Missouri residents legalized medical marijuana in late 2018, but after nearly a year and a half of waiting, the Show-Me State still has no licensed dispensaries to serve tens of thousands of active patients. Now, in another round of regulations before pot shops even roll out, Missouri legislators are looking to add new restrictions to the production of infused cannabis edibles.
According to Marijuana Business Daily, Missouri’s House of Representatives passed a new bill late last week that bans any cannabis edibles made in “the shape of a human, animal, or fruit, including realistic, artistic, caricature, or cartoon renderings” as an apparent effort to dissuade underage appeal and consumption.
But while Missouri medical marijuana manufacturers won’t be able to duplicate their favorite childhood fruit snacks in edible form, the state is not banning THC-infused gummies, chocolates, and candies altogether. Instead, all medical marijuana edibles will have to adhere to new shape standards set by the legislation. “[G]eometric shapes, including, but not limited to, circles, squares, rectangles, and triangles, shall be permitted,” the bill reads.
Missouri has run into a number of regulatory snafus on the state’s path to joining the growing American green rush, with COVID-19 adding yet another delay to the previously-scheduled timeline. But even as the state works to add new stipulations for cannabis businesses before they are even allowed to open, more than 35,000 state residents have already been approved as medical marijuana patients.
In addition to the geometric edibles provision, the latest Missouri medical marijuana bill also stipulates that all products containing more than 10mg of THC must carry a universal warning label, and that employees in every level of the industry could be subject to fingerprinting and criminal background checks. And with the bill already past the state legislators, it is expected to be signed by Governor Mike Parson and ratified as law.
As for when Missouri’s medical marijuana dispensaries will finally open to patients, that date is still yet to be determined.
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