Delaware's THC-infused beverage law takes effect Oct. 21, limiting doses and where the drinks can be sold

Delaware's new rules for THC-infused beverages take effect Tuesday, Oct. 21, and state regulators have told alcohol licensees which drinks must come off their shelves.

House Bill 373, which Gov. Matt Meyer signed July 23, sets up a state system for nonalcoholic drinks made with delta-9 THC extracted from hemp, The Marijuana Herald reported. Most of the law takes effect Oct. 21, and its tax provisions begin Feb. 1, 2027.

Guidance from the Office of the Alcoholic Beverage Control Commissioner says package stores may not keep or sell drinks that break the law's limits. Those include single-serving containers with more than 10 milligrams of delta-9 extract or smaller than 12 ounces, multipacks with more than 60 milligrams, 750-milliliter bottles with more than 170 milligrams, and drinks that contain alcohol or any THC other than delta-9 extract.

Starting Oct. 21, package stores may buy the drinks only from licensed wholesalers and only after the office approves a permit, according to the guidance. Compliant drinks already on shelves may stay if the store first gives the office its inventory, and they can't be visible from a public right-of-way. The office advises restaurants, taprooms, taverns and other on-premise licensees to remove the products by Oct. 21, because, among alcohol licensees, the law's sales pathway covers package stores only. Licensed microbreweries must apply for a permit to make and sell the drinks for off-premise consumption.

The law also allows retail marijuana stores to sell the beverages and taxes them at 50 cents per single-serving container and $8.50 per 750-milliliter bottle, according to The Marijuana Herald. WHYY reported in May, while the bill was pending, that CBD stores and smoke shops would not be allowed to sell the drinks.

The office says that if the federal government closes the hemp "loophole" in December 2026, the state law will expire.