Following a consultation with our members ACI have compiled a response to the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs’ (ACMD) recent call for evidence on cannabinoids in CBD products.
ACI members met for an exclusive event on 12 April to run through ACMD’s questions and ensure our response aptly reflects feedback from CBD industry leaders.
ACMD has been commissioned to provide impartial and independent scientific advice on the acceptable levels of constituent cannabinoids in CBD products marketed as consumer products.
“We fully support the initiative by the ACMD to collect as much evidence based information and views about acceptable levels of controlled cannabinoids in CBD products,” explains Dr Paul Duffy, Toxicology Associate, ACI. “In real world use of wellness CBD products we all want the same understanding and assurance about safety that helps the industry and protects the consumer.”
Dr Andy Yates, Scientific Associate for the ACI points out that, “In recent years the elephant-in-the-room with legal CBD food products has been dealing with trace levels of controlled substances; what does zero-THC really represent and what are the acceptable levels of controlled cannabinoids that pose no risk to consumers and wider society?”
In relation to the final response submitted by ACI Dr Parveen Bhatarah, Regulatory and Compliance Associate, ACI says, “We understand it’s a priority for the UK Government to tackle misuse of drugs and the harm that trace percentage of controlled cannabinoids in CBD based consumer products could cause. Due to the limited availability of related data on some of these controlled cannabinoids it’s best to focus on keeping levels down to unavoidable trace levels based on the evaluation of CBD formulations on sale, analytical capability to test and maximum dose for any non-negligible effect of controlled cannabinoids.”
The ACMD invited “all sections of society” to provide written evidence to answer seven questions relating to the existence, dosage and safety profile of cannabinoids found in CBD products, including CBD itself, Δ9-THC, Δ9-THCA-A, CBN and THCV. Dr Yates reflects on the initiative by the Home Office and ACMD, “In using the evidence base to determine the answer to these questions, it offers a significant step forward in cementing the U.K. as a leader for a safe, legal and flourishing commercial CBD extract market.”
We submitted our response to their questions on Tuesday 20 April to meet their deadline of the 21st.
Our full response is available to download.
“ACI continuously engages in constructive dialogue with the regulatory authorities in the UK to ensure that our members get their most pressing concerns across to the key stakeholders in the industry,” says ACI External Affairs director Shomi Malik.
If you are interested in joining ACI and ensuring that your company’s voice is heard where it matters please contact us to discover more about the benefits of becoming a member.
