An American legislator has introduced a bill that would allow hemp-derived CBD to be marketed in dietary supplements.
“This bill will . . . (provide) a pathway forward for hemp-derived products. It would also identify barriers to success for hemp farmers, informing growers and policy makers of the challenges facing this new industry,” said Rep. Collin Peterson of Minnesota, Chairman of the Agriculture Committee in the U.S. House of Representatives.
Peterson’s bill comes after federal health officials in the USA said late last year that they “cannot conclude that CBD is generally recognized as safe” for its use in human or animal food” based on what it described as a lack of scientific proof under the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) GRAS guidelines; those guidelines determine which substances are acceptable for human consumption. Without approval under GRAS, food ingredients in the USA must take a more rigorous route to market under FDA rules.
Challenge globally
“The last two Farm Bills were landmark successes for hemp, but we are still very early in this process, and growers need regulatory certainty,” Peterson said in a statement. He said the bill also would require a study and report from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which oversees the production of hemp, on regulatory and market barriers for hemp farmers.
Stakeholders around the world have pushed for the allowance of CBD in supplements and other over-the-counter products under certain guidelines. In Europe, the European Industrial Hemp Association (EIHA) has proposed that at medium doses, CBD products should be regarded as an over-the-counter product or a food supplement, similar to rules governing substances such as valerian, glucosamine, chondroitin (sulfate), Ginkgo Biloba, some vitamins and iron products.
Institutional weaknesses
Further guidelines under the EIHA proposal recommend that at high doses, CBD-laced products should be considered medicinal and regulated as such; while in low concentrations and doses CBD should be allowed in food products without any restrictions.
Institutional weaknesses and lack of consistency in laws and regulations for CBD create a fundamental barrier to global market growth; developments in CBD legislation and regulations over the next few years will have a major impact on shaping the sector and driving investment, industry observers have said.
