Can HHC really be banned in France?

French Health Minister François Braun announced on Monday, May 15, that the sale of products containing hexahydrocannabinol (HHC), should be banned soon.

«I think it’s a matter of weeks,» the minister said when asked on Franceinfo about a possible ban on HHC. But is it really as easy to ban HHC in France as it is to say so on a TV show?

HHC in Europe

In a technical report In its April report, the European Monitoring Center for Drugs and Drug Addiction (EMCDDA), which compiles information on drugs and drug addiction, notes that HHC is not included on the lists of the 1961 and 1971 United Nations conventions, which are used to ban cannabis. In the European Union, HHC is currently being monitored by the EMCDDA as a new psychoactive substance through its early warning system.

The report notes that the pharmacological and behavioral effects of HHC in humans have not been studied, although anecdotal reports from users indicate that its effects are similar to those of cannabis and Δ9-THC. According to the EMCDDA, HHC does not appear to have any documented legitimate uses.

As of the date of the report, no member state had «regulated»—that is, banned—HHC. Meanwhile, the Finland, theAustria or Switzerland has done so.

Ban HHC in France

On what grounds, then, could such a ban be based? In an article from Ouest-France, Anne Batisse, director of the Addictovigilance Center in Paris (AP-HP), explains that «France classifies substances based on health complications, but we still have very little data on HHC.»

And that is likely where the complexity lies. From a legal standpoint, Yann Bisiou, a specialist in drug law, explains that the ban on HHC in France is likely based on its classification as a narcotic.

To do so, it must either already be included in the list of controlled substances—for example, in the cyclohexylphenols category— as had been mentioned at one point, and the HHC issue is resolved.

Either it isn’t one, in which case banning it could take longer. In that case, the ban would be based «on the need to prove the risk to public health and/or the risk of addiction.» That would mean it would take several months, or even years, to conduct the necessary studies.

The Ministry of Health stated to the World that «investigations are being launched at regional drug monitoring centers to determine the effects of the substance,» with results expected in «June.».

To date, reports have been received from drug dependence assessment and information centers regarding ’psychoactive effects in a person following inhalation of CBD containing HHC,» according to the General Directorate of Health, as reported by *Le Monde*.

According to Anne Batisse, «the danger [of HHC] lies primarily in the fact that uninformed users could rush to try this so-called «legal» cannabis without any guidance on its use, unaware that this substance can cause accidents and that not all of its risks are yet known.».

For their part, advocacy groups are warning about the risks posed by heavy metals and solvent residues, as well as the lack of traceability and transparency regarding the origin and manufacturing of HHC. These are arguments that were once used against… CBD.