[Le trois-feuilles] Ecologists and CBD, a campaign story

It’s quite cold this Friday morning. At almost 10 a.m., bright winter sunshine gently illuminates the stones of the Palais-Royal. We’re right in the heart of Paris, just a few meters from the Louvre Museum. It’s here, in the former residence of the kings of France, that the Council of State is based.

At the intersection of Rue Saint-Honoré and Rue de Rohan, a tall man—1.90 meters—steps out, flanked by two or three people. It’s Yannick Jadot. The Green Party candidate for the presidential election is here today to show his support for the CBD industry. In a few minutes, the industry will face a crucial hearing for its survival, ever since the government banned the sale of hemp flowers.

CBD-based cannabis must remain legal. We must protect the 20,000 direct and indirect jobs. pic.twitter.com/YyKNjmqaFt

— Yannick Jadot (@yjadot) January 14, 2022

By his side this Friday morning was Julien Bayou. He is the leader of the Europe Écologie Les Verts (EELV) party, but he is also a lawyer. In that capacity, he drafted a legal brief for the Union of CBD Professionals. Together with other lawyers, they are defending their case today before the Council of State. Their goal: to reinstate the sale of cannabis flowers. If it weren’t for COVID, Mr. Bayou would even have argued the case before the judge to defend the cannabidiol retailers. But space at the bar was limited.

Lobbying and Media Strategy

We need to rewind a few months to understand the friendship between the Green Party and CBD business owners. In May 2021, business owners were in a panic. They learned that a government bill, revealed by Newsweed, plans to ban flowers. Their union, the UPCBD, is therefore rushed into. Charles Morel, a Parisian lawyer, was appointed to lead it.

To give the new structure more clout, Morel joined the Influences agency in mid-June. Their collaboration aims to «Develop an effective strategy to position the Union of CBD Professionals as the industry’s leading authority and communicate its messages.». Translation? Influences should help him with his lobbying and media strategy.

Through its networks, the agency will contact Julien Bayou and explain the challenges facing the industry to him. He agrees to meet with Charles Morel. Their first meeting will take place in a café in October. «He was attentive and understanding of the issues surrounding cannabidiol.», ," he recalls.

A third person will help Bayou and Morel take their relationship to the next level: Bechir Saket. This environmental activist—who drafted the health section of Yannick Jadot’s presidential platform—is also deeply involved in the world of CBD. He is, in fact, a co-founder of L630, an organization that advocates for drug policy reform. Saket is also close to Yann Bisiou, a lawyer who often works with the UPCBD.

This milestone between Bayou and Morel will be reached on December 31, 2021. On that day, a few hours before New Year’s Eve, the government quietly issues an order banning the sale of flowers. The two lawyers then decided to work together. The UPCBD intends to file an appeal with the Council of State to have the law overturned.

The union then enlisted the help of Marseille-based attorney Xavier Pizarro, legal expert Yann Bisiou… and Julien Bayou, the leader of the Green Party. Bayou focused specifically on the consumer aspect of the issue. According to one source, an ethical question briefly caused a stir within his political party: Is it the role of the national secretary of EELV to defend the interests of a private sector?

«Win-win»

Finally, the «win-win» wins out. First, because Bayou works for free— pro bono as they say in legal jargon. Second, because both sides stand to benefit from this collaboration. On the one hand, environmentalists are taking advantage of the situation to tear into the administration, right in the middle of the presidential campaign. For example: «This government becomes obsessed as soon as the word ‘cannabis’ comes up—it's completely ridiculous!», the candidate Yannick Jadot rebuked before the Council of State.

The same goes for Bayou, which boasts a «major legal victory», the day after the judges' decision. In a way, even if he wasn't paid for his legal analysis, his «salary» will be political. « Of course it's a political victory for us, Julien Bayou now acknowledges in an interview with »Newsweed. We have a CBD industry that fell victim to the Interior Minister’s dogmatism regarding cannabis; it got caught in the crossfire. So we took legal action, and this is a slap in the face."

« »It was obvious that Bayou was going to use this for political gain. At least he has the courage of his convictions—he puts himself on the line.", says one of those who worked with him.

https://twitter.com/julienbayou/status/1485974765789663235?s=20&t=qjD0oswjsJ2ER6NzHlQdeA

On the other hand, CBD retailers are capitalizing on EELV’s political and media visibility. Today, virtually all of them appreciate its support. «If we don't take this debate into the political arena, I don't think we stand a chance.», ", says a shopkeeper. «Their involvement is a good thing; it helps raise awareness of our cause. Any political support is welcome,», "Agrees," says Aurélien Delecroix, president of the Professional Hemp Association.

The only slight downside: some fear that environmentalists might confuse the two. In fact, the CBD industry is very careful with its wording. They never say «cannabis» but «hemp,» for example. Both terms refer to the same plant, but they carry different connotations in the collective unconscious. Since Yannick Jadot wants to legalize recreational cannabis if he is elected, some sellers fear that people might confuse cannabidiol with THC.

Others are grinding their teeth a little more. «So far, we’ve heard very little from environmentalists about CBD. It’s more a matter of convenience, let’s say,», Ludovic Mendès takes a jab, referring to the presidential campaign. This LREM lawmaker, who has been working on this topic for several years In the National Assembly, he served, among other roles, as rapporteur for the fact-finding mission on cannabis, specifically regarding CBD. «No one can take away all the work we've done over the past few years.», ," he adds.

A jab that doesn't amuse Julien Bayou, who points out the environmentalists' consistent and steadfast commitment to supporting the CBD industry as early as 2018, at the time of the first legal actions against CBD retailers.

«It is indeed the government backed by this LREM lawmaker that has been threatening the entire CBD industry since 2018—particularly with this decree, which was fortunately suspended by the Council of State following an emergency injunction filed by the UPCBD and supported, among others, by the Greens ,» he concluded.