January 1, Cannabis Edibles Masked as Children’s Snacks Halted by Feds

The Biden administration is pushing back on the cannabis industry’s attempt to disguise their products as popular children’s snacks.

Six companies received cease-and-desist orders this week from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) for their blatant use of misleading marketing techniques.

The targeted companies, which include Delta Munchies, LLC; Exclusive Hemp Farms; North Carolina Hemp Exchange, LLC; Dr. Smoke, LLC; Nikte’s Wholesale, LLC, and The Haunted Vapor Room, had packaged their cannabis-infused products to resemble well-known snacks, such as Doritos, Cheetos, and Nerds candy.

According to the FTC, the uncanny similarities in packaging could easily cause confusion, potentially leading to accidental ingestion by children or overdosing by adults.

One company, Dr. Smoke, LLC, even goes as far as using nearly identical branding to popular snacks.

The FTC highlighted the company’s THC-infused ‘Doritos’ and ‘Cheetos’ products, which use similar color schemes, logos, and even mascots to their legitimate snack counterparts.

The substance used in these imitation snacks is Delta-8 THC, a cannabis derivative that is responsible for the plant’s psychoactive effects.

However, the FDA has neither evaluated nor approved this substance for safe use.

Reports of serious adverse events related to the substance have been noted, including hallucinations, vomiting, tremor, anxiety, dizziness, confusion, and loss of consciousness.

Notably, a recent study in the journal Pediatrics, using data from the National Poison Data System, revealed that over 40% of human poison exposure cases in 2020 resulted from children ingesting marijuana edibles.

There has been a steady increase in such cases from 2017 to 2021.

The FTC believes that these imitation snacks could be in violation of Section 5 of the FTC Act, which prohibits deceptive products or commerce.

Consequently, the commission sent cease-and-desist letters to the companies.

Bottom Line

These companies now have 15 days to respond to the agencies’ concerns.

Samuel Levine, director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection, warned, “Marketing edible THC products that can be easily mistaken by children for regular foods is reckless and illegal.”

“Companies must ensure that their products are marketed safely and responsibly, especially when it comes to protecting the well-being of children.”

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