FDA Hearing On ‘Hemp-Derived CBD’ Today

Originally published at blog.NORML.org

Washington, DC: Today the US Food and Drug Administration is taking in-person public testimony with regard to the “manufacturing, product quality, marketing, labeling, and sale” of CBD-infused retail products.

“The rapidly evolving hemp-derived CBD marketplace sadly includes a number of bad faith actors selling the equivalent of modern day snake-oil,” said NORML Political Director Justin Strekal. “With states rapidly legalizing the distribution of these products, consumers require certainty and consistency when it comes what they ingest.”

NORML has submitted written comments to the FDA ahead of Friday’s scheduled hearing on the regulation of CBD-infused products.

In its written testimony, NORML Deputy Director Paul Armentano encourages the agency to act expeditiously to clarify confusion among both consumers and regulators with regard to the legality of specific CBD products. It further recommends that the FDA provide regulatory guidelines governing product manufacturing, standardization, and quality.

NORML’s testimony concluded: “For years, producers of these products have navigated in a grey area of the law — manufacturing products of variable and sometimes questionable quality and safety. Now it is time for the FDA to craft benchmark safety and quality standards for hemp-derived CBD products in order to increase consumer satisfaction and confidence as this nascent industry transitions and matures into a legal marketplace.”

Currently, commercially marketed CBD-infused products are not subject to explicit federal regulations. As a result, third-party lab testing has frequently revealed inconsistencies between the percentage of CBD advertised and the amount actually contained in the product. In many cases, actual quantities of CBD in the product is far lower than advertised. In other cases, testing has revealed the presence of THC, which may put consumers in jeopardy for legal ramifications – such as arrest or the loss of employment (due to a drug test failure). Some commercial products have also been identified to contain unwanted and potentially dangerous adulterantsas well as heavy metals and solvents.

You can read the NORML Fact Sheet on CBD here: https://norml.org/marijuana/fact-sheets/item/faqs-about-cannabidiol-cbd