A Georgia hemp industry that has been manufacturing and selling hemp products virtually unfettered since Congress legalized it six years ago is about to get some significant regulation.

Legislation the General Assembly passed this year that takes effect Oct. 1 will prohibit retailers from selling hemp products to anyone under the age of 21 and impose labeling, packaging, and testing requirements on manufacturers.

“[Congress] left it pretty open-ended,” said state Sen. Sam Watson, R-Moultrie, who introduced Senate Bill 494. “There’s no regulatory environment around it. … It’s a consumer-protection bill.”

The bill, which the legislature passed overwhelmingly in March, requires hemp growers, manufacturers, and retailers to obtain licenses and pay a licensing fee. Violators will be subject to criminal misdemeanor charges and civil penalties.

The new law prohibits the sale of any hemp products containing more than the legal limit of 0.3% of THC, the psychoactive drug that gets users high.

That means retail stores may continue to sell gummies, tinctures – generally cannabis-infused alcohol or oils administered orally – and non-alcoholic CBD beverages. But anything smokable and food products will no longer be permitted.

“A lot of these facilities are scrambling to get rid of inventory and replace it with compliant products,” said Gary Long, CEO of ONE59, which sells a line of hemp-derived, over-the-counter products from Botanical Sciences LLC, one of two companies awarded a Class One license to grow, manufacture, and sell low-THC cannabis oil to eligible patients under Georgia’s medical cannabis program.

“We saw this as an opportunity, with our expertise, and knowhow, to create a separate line of products that could be sold over the counter.”

Tom Church, an Atlanta lawyer who represents hemp retailers, said having to get rid of smokable hemp and food products poses a serious threat to some of the businesses.

“Legislators were uncomfortable legalizing something that looks like cannabis and smells like cannabis,” he said. “[But] for some stores, that’s their bread and butter. It’s not infeasible that some businesses may have to shut down because of this bill.”

But Watson said hemp products like peanut butter cups that are attractive to children shouldn’t be legal.

“It scares me as a parent,” he said. “If you’re using this stuff for medical purposes or a sleep issue, why do you need a candy bar for that?”

Church said some parties may file lawsuits challenging the restrictions on which hemp products can be sold, but he hasn’t heard of any as yet.

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