The Food and Drug AdministrationDrug Administration FDA sent letters to four CBD companies warning them not to sell unauthorized CBD products for use in food-producing animals. The companies being warned are Haniel Concepts doing business as Free State Oils Hope Botanicals, Plantacea LLC doing business as Kahm CBD and Kingdom Harvest.
The agency said it was trying to keep animals and their food safe, but so far it has not authorized any human or animal products with CBD. The only cannabis-derived substance approved by the FDA is Epidiolex, a prescription drug that treats rare and severe epilepsy in children, made by Jazz Pharma JAZZ. All of the CBD products intended for use as a drug to treat a disease or otherwise have a therapeutic use or affect functions of the body of humans or animals are unauthorized and illegal.
Four of the four companies claimed their products help farm animals with stress, anxiety, pain, inflammation, injuries. The agency said that these products have not been vetted by the FDA to determine whether they are effective for their intended use, what the proper dosage might be, how the products could interact with FDA-approved drugs, or whether they have dangerous side effects or other safety concerns.
It stressed concerns about the safety of food products such as meat, eggs, and milk from the animals that have consumed CBD products.
The FDA provided these companies 15 days to respond and explain how they plan to correct the violations and prevent repeating them. Companies that don't comply could be prosecuted.
The FDA warned five companies for selling products with delta 8 THC in violation of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act. The letters were issued several weeks before an Appeals Court decision that delta 8 THC is federally legal under the 2018 Farm Bill.
The FDA warned that CBD companies can no longer claim that their products can treat COVID - 19. The FDA warned some 15 companies to stop selling illegal CBD products in November.
There is a growing body of research that shows the many health benefits of CBD, but almost everyone agrees that more studies are needed. If we have enough evidence in our hands, will CBD companies stop the hype or will the FDA stop intervening? We'll see, although it's hard to imagine that warnings will be enough to curtail the misinformation.