PORTLAND, MAINE – Regulators in late January initiated first-of-its kind crack-down on CBD products in food and drink products across Ohio, Maine and New York City.
The new string of disciplinary actions against vendors of the non-psychoactive hemp extract started after mixed messages from the FDA in wake of the 2018 Farm Bill which redefined hemp as an agricultural product.
Now, Maine officials are speaking out with apologies on how they have handled their regulation of the products.
According to the Portland Press Herald, Maine Dept. of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry Director Celeste Poulin apologized for the overreach of one of her inspectors in the state. [1]
Poulin told the Press Herald that the “overreach” came after she instructed her deputy inspectors to assess the legality of CBD at both the state and federal level. One of her nine inspectors told business owners that the law mandated them to pull CBD food and drink products from shelves, causing statewide confusion. [1]
“I have one inspector that did tell people they had to take product off their shelves. For that I apologize,” Poulin told the Press Herald. “This was not handled as well as it should have been, and I apologize for that.”
The Press Herald piece emphasized how this move terrorized the owners of CBD stores in Maine, some of whom characterized their new situation as a “threat to our survival.”
Still, the Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry bureaucrats investigating the matter did find that selling CBD products in food and drink to the public was not within legal bounds in Maine.
Legislators are now pushing to write a bill to fix the confusion and allow CBD in Maine, which will hopefully clear things up for those within the state who like others use CBD for pain, anxiety, insomnia, epilepsy and a host of others.
While lawmakers on the state level in Maine search for a solution, U.S. Representative from Maine, Chellie Pingree, spearheaded a move to get the FDA to clarify its stance on CBD regulations in a letter last week. [2]
Twelve U.S. representatives signed on to Pingree’s letter, including presidential candidate Tulsi Gabbard of Hawai’i and Minnesota’s own Betty McCollum.
The troubling news in Maine, Ohio and New York City aren’t the only worrisome CBD trend we’ve seen. The Chicago Tribune Friday that government officials there would start tracking the businesses within the city who sell CBD products. [3]
Thousands of people love CBD products and rely on them to feel healthy and comfortable and to improve their lives in myriad ways. The CBD industry is rushing to fill the regulatory gap under the new regime and police itself.
But at this stage, it is important for consumers and proprietors alike to stand up for the right to consume CBD products.
Sources
[1] https://www.pressherald.com/2019/02/22/state-official-apologizes-for-confusion-over-cbd-policy/
[2] https://www.nothingbuthemp.net/blog/u-s-congress-members-add-pressure-to-protect-cbd
[3] https://www.chicagotribune.com/business/ct-biz-chicago-cbd-regulation-20190220-story.html
