NC hemp shop owners fear ‘total collapse’ of industry under new federal law
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- New rule caps total THC at 0.4 mg per package; limits synthesized cannabinoids.
- Retailers say rules will slash product lines and force many to close.
- Lawmakers seek two-year delay to give time for sensible hemp regulation.
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The hemp industry & North Carolina
A new federal definition of hemp could upend the hemp industry. It comes as the popularity of hemp products, like THC-infused sodas, gummies, vapes and oils, has skyrocketed. But some in the hemp industry worry that the new laws could cause a “total collapse” of their livelihood. These stories explain the situation with experts sharing the risks of using the products.
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John Boccella began researching hemp-based products as a local chiropractor.
He had a patient who had seizures, and he thought cannabidiol, or CBD, could give her some relief.
He began selling CBD products out of his chiropractor office in 2017.
“People were coming from all over to get CBD products from me,” he said. “That’s when my wife and I decided we should open a retail store.”
That led to the The Hemp Company, owned and operated by Boccella and his wife, Carol. They opened their first store off Falls of Neuse Road in Raleigh in 2019 and a second store in Wake Forest in 2022. Their stores feature a variety of hemp derived CBD and THC products.
Now, he says, a new definition of hemp added to the federal funding bill to reopen the government last fall — referred to as the One Big Beautiful Bill Act — will kill his business and North Carolina’s hemp industry.
“It was really a wolf in sheep’s clothing,” Boccella said. “They were selling it to Congress as this is good for the industry, and this is good for the consumer, and this is going to protect children, and none of that is true.”
Hemp definition changing
Hemp was legalized federally by the 2018 Farm Bill, and North Carolina lawmakers officially made hemp legal to grow and sell in the state in 2022 after a pilot program.
Hemp comes from the same cannabis plant as marijuana, but the two varieties are classified differently based on their tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) levels.
Hemp must contain 0.3% or less of Delta-9 THC, by dry weight under the federal law’s current definition. Delta-9, the psychoactive cannabinoid responsible for the high in marijuana, is one of over 100 cannabinoids found in or derived from the plant.
The new definition, which goes into effect on Nov. 12, will now be based on total THC levels, delta-9 and other forms. It also sets a cap of 0.4 milligrams of total THC per package, and limits cannabinoids “synthesized or manufactured” outside the plant.
“There are no viable products, or truly effective product, that can meet that new standard in the legislation,” Boccella said. “We have about 600 products. That will reduce us to about six products. And, obviously, they are not our best-selling products. We would end up going out of business based on this new legislation.”
Beyond the impact on himself, his employees and others in the hemp industry, Bocella said he worries that customers will go to the black market or order unsafe products online.
Companion bills have been filed in the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives seeking a two-year extension on the new hemp definitions to give federal lawmakers more time to put “some sensible regulation in place that makes sense for everybody, and ultimately does protect the children,” he said.
U.S. Rep. Tim Moore, a Republican representing North Carolina, is one of four original cosponsors on the bill.
“I’m proud to support this legislation to delay the harmful hemp provision and give Congress the time we need to do this right,” Moore said in a news release. “A decision with major consequences for farmers and small businesses belongs in the Agriculture Committee, instead of being buried in a government funding bill. I’ll keep fighting to ensure North Carolina’s hemp growers have a seat at the table and aren’t regulated out of business.”
Hemp businesses will see ‘total collapse’
Nicole Burnette, founder and CEO of Queen Hemp Company, was the first license holder in Mecklenburg County under the state’s pilot program to grow hemp. She’s an indoor grower, a wholesale distributor and has an online store. Her Charlotte-based company began in 2014 as an urban hydroponic farm growing lettuce, specialty greens and microgreens.
“We will go out of business,” she said. “Hands down. And so will everyone else whose business is based off the hemp industry. It will cause a total collapse.”
She’s particularly concerned about what this will do for wellness products used by people, including her father.
“We already know from people who have stage 4 cancer, of which my dad is one, [that] those people benefit from appetite stimulants and just pain management,” Burnette said. “It would be devastating. A devastating loss when you know you have pathways for other supplements.”
She and Bocella both mentioned outdoor growers who have to decide whether to plant hemp this spring.
“It’s not enough time for people to plan, especially when farmers are squeezed so hard right now with everything going on with crops,” Burnette said. “It’s going to be impossible. You would be taking a risk that might collapse your business if you’re an outdoor farmer and you have to plant in April and then nothing gets done about this bill.”
Hempies is a North Carolina-based company with nine stores, including two in Raleigh and one in Durham.
“We have grown from a small, single store off of Litchford Road to an 80-something million dollar company, and now we have the federal government trying to take that away,” CEO Todd Floyd said.
The company has its own line of gummies, tinctures, syrups and recently launched its own beverage line including sodas and seltzers. The company’s plan was to get those drinks into grocery stores and bars.
“All that’s been put on hold because of this,” Floyd said. “We have explored doing that now because we’re out here in the political world, and we’re having to go to D.C. and we’re having to go deal politically to make sure we get something passed.”
All three business owners said they’d like to see regulations that prevent minors from buying hemp products and “common-sense” packaging and labeling requirements. They also all agreed on third-party testing for products to ensure people know what’s in the products they are buying.
“Americans don’t want prohibition,” Bocella said. “They want regulation, sensible regulation.”
This story was originally published March 12, 2026 at 5:20 AM.
