Florida HB1617: Hemp Retail Rules, Age 21, and THC Limits

Florida HB 1617 has nothing to do with hemp. The 2025 bill by that number authorizes physicians to perform stem cell therapies not yet approved by the FDA.¹ The hemp bill people usually mean is HB 1597, “Food and Hemp Products,” which addresses advertising, distribution, and retail sale of hemp and hemp extract products.² Whichever number brought you here, the rules that actually govern hemp in Florida sit elsewhere, and they carry real consequences for retailers and consumers.

The Bill Number Mix-Up

HB 1617 (2025) was sponsored by Representative Buchanan and deals exclusively with stem cell therapies.¹ It does not touch cannabinoids, THC potency, or hemp retail practices. The confusion with HB 1597 has spread widely online, so if you searched for hemp rules and landed on the wrong number, you are not alone.

Florida’s hemp rules do not live in a single bill. The core authority is Section 581.217 of the Florida Statutes, which covers cultivation, extraction, and distribution. The Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (FDACS) has layered on administrative rules, most notably Rule 5K-4.034, that spell out packaging, labeling, and sales requirements for hemp extract intended for human consumption. Legislative proposals like HB 1597 and SB 1270 (filed for 2026) build on that existing framework rather than replace it.

Who Regulates Hemp in Florida

FDACS is the primary regulator. It licenses cultivators, sets and enforces product standards at retail, and may enter licensed premises during regular business hours to inspect. State attorneys, sheriffs, and local law enforcement are also authorized to enforce hemp regulations or assist FDACS agents.³

Age 21 and How Products Can Be Sold

Florida prohibits the sale of any hemp extract product intended for ingestion or inhalation to anyone under 21. That covers edibles, beverages, smokable hemp, chewing gum, and similar items. A first underage sale is a second-degree misdemeanor; a second violation within one year is a first-degree misdemeanor.³ These are criminal charges, not civil fines.

Hemp extract cannot be sold through vending machines or self-service displays. Rule 5K-4.034 defines self-service merchandising as displaying unpackaged hemp products where the public can access them without an employee stepping in.⁴ In practice, the product needs to be behind a counter or in a locked case.

Packaging and Labeling

Every hemp extract product sold for human consumption must be in a child-resistant container that complies with the U.S. Poison Prevention Packaging Act. Containers must also minimize light exposure and protect against high temperatures.⁵ FDACS has codified child-resistance under ASTM D3475-20.

The “attractive to children” prohibition is specific. Packaging cannot use human, cartoon, or animal shapes. It cannot resemble candy or snack brands familiar to children, and it cannot use color additives in ways that would cause a child to mistake the product for a branded food item. Businesses cannot even keep noncompliant products on the premises.⁵

Every product must carry a QR code linking to a batch-specific Certificate of Analysis (COA). The COA must show milligrams per serving for each marketed cannabinoid, confirm delta-9 THC at or below the 0.3 percent threshold, and include contaminant screening. A broken link or an outdated COA breaks compliance. Labels must also include a batch number, an expiration date, and a company website.

Enforcement and Penalties

Products that are mislabeled or packaged in child-attractive containers are subject to an immediate stop-sale order.³ Once such an order issues for child-attractive packaging, FDACS will not allow the products to be moved or used for anything other than disposal until they are brought into compliance.⁵

Licensees who violate the law through negligence must submit a corrective action plan with a deadline for fixing the violation, and they stay under compliance reporting for at least two calendar years. Three negligent violations of that plan within five years makes the licensee ineligible to cultivate hemp for five years.³

If FDACS determines that a licensee acted with intent or recklessness, it must immediately report the licensee to both the Florida Attorney General and the U.S. Attorney General.³ That referral opens the door to federal enforcement, particularly for products that exceed 0.3 percent total delta-9 THC and cross into what federal law treats as marijuana.

THC Limits Today, and a Federal Change in 2026

Florida’s current framework uses a percentage limit: hemp and hemp extract products must contain no more than 0.3 percent delta-9 THC on a dry-weight basis. Various Florida bills have proposed per-serving milligram caps, but not all of those proposals have become law. Because the regulatory picture keeps moving, verify current FDACS rules before you stock or buy.

A larger change arrives on November 12, 2026. Under Public Law 119-37, the total THC calculation for hemp products will expand to include THCA and delta-8 THC alongside delta-9. Finished hemp-derived cannabinoid products will be capped at 0.4 milligrams of total THC per container. Per container, not per serving. Any product above that threshold falls outside the federal definition of legal hemp.

The same federal law bans cannabinoids that are synthesized outside the plant or that the cannabis plant cannot naturally produce. Delta-8 THC made through CBD isomerization and synthetic cannabinoids like HHC will be explicitly prohibited at the federal level. A product that complies with Florida rules today can still become federally illegal once the November 2026 deadline hits.

What This Means for Retailers Now

The gap between Florida’s 0.3 percent dry-weight standard and the incoming 0.4 mg per-container federal cap is wide. A product that is perfectly legal in Florida today may contain dozens of milligrams of THC per container and still comply with state rules, yet be federally prohibited after November 2026. Reformulating, relabeling, and clearing noncompliant inventory needs to start well before that date.

At the state level, the basics have not changed. Verify every customer’s age. Keep products behind the counter. Use child-resistant packaging that does not look like candy. Make sure every QR code links to a current, batch-specific COA. FDACS inspectors can arrive unannounced, stop-sale orders happen on the spot, and underage sales carry criminal penalties, not just administrative ones.

1
Florida Senate. Florida House Bill 1617 (2025) – Stem Cell Therapy
2
The Florida House of Representatives. HB 1597 (2025) – Food and Hemp Products
3
The 2025 Florida Statutes. Florida Statutes 581.217 – Hemp
4
Cornell Law Institute. Florida Administrative Code Rule 5K-4.034 – Hemp Extract for Human Consumption
5
Florida Senate. Florida SB 1270 (2026) Filed Text