Koster sues hemp oil sellers

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. –Attorney General Chris Koster sued four Missouri shops for selling hemp extract without a license.

The stores sold cannabidiol oil (CBD oil), used to treat epilepsy, without the licenses required by a law passed in 2014.

In January, the attorney general’s office sent letters to about two dozen business informing them that they were in violation. Most stopped selling the hemp extracts, according to the office.

“The legislature created a process to allow epilepsy patients to purchase CBD oil from licensed nonprofit entities,” Koster said. “My office will ensure consumers have access to this treatment without being misled into buying illegal or fraudulent substances.”

To buy hemp extracts, a purchaser must have a doctor’s note confirming intractable epilepsy treatable with CBD oil. They also need a registration card from the Department of Health and Senior Services.

The Department of Agriculture regulates growers. It issues licenses to nonprofits to legally grow and process hemp extract. These nonprofits distribute the products to customers with valid registration cards at licensed care centers.

River City Nutrition in Kirkwood, Planet Health Market in Ellisville, Vapur West in Kansas City, and Main Smoke & Gift Shop in Kansas City were the shops sued by Koster.