Germany continues to crack down on CBD shops

In recent months, German police and courts have been cracking down hard on CBD hemp manufacturers and sellers, claiming the products are potentially narcotic. For the Branchenverband Cannabiswirtschaft (BvCW), the association representing the German cannabis industry, the situation shows the need for clear rules.

Until now, regulation has been a matter for the courts

In a press release, the police stated that «the sale of CBD hemp is fundamentally illegal and punishable ... Imprisonment for sellers of at least one year ... the ability to use CBD and therefore abuse for intoxicating purposes is obvious.»

The BvCW stated that the police's action knowingly ignored a decision handed down in March by the German Federal Court of Justice (BGH) that the sale of hemp flowers and leaves to end customers was not prohibited if the products could not be used to intoxicate consumers. The German industry felt that this ruling paved the way for the sale of hemp flower and leaf food products on the domestic market.

The police also seem to forget that the The European Commission has clearly stated that CBD is not a narcotic. and reaffirmed the EU's free-trade guarantees at the end of last year.

A request for clarification

German lawyer Kai-Friedrich Niermann, who defends numerous hemp and cannabis cases, and his client Daniel Kruse from Hempro, have called on the federal government to intervene.

In particular, they called for a «general decree» that would allow all parts of hemp to be freely imported and sold, citing existing European Union rules on the free movement of goods.

Kai-Friedrich Niermann a declared à BusinessCann «Hemp leaves processed for herbal teas have been widely available for decades, but in recent months, law enforcement has decided to pursue, confiscate and initiate criminal proceedings against traders. This is insane. When the law was changed in 1995 to allow the cultivation of industrial hemp in Germany, no restrictions were imposed on this market because it recognized that low-THC hemp had no intoxicating potential.»

«In recent months, however, we've seen the attitude of law enforcement change, so we're looking to put a stop to it by calling on the government to recognize that these products can be imported freely under the principle of the free movement of goods, which applies in all European Union member states.»

Products to hemp base and German CBD are mainly imported from Luxembourg, Belgium and Austria, as German farmers are not authorized to use or sell the flowers, as in France.