Cannabis/CBD

Without FDA regulatory pathway for hemp’s lawful use in supplements and food, some states are imposing more-stringent regulations while others allow sales of intoxicating ingredients not considered controlled substances as hemp derivatives.

US Cannabis Council says farm bill reauthorization is “key opportunity to tackle the national crisis caused by unregulated intoxicating hemp products” by limiting the variety of hemp derivatives which qualify as de-scheduled.

UK Food Standards Agency proposes shaving a minimum of three months off novel food authorization procedure as part of wider plans to shake-up the process for products like CBD supplements.

Dietary supplements containing unsafe or unauthorized substances were reported to the European Commission by national regulators on around 60 occasions in the first quarter of 2024.

A recent ASA ruling against UK firm Supreme CBD highlights the need to be transparent about influencer marketing, as well as to avoid making any medicinal claims for food supplements. 

Hemp, supplement industry groups say Energy and Commerce hearing is needed on FDA’s “regulation, or lack thereof, of the rapidly growing hemp market.”

UK wellness consumers will be looking for brands that can help improve cognitive function and provide natural energy, support menstrual health and keep them healthy during the aging process in 2024, according to UK health food retailer Holland & Barrett.

The European Food Safety Authority is evaluating new reproductive and developmental toxicity data published since it paused CBD novel food applications last year due to safety concerns, according to food law consultancy, Legal Foods.

The UK Home Office has accepted a suggested 0.05 mg per dose limit for controlled psychoactive substance tetrahydrocannabinol in consumer CBD products, including food supplements. However, remaining questions such as what constitutes a single dose of CBD, when UK manufacturers will be allowed to process raw cannabis, and what testing methods are needed to detect THC levels indicate that the road to compliance is still “long and winding,” argues Canna Consultants.

Dietary supplements containing unauthorized or unsafe substances, including heavy metals at excessive levels, were reported to the European Commission by national regulators on more than 40 occasions in the third quarter of 2023.

The UK Food Standards Agency should review its recently published guidance recommending an acceptable daily intake (ADI) of 10mg cannabidiol for consumers, says food law expert Mark Tallon. Data in the public domain, such as that published by Tallon and colleague Robert Child shows that short-term consumption of CBD isolate is safe for adults at circa 100mg per day if applying the FSA’s assessment approach, he explains.

The UK's largest health food chain Holland & Barrett has reinstated over 30 CBD products after initially removing them from shelves in response to the FSA's recommendation that consumers should only take 10mg CBD a day. 

Swiss firm anticipates potential to enhance patient outcomes, reduce side effects and increase efficacy of cannabinoid-based treatments while answering unmet demand for cosmetic and skin-care products containing non-psychoactive cannabinoids.

The UK Food Standards Agency has issued new advice aimed at consumers warning them not to take more than 10mg CBD per day, an acceptable daily intake level significantly lower than the agency's previous ADI of 70mg per day. However, CBD brand owners should not reformulate their products, Canna Consultants warns, as this would be a breach of FSA's conditions for remaining on the market. 

Ongoing regulatory issues and restrictive marketing rules are prompting CBD brands to pivot to functional mushrooms, the market for which in the UK is predicted to reach a value of £62m by 2025. With both reportedly offering cognitive health benefits, marketing mushrooms and CBD makes good strategic sense, explains Nootro Group CEO Cary Holmes in this HBW Insight deep dive. 

Italy reclassifies natural CBD as a narcotic drug. The decision may see challenges from companies marketing in Italy natural CBD supplements registered in other European countries, given that the European Court of Justice (CJEU) overturned a similar position taken by France in 2020.