United States: FDA speeds up CBD regulations

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced on Friday an acceleration of the regulatory process for cannabidiol (CBD), one of the cannabinoids found in the cannabis plant. The 2018 Farm Bill had legalized hemp cultivation on a federal scale, and thus potentially the production of CBD, albeit with regulatory restrictions. Hemp growers were therefore hoping that the FDA would take swift action to regulate CBD, so that it could be legally added to food products.

The FDA had previously announced that they would need between 3 and 5 years to create the necessary regulations. This prompted Democratic Senator Ron Wyden to write an open letter to the organization's leaders, reminding them of the urgency of the situation. «The confusion and regulatory uncertainty surrounding CBD cannot continue,» he wrote. Allowing the addition of CBD to food products could lead to «significant economic gains» for hemp growers, he added.

Cannabidiol is not federally legal in the U.S., which prevents the implementation of regulations across the whole country, and hinders hemp growers. The addition of CBD to food products is not currently authorized, but each state can regulate in its own way. The difficulty of regulating CBD is partly due to the fact that it is the active ingredient in the drug Epidiolex, used to treat epilepsy.

Last February, members of parliament asked clarification of the status of CBD. The FDA hopes to propose a new law in early autumn.

Dr Amy Abernethy, Acting Chief Information Officer at the FDA, reiterated her commitment to the project. For her, the status of CBD is «an important national issue impacting public health and an important topic for U.S. hemp growers and many other stakeholders.»