By Jordan Meadows
Staff Writer
A state advisory council convened by Governor Josh Stein is warning that North Carolina’s rapidly expanding market for hemp-derived THC products is operating in a regulatory vacuum, describing the current system as a “wild west” that poses risks to consumers and calling on lawmakers to establish a comprehensive legal framework.
In a newly released interim report on Friday, the North Carolina Advisory Council on Cannabis found that intoxicating cannabis products, including gummies, drinks, and other edibles derived from hemp, are being sold across the state without consistent standards for testing, labeling, potency, or age restrictions. Because state law does not currently impose age limits on these products, the council noted that minors can legally purchase them.
“Intoxicating hemp-derived cannabinoid products…are being sold in an environment without any uniform standards for manufacturing, testing, labeling, packaging, or age verification,” the report states, adding that the absence of oversight has created a landscape with “significant and widespread concerns regarding consumer safety, youth access, and public health.”
The 27-member council, comprising public health officials, law enforcement, lawmakers, and industry stakeholders, was established in June 2025 at the direction of Stein to recommend policies that would “create a safe, legal market for adults that protects kids.” After meeting for months and reviewing approaches in other states, the group concluded that North Carolina’s current system leaves a “dangerous policy gap,” with no meaningful enforcement authority or regulatory guardrails governing a market estimated at roughly $3.2 billion in annual sales.
Council co-chairs Dr. Lawrence Greenblatt, the state’s health director and chief medical officer, and Robeson County District Attorney Matthew Scott, are recommending that lawmakers move toward a regulated adult-use cannabis framework that includes protections for medical users. A central component of that recommendation is regulating cannabis products based on total THC content, regardless of whether it is derived from hemp or marijuana.
“It provides a way for the state to oversee and regulate the existing but unregulated market in North Carolina,” the report explains.
The council’s findings come as North Carolina remains one of a shrinking number of states without a legal medical cannabis program, despite strong public support for legalization. Previous legislative efforts to regulate hemp-derived THC products or establish a broader cannabis framework have stalled due to disagreements within the Republican-controlled General Assembly.
“Last year, I charged this group with developing a comprehensive solution to the unregulated sale of cannabis that is grounded in public health and public safety, with a special focus on keeping young people safe,” Stein said. “Let’s get this right.”
The policy debate is unfolding alongside shifting federal rules. The 2018 Farm Bill legalized hemp production nationwide, enabling the rise of hemp-derived THC products, while more recent federal actions have sought to limit THC concentrations and revisit regulatory gaps. A recent executive order from Donald Trump has also signaled a potential easing of restrictions on marijuana research and broader reconsideration of federal cannabis policy.
Lawmakers are expected to take up cannabis-related proposals when the General Assembly reconvenes later in April, including bills addressing medical marijuana, adult-use legalization, and research programs.
The advisory council will continue its work in the coming months, with a final report due in December 2026.
