On September 17, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell submitted language into a congressional spending report which will force the FDA to reveal their policy on hemp-derived CBD enforcement sooner rather than later. If approved by the Senate, the amended spending report could provide clarity for industry stakeholders and banks on the sidelines who eagerly await participation in the hemp-derived CBD products space.
Senator McConnell’s Demands From The FDA
Specifically, McConnell’s language will require the FDA to provide guidance on how, and whether, it will enforce rules regarding the sale of food, cosmetics, and dietary supplements containing hemp-derived CBD, as well as:
- Require the FDA, within 90 days, provide a report regarding the Agency’s progress toward obtaining and analyzing data to help determine a policy of enforcement discretion, and the process in which CBD meeting the definition of hemp will be evaluated for use in products.
- Within 120 days, issue a formal enforcement discretion policy on hemp-derived CBD.
- Preserve the enforcement discretion policy until the agency has adopted final rules on CBD.
FDA’s Current Position on Hemp-Derived CBD Products & Possible Next Steps
The FDA’s current position, while it weighs how to ultimately regulate CBD products, is that “under current law” it is illegal to “sell a food or dietary supplement with CBD in interstate commerce.” Presumably, if the amended report passes, the FDA could take the position that it will not take enforcement action against intrastate sales of CBD products.
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