CBD in France: the counter-attack is getting organized

Tired of the legal vagueness with which the government is satisfied, and faced with the criminalization of many merchants, lawyers, merchants and CBD supporters are organizing to defend the rights of the industry and demand clear legislation.

Le Syndicat du Chanvre Bien-être

The Syndicat du Chanvre Bien-être, formed a few months ago, has taken concrete action to defend hemp workers. The SCBE has called on a leading European law firm to draw up a legal opinion and a definitive position paper on European law on cannabis-derived products. A Europe-wide position will make it possible to clarify French law, and in particular the 0.2% limit, which the MILDECA had declared that it applied only to the plant and not to finished products, although French law does not really specify this.

At national level, the union has already approached several LREM elected representatives, and has been received at the National Assembly, where it was able to discuss with the Ministry of Health advisors in charge of the dossier, as well as at the Senate. To carry out its lobbying, the union has called in a strategic consulting firm. It is also working hand in hand with the Ministry of Agriculture, with the shared aim of promoting the hemp industry, which is important in France, one of the world's leading hemp-producing countries. As part of its communication strategy, the syndicate aims to highlight the well-being aspect of hemp, often mistakenly confused with therapeutic or recreational use.

CBD companions

Shopkeepers in Thionville and Sierck-les-Bains have decided to form the Syndicat des Compagnons du CBD to defend their rights. Questioned by us, the association explained that their objective was to take their case to the European Court of Justice to assert European law, which, in the absence of a subsidiarity clause, has absolute priority. For them, European law does not stipulate that the 0.2% limit applies only to the plant and not to the product, this simply being the official position adopted by the French government to justify its policy of repression towards CBD shops.

Nevertheless, the unions are currently unable to take their case to the European Court of Justice in the absence of convictions to appeal against. Indeed, the French authorities are multiplying preventive measures and police custody to temporarily close down businesses, taking advantage of the slowness of procedures to strike at their wallets and reputations. «It's a commercial war,» says Sabrina from Compagnons du CBD. «It's about money, not public health. We're not outlaws, it's the French state that's outlawed.

The association, which already has a dozen members and expects more, is struggling to obtain union status. The Metz strike court seems hesitant, and wants to set up a dispute to determine whether the association is legal or not. In this case, the associates are denied the very status of merchants. Undaunted, they continue to sell their products and intend to assert their rights. Among other things, the association works side by side with the Syndicat Chanvre Bien-être, of which it considers itself a regional branch.

Legal advice

The CBD Compagnons« lawyer, Maître Guiso, explains that preliminary investigations can last indefinitely before resulting in convictions. In his view, the government's aim is to drag out proceedings in order to »dry up the treasury" and force stores to close down without engaging in a legal battle. On this point, he explains that the government is resorting to questionable techniques, such as having products analyzed at the other end of France to save time. Over and above the lack of political will to resolve the issue once and for all, these methods sound to him like an admission that the French government's policy is untenable on a European scale.

On Master Plouton's website, For some legal experts and specialists in the field, French legislation is more restrictive than European legislation, and the aforementioned decree could be considered contrary to the European position taken in the light of the principle of the free movement of goods (...) the principle of primacy of European law would prevent the administration and the courts from relying on the principle of the free movement of goods. the order of August 22, 1990 restricting the exploitation of hemp to its fibers and seeds, unless such a restriction is justified by the need to protect human health or public morals».

Repression or the politics of terror

While most of the retailers arrested had taken precautions not to contravene the law in their view, in particular by complying with the 0.2% limit established by European legislation and by abandoning the sale of flowers that the MILDECA had declared illegal, it was with a great deal of means and with an extremely cumbersome legal package that they are prosecuted and accused of being drug dealers. The same treatment, the same accusations as for a notorious trafficker (...) Is this really the priority in the fight against drug trafficking?» asked Maître Plouton in an interview. par SudOuest.

What's more, the heterogeneous response of authorities in different regions and stores question the government's motives: why close some stores when others are still open? Some of the stores under seal were not even selling the forbidden flower, only foodstuffs. Elsewhere, the flowers were returned without prosecution after seizure and control of the stock. Far from being clear and definite, the official position seems very confused, open to interpretation and even instrumental. Logic would dictate, for example, that stock should be analyzed and either returned or destroyed, depending on whether it is in order or not.

The charges are enough to dissuade the shopkeepers, for whom the consequences are far-reaching: registration for drug trafficking, sealing, freezing of accounts, destruction of merchandise (flowers) and a ban on trading. Some have already put flowers on the back burner, while others have chosen to limit themselves to less visible delivery services or Internet sales.