by Jay Waagmeester, Florida Phoenix
August 13, 2025

Hemp companies are asking for more consistency from state inspectors, who’ve spent the summer cracking down on packaging that could appeal to minors. 

The Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services proposed a state definition of what can be considered a “cartoon” on packaging for hemp products such as THC drinks, gummies, and more during a hearing Wednesday in Tallahassee. 

Under the initial proposed language, the state would define a cartoon as “any drawing or other depiction of an object, person, animal, creature, or any similar caricature” that uses “comically exaggerated features,” “attribution of human characteristics to animals, plants, or other objects, or the similar use of anthropomorphic technique,” or “the attribution of unnatural or extra-human abilities, such as imperviousness to pain or injury, X-ray vision, tunnelling at very high speeds, or transformation.”

The definition was taken from tobacco litigation discussing what could be considered attractive to children, the state said. 

State law prohibits hemp products from being “attractive to children” and already prohibits depicting the shape of humans, cartoons, or animals, as well as candy. 

Call for consistency

During the hearing on the language Wednesday, hemp industry representatives called for consistency in enforcement. 

“What we’re asking for today are clear rules of the road and ways to check our work before we invest,” Bayou City Hemp Co. co-founder Jeromy Sherman said.

He added that the company’s production process takes six months or more. “Arbitrary, after-the-fact enforcement, especially when it’s trusted retailers in the state of Florida, creates a ripple effect that punishes the companies trying to play by the rules and rewards fly-by-night operators.”

Sherman asked the department for a pre-approval process from the department to determine what counts as a cartoon before the product goes into production, pointing out that some other states require pre-approval.

This summer, Agriculture Commissioner Wilton Simpson and the department conducted “Operation Safe Summer,” whereby inspectors removed more than 150,000 packages of hemp products they considered to violate child-protection standards and since 2023 have removed more than 800,000 packages.

The campaign was “not a one-time sweep,” either, Simpson said in a news release. The department will “aggressively pursue bad actors until the hemp industry gets the message.”

“We applaud those efforts and encourage further actions in that regard,” Sherman said. However, he asked for “consistency and clarity.”

The state should provide “Bright, yet workable, lines for compliance,” he said. 

Li Massie of Akerman LLP, representing hemp beverage companies, said investigators looking at the same product at different stores have come to different conclusions as to what is a cartoon, likening the process to a “gamble” for companies. 

“Too much discretion means that industry members are not able to properly plan ahead for compliance,” Massie said, noting the potential for First Amendment and Fourteenth Amendment concerns. 

Patrick Shatzer, representing SunMed CBD, said there’s been “complete inconsistency” in inspections.

The department provided a 10-day extension for the public to submit comments. Next will come a proposed rule, followed by another opportunity for public feedback.

Correction: An earlier version of this story misreported seizures of non-legally conforming hemp products. State inspectors removed more than 150,000 packages of hemp products this summer and 800,000 since 2023. 

Florida Phoenix is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Florida Phoenix maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Michael Moline for questions: info@floridaphoenix.com.

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Note: The following A.I. based commentary is not part of the original article, reproduced above, but is offered in the hopes that it will promote greater media literacy and critical thinking, by making any potential bias more visible to the reader –Staff Editor.

Political Bias Rating: Centrist

This content presents a balanced view on the regulation of hemp product packaging, highlighting concerns from both state regulators and industry representatives. It focuses on regulatory consistency and public safety without promoting a particular ideological stance, reflecting a neutral, fact-based approach typical of centrist reporting.