want with them?
A medical cannabis bill, as it turns out. That was the word from veteran lobbyist Melissa Bast last month, testifying to the commission on behalf of two cannabis-forward groups, Tennesseans United and the Tennessee Research Institute. Those bills that rise and fall each year are retreads from familiar places, she said, and lawmakers want something new.
“What I am hearing from the leadership is that they want [a bill] to be from the [Tennessee Medical Cannabis Commission],” Bast said. “They want it to be your bill brought forward. They want it to be vetted … and to be brought forward in a timely manner so that all the departments can see it and all the members can see it so we can get it ready for 2024. I’m hearing this is the path.”
With that, Bast pushed commission members to continue their work, even speed it up if they could.
The lid-busting element of Bast’s plan (aside from the commission’s bill) would be to remove the state’s requirement not to move on cannabis until the federal government removes it from the Schedule I. President Joe Biden made some cannabis reforms last year but did not remove it from the highest tier of illegal drugs, where it still sits next to LSD, meth, heroin, and peyote. Other states have fully legalized cannabis even though it remains a federal crime. Tennessee law says it won’t until the feds say it’s okay.
“Every state that touches us has a program and we don’t,” said cannabis commission member and Manchester pharmacist Dr. Ray Marcrom. “Many times we have delivered that message [to the legislature]. We’ve received nothing back.”
“If eight states around us have [at least a medical cannabis program] if nothing else, look at the revenue we’re losing in Tennessee. But more importantly, think about the patients we’re not taking care of.”
Ounce of Hope’s Bercier said he hopes the state gets a medical program next year but also keeps a wary eye on them.
“The dirty little secret at this point in Tennessee is that the way we are operating now is better than a medical bill,” he said. “Inside of a medical bill lies a lot more overreaching and ridiculous regulations. Not to mention that when you get thrown into the medical licensing, you are now subject to the federal government’s illegality. There’s a lot of bad things about that. But from the business perspective, once you … put yourself into the medical market, you now do not have a lot of the tax benefits that you do [under a hemp-only program].”
The legislature put a price tag on the revenue from hemp sales. The fiscal note with the new bill adds a 6 percent privilege tax to those products on top of state and local sales taxes. This is expected to yield $10 million a year for the state’s coffers.
Should Governor Lee allow the cannabis regulation bill to become a law, businesses would have until July 2024 to comply, getting their licenses from the state and such. While the TDA will take some time to finalize some rules, consumers could see changes in the way they buy hemp here as early as this year.
A new bill would decriminalize cannabis across the state.
The bill would lower simple posession to a $25 fine or three hours of community service. It would raise the felony amount for manufacture, delivery, or sale from a half ounce to one ounce.
It removes references of “marijuana, marijuana concentrates, and marijuana oil from the definition of drug paraphernalia.” It renames items used to ingest, inhale, prepare, or store cannabis as a “marijuana accessory.”
The wide-ranging bill would lower costs on local governments by nearly $15 million per year, according to a financial review of the bill conducted by the Tennessee General Assembly’s Fiscal Review Committee.
The committee said the figure is based on removing the roughly 17,101 annual simple-possession cannabis convictions across the state. The committee multiplied that number by 15, the average days of stay for those charged, by $58.21, the average daily cost of jailing such a person.
The math is more complicated to calculate how much money would be saved from lowering charges on manufacture, sale, and delivery. But the Tennessee Department of Corrections (TDOC) told the review office the state averages 137.8 admissions a year based on these charges. The office calculated the new legislation would lower that figure to an average of 20.76 prison admissions of these kinds annually.
The bill would increase state spending by $100,000 to create a new drug awareness program and by $30,000 each year to support the program.
The new simple possession definition would allow Tennesseans to carry up to one ounce of cannabis, up to five grams of resin extracted from cannabis, and infused products containing up to 1,000 milligrams of THC. Simple possession would become a civil violation and would not subject an offender to arrest. Offenders could pay a $25 fine or serve three hours of community service. Minor offenders would have to serve up to five hours of community service.
The bill also limits probable cause.
“This bill specifies that the odor of marijuana generally does not constitute reasonable suspicion or probable cause but a law enforcement officer may test for impairment based on the odor of marijuana if the officer reasonably suspects the operator of a motor vehicle or boat to be under the influence of marijuana,” reads the bill.
The bill will not allow officials to revoke someone’s bail, parole, probation, or suspended sentence based solely on a positive drug test for cannabis. The review committee said TDOC told them doing this would not have any significant fiscal impact.
The bill would also prohibit officials from removing someone from public assistance programs just for having a positive cannabis test. According to the Tennessee Department of Human Services (TDHS), doing this would not significantly impact the total number of those eligible for programs like Temporary Aid to Needy Families (TANF). TennCare said the legislation would have no fiscal impact on any TennCare programs.
Under the legislation, a positive test would also not be grounds for any adverse employment action against a government employee.
Tennessee state law will not allow any more cannabis legalization here until the federal government moves, which may happen soon-ish (more on that below). But until then, don’t expect Tennessee cannabis news to be very exciting.
Consider the sober, sometimes droning, sometimes arduous December 1st meeting of the Tennessee Medical Cannabis Commission. That group was established by the Tennessee General Assembly in May 2021 to study “federal and state laws regarding medical cannabis and the preparation of legislation to establish an effective, patient-focused medical cannabis program in this state” but only if the drug was removed from the federal Schedule I.
In its first report, published in January, the commission offered the legislature at least some recommendations on potential laws for such a program here. Back then, some hints were available at even just the prospect of new legalization laws that might pull the commission from the sidelines.
But those proposals came and went. And while Tennessee shelved any action on cannabis, every state that borders it has enacted some sort of legalization effort. So, instead of laying solid groundwork for a Tennessee program, the cannabis commission has quietly studied, and studied, and studied, and watched the growing pains other states have experienced while starting and building their own programs.
The commission is slated to meet this week to finalize its second report to the legislature. So sleepy is the material for the report this year, commission members spent much of its early December meeting trying to jazz it up to get the attention of lawmakers.
Commissioner Cari Parker said lawmakers should be handed a one-pager because that’s “the attention span we have to plan for to at least incite a little bit of interest.” Ray Marcrom, a pharmacist, said he does not want lawmakers to get the report and say, “‘Well, that’s nice.’ Because that’s kind of what we got last year.”
Two facts stuck out from the commission’s meeting, though. One was the reminder that Tennessee has, indeed, stuck the tiniest toe past federal cannabis laws, as it allows products with 0.9 percent THC, instead of the federal 0.3 percent. Another is that there is a desire from lawmakers and businesses to keep hemp-derived THC products (like Delta 8) separate from any medical cannabis program here and be regulated from the Tennessee Department of Agriculture.
On the federal side of cannabis news, though, things got pretty hot this year. Joe Biden, the president of the United States, said words every college sophomore (of a certain stripe) has wanted to hear a global leader to say:
“No one should be in jail just for using or possessing marijuana,” Biden said in an October statement. “Sending people to prison for possessing marijuana has upended too many lives and incarcerated people for conduct that many states no longer prohibit.”
Biden then outlined three steps in a plan to “end this failed approach” to cannabis law in the U.S. First, he pardoned all prior federal offenses of simple possession of marijuana. Second, he urged all governors to do the same with regard to state offenses. (Guess what Tennessee Governor said no to this. Hint: It rhymes with Bill Lee.)
Biden also asked the secretary of health and human services and the attorney general to review cannabis’ place in federal law. Now, as Biden said, it is up there with “the most dangerous substances” like “heroin and LSD, and even higher than the classification of fentanyl and methamphetamine — the drugs that are driving our overdose epidemic.”
Hemp fiber production is under review in Tennessee to see if it can be used in car manufacturing here and how the fiber fits in the state’s overall economy.
The Hemp Alliance of Tennessee (HAT) has partnered with the Tennessee Department of Agriculture (TDA) to fund the research to be conducted by the University of Tennessee. The study began in June and will continue until the end of the year.
“We are an agricultural state, and we are proud to be a hemp-producing state,” said TDA Commissioner Charlie Hatcher. “This plant has numerous applications, and we believe fiber has potential to grow Tennessee’s industrial economy.
“We are an agricultural state, and we are proud to be a hemp-producing state.”
Tennessee Department of Agriculture Commissioner Charlie Hatcher
The study will focus on creating a budget to grow hemp for Tennessee farmers. It will also look at transportation and supply chain logistics. The study will conclude whether or not Tennessee is suited for hemp fiber production.
“Our organization and its members are invested in realizing the potential of this plant, and our hope is that this study will prompt significant industry investment in Tennessee hemp and its diverse applications,” said Frederick Cawthon, president of HAT.
Tennessee was among the first states to create a hemp program under the 2014 Farm Bill allowing pilot programs for industrial hemp cultivation. State officials said hemp has been “recognized as a valuable crop to support Tennessee’s agricultural and industrial economy.”
In 2015, the state had 49 producers licensed to grow on 660 acres. In 2019, after the 2018 Farm Bill lifted the controlled substance designation of industrial hemp, the number of producers peaked at 3,957 licensed to grow on 51,000 acres. As of May 2022, there are now 1,041 producers of industrial hemp licensed to grow 5 on,682 acres. The shift in recent years illustrated the potential for scale and interest from the state’s farmers and cultivation experts.
“After the 2018 Farm Bill was passed, there was a gold rush of growers wanting to enter the emerging market for consumable hemp products,” said Cawthon. “Tennessee is capable of becoming a leader in this industry if we engage our innovators and the industries that can benefit from the plant – and our legislature continues to help make the right investments in the plant’s myriad applications.”
According to the USDA, the value of hemp production in the United States totaled $824 million in 2021. Industry analysts estimated the global industrial hemp market size at $4.13 billion in 2021 and expect it to grow at a rate of 16.8 percent from 2022 to 2030.
Industrial hemp is grown for its seeds, fiber, shivs, flower, and oil. The applications for industrial hemp are varied including textiles, personal care, food and beverages, animal care, paper, automotive, construction materials, furniture, and more.
As the Beale Street Music Festival crowds pressed in, a college-aged man with a bag turned from the Ounce of Hope tent. “It’s probably bullshit, but I’m going to try it,” he said to the next person in line.
“It’s not bullshit,” the person replied. “It works.”
“It” was a chocolate bar infused with delta-8 THC. Products containing the chemical derived from the cannabis plant are now available everywhere from convenience stores to cannabis dispensaries. For recreational users, like the anonymous music fest attendee, it promises a safe and legal high. For the growing ranks of medicinal users, it promises relief from a variety of ailments, from anxiety to chronic pain. Even as debates about the legal status and effectiveness of delta-8 have swirled, one thing is certain: It is increasingly popular.
“We’re seeing a humongous switch in the marketplace,” says Collin Bercier, founder of the Memphis-based cannabis company Ounce of Hope.
When Ounce of Hope opened two years ago, CBD products were flying off the shelf. Now, gummies, brownies, chocolates, and cookies containing delta-8 THC are all the rage. “It just has blown everything else out of the water,” Bercier says.
Ounce of Hope’s aquaponic growing facility in South Memphis. (Photo: Courtesy Ounce of Hope)
Hemp History
Bercier, a native of Lafayette, Louisiana, decided to enter the cannabis business after his experiences caring for his mother, who was stricken with multiple sclerosis. “One of the things that always perplexed me was, why does my mom not have access to even try marijuana?” he says. “Because it was illegal, and still, to some extent, is illegal in some of these Southern states. So I watched my mom live the rest of her life in a nursing home on 14 different medications, where one medication seemed to just be for remedying a side effect from another medication. And as her quality of life really deteriorated, she didn’t even have the option of trying a more holistic approach. Look, would it have cured her MS? No. But would it have made her quality of life better? Absolutely.”
Cannabis has a long history of medicinal use. The first evidence of its cultivation dates back more than 10,000 years, making it one of the first plants domesticated by humans. It was prized for its analgesic properties and for its ability to calm stomachs and enhance appetite. Not only that, but the plant’s long, strong fibers were ideal for making rope and fabric. The psychoactive aspect, achieved by smoking the flowers of the female plant, made it a staple of religious rituals. Hindu scriptures say ganja was a gift from Shiva to ensure the happiness of his people. Scythian priests were known as “those who walk on smoke clouds.”
Bercier became an outspoken advocate. “You can find videos of me and my mother online talking to the news about marijuana legalization in Louisiana,” he says.
In 1937, the Marihuana Tax Act made both psychoactive cannabis and non-psychoactive industrial hemp effectively illegal in the United States. For the rest of the 20th century, cannabis was demonized in America, particularly after Richard Nixon, who associated it with leftist hippies, declared a “war on drugs” in 1971. Nevertheless, pot remained popular. In 1996, after a long campaign by a coalition of cancer, AIDS, and epilepsy patients, California became the first state to legalize it for medical purposes. Medicinal marijuana is now legal in 37 states, and recreational use is legal in 19 states.
Louisiana legalized medical marijuana in 2015, shortly before Bercier’s mother passed away in 2016. “I went after a license in Louisiana and was not successful in that,” he says.
Instead, he set his sights north to Memphis.
Ginger Dean shows off a fresh batch of gummies at the Ghost Kitchen factory. (Photo: Chris McCoy)
Cannabis Chemistry
Because of its legal status, cannabis has not been extensively studied by scientists. Cannabidiol (CBD) was first isolated in the mid-1940s. In 1964, Israeli scientist Raphael Mechoulam discovered tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). Since then, hundreds of additional “cannabinoids” have been isolated from the cannabis plant. Humans produce our own cannabinoid-like chemicals, and nearly every organ in our body has receptors which respond to them. The endocannabinoid system remains mysterious, but it seems to help maintain the delicate balance of chemical reactions which influence sleep, cognition, memory, and emotion. Different cannabinoids, such as CBD and THC, bind with different receptors and thus create different effects in users. Delta-9 THC was identified as the psychoactive chemical which produces marijuana’s distinctive euphoria.
In 2018, Congress implemented a major overhaul of agricultural regulations. One clause in the Farm Bill was intended to legalize industrial hemp — the cash crop George Washington grew at Mount Vernon — by specifically limiting the content of delta-9 THC to less than 0.3 percent by weight. No other cannabinoids were mentioned in the legislation. This allowed products containing other cannabinoids such as CBD to be sold, and a gold rush ensued. Today, cannabis is in a legal gray area, permitted in some circumstances and prohibited in others. Meanwhile, hundreds of thousands of people, many of them Black and Hispanic, are still in jail for marijuana possession.
Bercier, a University of Memphis alumnus, returned to the Bluff City to open Ounce of Hope. Today, the company operates an aquaponic growing operation in South Memphis, where they create products for their stores. “When the hemp Farm Bill went into effect, Tennessee had their arms wide open and was allowing businesses to thrive at the time. Now, there is a thriving hemp industry in Tennessee.”
Local Heroes
Gabriel DeRanzo discovered marijuana the way many people have. “When I graduated high school, we were having field parties over in Middle Tennessee. Let’s park our cars and get somebody to buy us booze, and that’s a Saturday night. I just couldn’t cram another Zima down my throat, but dammit, I wanted to have fun. It seemed like a magical thing to me — instead of drinking these three to five containers of liquid. I can just take a couple of inhales off of that magic cigarette.”
Pot didn’t come with hangovers and could even be useful. “It helped me to get in my own head. So while I was riding my skateboard, I was in the zone, you know? I was focused.”
Inspired by his experiences on the board, DeRanzo teamed with artist Greg Cravens to create Stoned Ninja, a comic book character whose martial arts skills are improved by a mystical strain of cannabis. Soon, the brand expanded to include rolling papers, T-shirts, and, in 2019, CBD products. Late last year, another opportunity came along.
The chemical formula for tetrahydrocannabinol is C21H30O2, but those carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen molecules can be arranged in different configurations, called isomers. The cannabis plant produces mostly the delta-9 isomer, distinguished by a double carbon bond in the ninth position of the carbon chain. But in recent years, more THC isomers have been discovered. Delta-8 THC features a double carbon bond in the eighth position of the carbon chain. Chemists discovered that delta-8 fit the same receptors as delta-9, but the psychoactive effects were subtly different. “It’s a more mellow experience, and therefore, it allows you to be more functional while you’re kind of getting the benefits of the less anxious and the more calm and relaxed elements of cannabis,” says DeRanzo.
DeRanzo’s friends Bryan Kiestler and Bobby Coomer had been experimenting with cannabis edibles. For Kiestler, it was a way to deal with his anxiety disorder. “I couldn’t even sit in a room with people without severe panic. I was having seizures. I dealt with that my whole life. … I grew up in a very rural, very conservative area that taught me nothing but the bad parts of [cannabis]. But as I grew and learned and studied the plant, I was like, wow, this stuff was amazing! Out of personal necessity, I started playing with it and developed quite a few things for myself.”
Kiestler had culinary training and developed his own edibles by studying classic candy-making techniques. He says his proprietary recipe enhances the bio-availability of the cannabinoids. Kiestler and Coomer started Ghost Kitchen 901, a company to produce cannabis edibles, and teamed up with DeRanzo to produce a line of Stoned Ninja delta-8 gummies. “Delta-8 is federally legal in complying with the 2018 Farm Bill, as long as it contains less than 0.3 percent delta-9,” Coomer says.
The Nicer Cousin
The cannabis plant naturally produces more delta-9 THC than delta-8, and over the years, breeders have created ever more potent strains. In the late 1980s, most street marijuana contained less than 10 percent delta-9 THC. Now, there are strains on the market that contain upwards of 30 percent. Those higher doses of THC can cause anxiety and paranoia in some users. “Some people don’t want to get that high,” says Bercier.
In January 2022, the University at Buffalo and the University of Michigan released the results of a joint study on delta-8 THC. After surveying more than 500 users, researcher Dr. Jessica Kruger says, “We found that people who are utilizing delta-8 THC feel fewer negative side effects, and they are using it in modalities that are safer, like vaping or edibles or using topically.”
One of the participants in the study called delta-8 THC “delta-9’s nicer cousin.”
Many sources claim delta-8 is half as potent as delta-9, but that can be deceiving. The effects vary by individual user and are dependent on many factors. “I’m a 44-year-old man, I weigh 230 pounds, and I literally can’t take more than 5 mg of delta-8 THC,” says Bercier. “You meet some of my employees, females who don’t even weigh 115 pounds, and they’re eating 100 to 200 mg of delta-8 THC a day with no problem.”
A THC overdose won’t kill you — unlike alcohol, no deaths have ever been reported — but it can cause panic attacks, confusion, paranoia, and nausea. Delta-8 is primarily consumed via edibles, and unlike smoking, it can take time for the first effects to be felt. A user who isn’t feeling anything yet can be tempted to try another tasty gummy or brownie, only to find later that they have eaten way too much. DeRanzo says, “If you’re not an avid smoker, or if you’re trying out new cannabis products, just take a bite out of it. Eat half of a gummy, wait about 30 minutes, and see if it’s doing anything for you. If you like where it’s going, pop the rest of that sucker. But I will definitely tell people, don’t take a whole pack of Stoned Ninja gummies and face all five of them out of the bag all at once because it will hit you pretty hard.”
The Legal Fight
Since 2018, the number of cannabis products has proliferated. It’s not just CBD and delta-8 — many other “minor” cannabinoids, such as THC-0 (said to be more potent than delta-9) and hexahydrocannabinol (HHC) have been identified and marketed. This has caused some state legislatures to attempt to crack down on the trend.
Evan Austill is an attorney and president of Southern Biomedical Industries, the parent company of Ghost Kitchen. He has been on the forefront of lobbying the Tennessee legislature to clarify the laws, legalize cannabis, and tax and regulate the industry. He says cannabis’ legal limbo has created complications for businesses trying to go legit. “A lot of people think cannabis is a wonderful place to make a bunch of money, but it’s really challenging. Imagine trying to be in a line of work where you weren’t allowed to have a bank account, you couldn’t take credit card payments, you were not allowed to advertise, you couldn’t use e-commerce, you couldn’t use social media. You can only pay in cash, and everybody thinks your cash is dirty.”
It’s a lesson Ounce of Hope recently found out the hard way. “We had no issues with credit card processing for two, almost three years,” says Bercier. “Then all of a sudden, the credit card processor just cuts us off overnight, doesn’t really tell us why, and won’t even return our calls.”
The problems have taken their toll, says Bercier. “When I got into the industry in Tennessee back in 2019, they had about 4,000 licenses. Currently, in 2022, we’re operating in Tennessee with about 750 licenses — and I don’t believe the majority of those are actually active anymore.”
Earlier this year, state Representative William Lamberth (R-Portland) introduced legislation that would have effectively outlawed all cannabis products in Tennessee. “It was a very carefully considered plan,” says Austill. “That legislation was written to kill the entire industry. Manufacturers and retailers had no idea. There was no collaboration, and no work was done around that legislation with the Department of Agriculture.”
Austill and other cannabis industry representatives successfully lobbied to stop the bill. “The people who suffer the most in an unregulated market, when there are bad actors out there, are the guys who are actually trying to do it right,” he says. “Let’s regulate this. Let’s license this. Let’s tax it like every other thing in Tennessee that we sell. We had an agreement at one point, but I guess the deal kind of fell apart at the end. So the legislature leaves delta-8 out. This is an unregulated product, which is scary to some people — and there’s some reason why there should be concern. Cigarettes, alcohol, firearms, we’re only too happy to tax and regulate. Yet this, we seem to want to sort of leave outside as the bogeyman.”
Still, Austill believes there is hope for progress in the next legislative session. The momentum is certainly on the side of legalization, as the data from states like California, Colorado, and Virginia show that the scariest predictions of the drug warriors haven’t come to pass. “We don’t see opioid deaths going up. Bank robberies don’t go up. DUIs don’t go up. Usage by teenagers does not go up. Why is it that the negative consequences never seem to take place?”
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The Edibles Curious about cannabis edibles? Here are some of the best products available in Memphis.
Stoned Ninja Delta-8 Gummies
Produced with Ghost Kitchen’s recipe, these 25 mg gummies take effect faster than most edibles. A good, basic delta-8 gummy for both the experienced user and newbies.
Ounce of Hope Delta-8 Krispy Squares
These tasty treats contain a 2 to 1 mixture of CBD and delta-8 THC, creating an anxiety-free experience that comes on smooth.
Kush Burst O.M.G.
Whatever Shop reports the orange/mango/guava-flavored gummies are its most popular edible. Containing a powerful mixture of THC-0 and delta-8, these 50 mg edibles are not for the faint-hearted.
Ghost Kitchen Lemon Freeze HHC Gummies
HHC is touted as the next big thing in cannabis. These 25 mg gummies produce a mild euphoria but leave you clear-headed and productive.
