South Carolina Law Enforcement cracks down on sale of raw unprocessed hemp after receiving opinion from state Attorney General's Office

It's one step forward and two steps back for South Carolina's hemp industry. A recent crackdown by the State Law Enforcement Division (SLED) now clarifies what can and cannot be sold at CBD stores statewide.The opinion was handed down from the State Attorney General's Office on July 10. The office bases its interpretation off the Hemp Farming Act of 2019 that was signed into law by Gov. Henry Mcmaster in March. The opinion, released on July 10, states "the statute makes it clear that the mere possession of raw unprocessed hemp or hemp not in a finished hemp product without a license is unlawful."The crackdown follows recent concerns from law enforcement in differentiating between smokable hemp and its illegal cousin, marijuana. "There's no way to physically tell the difference between the two (marijuana and smokable hemp). They look the same, smell the same and actually will test the same in our old methods," said James Armstrong, the principal criminalist for Greenville County. Drug labs that once only had to test for the presence of THC, must now detect the amount. Though it looks and smells like marijuana, hemp and hemp products contain less than % o.3 THC - the chemical compound that gets you high. "To be honest with you we're all a little in the dark about it," said Lainee Craft, an employee at the local CBD dispensary Franny's Farmacy. "We're sitting around biting our nails waiting for what's gonna happen next."CBD stores like Franny's Farmacy say they have been inundated with phone calls inquiring about where they can buy the hemp in its raw, flower form.

It's one step forward and two steps back for South Carolina's hemp industry. A recent crackdown by the State Law Enforcement Division (SLED) now clarifies what can and cannot be sold at CBD stores statewide.

The opinion was handed down from the State Attorney General's Office on July 10.


The office bases its interpretation off the Hemp Farming Act of 2019 that was signed into law by Gov. Henry Mcmaster in March. The opinion, released on July 10, states "the statute makes it clear that the mere possession of raw unprocessed hemp or hemp not in a finished hemp product without a license is unlawful."

The crackdown follows recent concerns from law enforcement in differentiating between smokable hemp and its illegal cousin, marijuana.

"There's no way to physically tell the difference between the two (marijuana and smokable hemp). They look the same, smell the same and actually will test the same in our old methods," said James Armstrong, the principal criminalist for Greenville County.

Drug labs that once only had to test for the presence of THC, must now detect the amount. Though it looks and smells like marijuana, hemp and hemp products contain less than % o.3 THC - the chemical compound that gets you high.

"To be honest with you we're all a little in the dark about it," said Lainee Craft, an employee at the local CBD dispensary Franny's Farmacy. "We're sitting around biting our nails waiting for what's gonna happen next."

CBD stores like Franny's Farmacy say they have been inundated with phone calls inquiring about where they can buy the hemp in its raw, flower form.