On Wednesday, February 7th, South Carolina 13th Circuit Court Solicitor Walt Wilkins issued a proclamation and held a press conference declaring, among other things, that if a product or substance “gets you high, it's illegal in SC”.
This declaration comes after Greenville County Law Enforcement sent over a dozen officials to raid two vape shops owned by Greenville resident Ibrahim Abdo Ahmed Abdulla. Deputies seized a variety of hemp products containing CBD, THC, and a variety of synthetic THC analogues like Delta-8. Mr. Abdulla claimed that all of his products were under the legal limit of .3% THC/weight, but, nonetheless, he is still being investigated on drug trafficking charges.
These raids come at a turbulent time for the hemp industry in South Carolina. South Carolina hemp businesses experienced a massive boom in 2023, generating around $290 million in revenue. Several South Carolina-based hemp-infused beverage brands achieved national notoriety in 2023, carving out substantial market share in the newly-ascendant NA beverage space.
Unfortunately for these companies, their success attracted unwanted attention. After Forbes published pieces celebrating some of these businesses’ success, the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control issued a letter essentially stating that their products violate federal law. While this declaration is dubious at best and nefarious at worst, it nonetheless drove several of these businesses to either halt distribution of their products in SC or move their operations out of the state altogether.
This response from DHEC and state law enforcement has created a climate of fear in South Carolina for hemp business owners and consumers.
Carolina Dream stands for transparency and safety, and has continually led the way when it comes to ensuring the highest quality. We have always operated in good faith with regulators and state officials, while simultaneously setting the standard for the South Carolina Hemp Industry. All of our products go through the highest rigor of laboratory testing. We always operate in good faith.
Is it too much to ask our State law enforcement to do the same?
We believe that business owners have an obligation to adhere to the law and ensure they operate in an ethical and professional manner. In our experience, most SC hemp businesses do.
Are there bad actors in our space? Sure, just like in any other industry.
But should one bad apple spoil the whole bunch?
We don’t think so.
Carolina Dream won’t stop working until we get an industry consumers can trust. Because we deserve it.
-From Cannabis, with Love.