Gov. Tim Walz last week signed a bill passed by the Minnesota Legislature allowing businesses manufacturing lower-potency hemp edibles (LPHEs) to continue using out-of-state testing facilities until May 31, 2027, as long as those labs are able to meet criteria established by the Minnesota Office of Cannabis Management (OCM).
Championed by legislative partners Senator Lindsey Port and Representative Jess Hanson, the allowance will immediately relieve pressure on both the hemp and cannabis supply chains created by limited capacity of the state’s current three licensed testing facilities to keep up with product demand created by eager customers and new businesses entering the market.
Business leaders in the state’s LPHE industry — which includes low-dose THC edibles and the THC beverages that have become ubiquitous in Minnesota breweries — worked with OCM and state legislators to craft this bipartisan bill.
