Members of the U.S. House of Representatives have introduced a new bipartisan bill aimed at establishing federal standards for CBD food and beverage products.
On Thursday, U.S. Representatives Kathleen Rice (New York), Morgan Griffith (Virginia), Angie Craig (Minnesota) and Dan Crenshaw (Texas) put forward the CBD Product Safety and Standardization Act, which, if passed, would allow the Food & Drug Administration (FDA) to create a regulatory and enforcement structure for CBD as an ingredient, and also to establish content limits and packaging labeling requirements.
“CBD products are exploding in popularity, but the lack of federal regulation surrounding them has put consumers at risk and left businesses looking for clarity,” said Rep. Rice in a press release. “The bipartisan CBD Product Safety and Standardization Act will establish the clear regulatory framework needed to provide stability for business and ensure unsafe products stay off the shelves. Thank you to my bipartisan colleagues for joining me in introducing this important legislation.”
The bill is another in a series of legislative efforts to bring the exploding market for CBD-infused food and beverage products under the purview of federal regulators. Despite hemp-derived CBD being removed from the Controlled Substances Act following the passage of the 2018 Farm Bill, it is still illegal under FDA policy to market CBD-infused consumer products, meaning products currently available nationwide are unregulated.
This latest bill is the second time members of Congress have attempted to find a legislative solution to the issue of CBD-infused products: in May, a bipartisan group of U.S. Senators introduced The Hemp Access and Consumer Safety Act.
Speaking at the National Industrial Hemp Business Summit on November 16, Gail Slipes, acting cannabis-product committee chair for the FDA, reiterated that the agency’s position with regard to regulating CBD remained unchanged, calling for additional research and safety testing prior to any consideration of its use outside of pharmaceutical drugs. According to federal law, CBD is prohibited from being added to food products because it was previously approved in 2018 as an active ingredient in Epidiolex, a drug used for treating rare types of epilepsy.
“Clear answers to many important questions are still lacking, such as what adverse reactions may be associated with CBD from hemp-derived products and what risks are associated with the long term use of these products,” Sipes said at the Summit, according to a report in Hemp Industry Daily.
The CBD Product Safety and Standardization Act quickly won support from The Consumer Brands Association and the U.S. Hemp Roundtable.
“The CBD Product Safety and Standardization Act is a welcome step toward giving consumers consistency and promoting safety that goes across state lines,” said Betsy Booren, Ph.D., Senior Vice President, Regulatory and Technical for the Consumer Brands Association, in a press release. “74% of consumers incorrectly believe that CBD is federally regulated, stressing the urgency of the action Representatives Rice, Griffith, Craig and Crenshaw are taking with this important legislation.”
Jonathan Miller, General Counsel for the U.S. Hemp Roundtable, added: “The hemp industry is grateful to Reps. Kathleen Rice, Morgan Griffith, Angie Craig and Dan Crenshaw for their introduction of the CBD Product Safety and Standardization Act. We strongly support requiring the FDA to regulate hemp extracts like CBD as food and beverage ingredients.”
According to the data from cannabis market research firm Brightfield Group, the U.S. hemp-derived CBD market will expand 15% in 2021 to reach $5.3 billion in retail sales, with beverages and gummies driving the majority of the growth. Meanwhile, U.S. sales of cannabis are projected to surpass $24 billion this year, a 38% increase from 2020.
In an emailed statement to BevNET, Ben Witte, founder and CEO of hemp-infused beverage maker Recess, who has been involved in discussions with legislators regarding CBD regulations, said he was still reviewing the details but his initial impression of the CBD Product Safety and Standardization Act is that it’s “a thoughtful bill to establish a federal regulatory framework for hemp-derived CBD in food and beverage products.”
“The patchwork of inconsistent state laws and product standards that has proliferated in the absence of a meaningful federal solution has simply not benefited consumers,” he wrote. “Recess is committed to quality and safety and believes the establishment of enforceable safeguards to ensure accountability throughout the supply chain and help distinguish responsible players from bad actors would be helpful.”
“We appreciate the bill sponsors’ understanding that the status quo is simply not working and encourage Congress to prioritize this important piece of legislation.”