'They’ll stop coming here': KC-area businesses react to new Missouri hemp ban

Executive Order 24-10 in Missouri will ban unregulated hemp products from store shelves.

That includes compounds like Delta-8 in foods, drinks, vapes and pre-rolled joints.

Royal Liquor on Southwest Boulevard in Kansas City, Missouri, sells these products.

Muhammad Jawad, a store manager at Royal Liquor, said the products make up 10 to 15% of all of store sales.

"Feeling not good because some customers will move somewhere else," Jawad said. "Even if it’s not over there, they’ll stop coming here too."

Missouri Gov. Mike Parson signed the executive order in early August.

It comes from issues with children consuming these products, not realizing they contain a psychoactive compound.

It aims to make the industry safer by regulating packaging and testing.

At From the Earth Dispensary , store manager Cherelle Martel said you won't find Delta-8 or other unregulated products on their shelves.

Martel showed KSHB 41's Caroline Hogan just how detailed the label with results from testing and ingredients.

"Giving them as much safety and being communicative as possible and not trying to hide anything," Martel said.

David Craig works for Illicit Gardens and fought for this ban.

It strengthens his industry — the cannabis industry — by educating the consumer about what they're consuming.

"What I really want people to understand, it’s about the safety and the knowledge," Craig said. "The Department of Cannabis Regulation exists for a reason to monitor these psychoactive substances, and these products are being banned because they’re not being regulated, and providing a safety hazard."

The ban goes into effect Sept. 1.

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KSHB 41 reporter Caroline Hogan covers development across the Kansas City area. Share your story idea with Caroline .