Colorado’s Attorney General continues to crack down on hemp companies, settling claims for $495,000 against one while filing suit against another. He appears to be using a consumer protection act to do so, similar to how one would use the state unfair competition laws in California.
It appears that the main issue here was lack of age verification, and high public profile thus easy access to investigators. Pretending to support nonprofits was an old trick one “superfood” hemp company did in its early years, nothing new.
Ironically, going after Bee’s Knees and Foxhole here is mere compliance theater when other companies in the state are doing much the same thing and making eight-figures monthly doing it, just not as high profile since they all sell wholesale mostly out of state.
But the “THCa Weed” phenomenon Foxhole is accused of is out of the bag and it’s not going back in; Type 1s are essentially legal now nationally thanks to online sales (except for these two companies now under scrutiny).
But Colorado is not the place to do that, other states are more liberal in their interpretation of “similarly-reliable methods” in the federal hemp definition requiring THC testing be decarbed.
In pursuit of hemp compliance, Colorado AG settles with one company, sues another
“Allegations of deception
In the Bee’s Knees case, the allegations stem from practices between 2019 and October 2024, with the state accusing the company of misrepresenting the source, quality, and chain of custody of its hemp products. The company allegedly claimed its extracts came from licensed Colorado farms and state-approved sources, but lacked the necessary documentation to support those claims.
Bee’s Knees was also accused of displaying nonprofit organization logos on its website without permission, falsely suggesting affiliations or contributions. The company also failed to implement age-verification systems, allowing minors potential access to intoxicating hemp products sold online.
Corrections required
The company must make a payment of $75,000 by Dec. 31, 2024, with additional payments scheduled through 2027. A suspended penalty of $270,000 will remain unenforced if the company complies with payment terms and other requirements outlined in the settlement.
The settlement imposes strict compliance and corrective measures. Bee’s Knees must update its website to remove false claims and unauthorized logos, maintain proper licenses, and establish robust age-verification protocols to restrict sales to minors. The agreement also allows the Attorney General’s Office to monitor and enforce compliance, reserving the right to take further action if terms are violated.
Foxhole suit
In the Foxhole suit, owner Dane Snover faces allegations his company sold marijuana products mislabeled as federally legal industrial hemp. The suit follows an investigation that showed that many of the company’s products exceeded legal delta-9 THC limits for hemp and were falsely marketed.
The Attorney General’s Office launched an investigation in 2023 after a complaint from a consumer in another state alleged Foxhole Farms sold cannabis to his 16-year-old son.
Investigators conducted undercover purchases, which revealed products containing THC levels far above the legal threshold for industrial hemp – one product tested at nearly 250 times the allowable limit. The company also failed to use proper age-verification systems, relying only on a website prompt for users to confirm they were 21 or older.
Products sold by Foxhole Farms included edibles, concentrates, and flowers, many of which were improperly labeled. Some packaging lacked childproofing, failed to indicate THC content, and featured misleading notices stating the products complied with legal THC limits. Of the 23 products tested during the investigation, 21 were misrepresented on the company’s website.”
Read more at: https://hemptoday.net/in-pursuit-of-hemp-compliance-colorado-ag-settles-with-one-company-sues-another/