Recent legislation regarding CBD is reportedly alarming hemp growers and legal cannabis business owners in the state of Massachusetts. The Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources recently banned the sale of CBD-infused food and beverage products, raw CBD flower, dietary supplements containing CBD, and any kind of animal feed that contains hemp-derived CBD. The legislation aligns with the stance that the federal government and the Food and Drug Administration take on the sale of CBD. State lawmakers are saying that the main focus is on preventing the sale of CBD products that make any medicinal or therapeutic claims.
The new state law will still allow for the sale of hemp seed and hemp seed oil, culled hemp, and hemp protein. Clothing, building materials and other items made from hemp will remain legal in the state as well. The law says that licensed cannabis growers and processors in the state can still buy and sell hemp flower – which is usually used for extraction. However, the new law strictly outlaws the retail sale of flower.
“Failure to comply may result in enforcement action from the Department, DPH, the local board of health, or law enforcement. This may include the inability to sell any hemp-derived products in the future, the destruction or seizure of illegal products, loss of license, or further legal action to determine whether the product sold is in compliance,” reads a policy statement from the Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources.
Prominent hemp farmers and cannabis advocates in Massachusetts are alarmed by the new legislation. Jim Borghesani, the spokesman for the 2016 ballot initiative that legalized cannabis in the state, called the new legislation an “absurd dichotomy” in an interview. Recreational sales of cannabis are currently legal in the state of Massachusetts, so the confusion and frustration of cannabis advocates regarding the new policy seems to be justified. Borghesani went on to say that while legalizing recreational cannabis passed by a vote of 54 percent, “probably a lot more want access to hemp consumables.”
Rep. David Rogers, House chairman of the state’s Cannabis Policy Committee, said “there’s a possibility” the chamber will address the new restrictions on CBD “if need be.”
There are likely many residents, cannabis advocates and the like in the state that would say that there is a need for the chamber to address the new restrictions on CBD in the state, especially if recreational cannabis sales continue to be legal.
