News analysis for professionals in the cannabis industry

EU officially recognises first CBG-rich hemp variety among registered plants

Written by Tiziana Cauli | 13th May 2022

The EU has granted official recognition to a hemp variety rich in cannabigerol (CBG) by including a new cannabinoid strain in its database of registered plant varieties ...

Europe seeks makeover for rules on CBD in cosmetics in wake of Kanavape ruling

Written by Sergi Riudalbàs Clemente | 9th May 2022

A non-paper is being drafted by European authorities to examine how to change rules to formally permit the use of CBD in cosmetics in Europe following the Courts of Justice of the European Union (CJEU)...

Kanavape ruling: 17 months on, EU-wide compliance remains patchy and unsure

Written by Sergi Riudalbàs Clemente | 4th May 2022

The European Commission has emphasised once again that EU member states must apply the ruling of the Courts of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) in the Kanavape decision to national law ...

Different strokes for different folks – why the EU’s not all one for wellness CBD

Written by Lorraine Mullaney | 26th April 2022

Companies selling CBD wellness products in the EU must be wary of the lack of harmonisation at the EU level and the potential complications this can bring ...

Appeals court hands hemp company a victory in Polish ‘novel food’ battle

Written by CannIntelligence | 14th April 2022

A Polish appeals court has accepted arguments that hemp was consumed before 1997, making it non-novel and leading the court to overturn a decision by the country’s Chief Sanitary Inspectorate ...

EIHA gives warm welcome to EU-wide THC limits, but uncertainties remain

Written by CannIntelligence | 13th April 2022

Maximum THC levels for hempseed foods and oil across the EU are a major step forward in clarifying the regulation of hemp-derived products, according to the European Industrial Hemp Association (EIHA) ...

European Commission moving ahead slowly on permissible THC levels in food

Written by CannIntelligence | 24th March 2022

THC levels have been established for certain hemp foodstuffs, which may later govern the amount of THC allowed in ingestible cannabinoid products, experts working for the European Commission have confirmed ...

‘A major step forward’ for CBD as EC validates a few novel food applications

Written by CannIntelligence | 2nd March 2022

The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has validated the novel food applications of at least five CBD producers, marking what one company called an “important milestone” in the ongoing saga of EU CBD regulation ...

Market and regulatory outlook: future
cannabis strategies in Europe 2022

Written by Tim Phillips | 10th February 2022

This presentation on the market and regulatory outlook for consumer cannabis products in Europe was given by CBD-Intel’s managing director Tim Phillips ...

Export expert outlines post-Brexit tips for moving goods into the UK or Europe

Written by Lorraine Mullaney | 2nd February 2022

Andy Hooper, CEO of Global E-Commerce Experts, provides tips for companies wishing to export into Europe. He'll expand on this in a talk at White Label World Expo in London on 2nd and 3rd March...

Ambiguity and misinformation on Italian hemp decree spread yet more confusion

Written by CannIntelligence | 28th January 2022

A recent agreement to update the Italian list of officinal (medically usable) plants has caused some unfounded consternation in the country’s CBD industry ...

Industry challenge under way as France officially brings in CBD regulations at last

Written by CannIntelligence | 12th January 2022

The French CBD industry is planning to fight back against a decree that continues to deny shops the right to sell CBD flowers or hemp leaves to consumers ...

CBD-Intel’s crystal ball reveals possible intoxicating prospects for the year ahead

Written by Freddie Dawson | 29th December 2021

“Intoxicating” will be the word to watch for and THC will be the main driver for developments in 2022, CBD-Intel predicts ...

How well did we do? CBD-Intel’s predictions for 2021 reviewed

Written by Freddie Dawson | 28th December 2021

CBD-Intel was on point in its 2021 predictions. Much like the preceding year, we believed 2021 would largely be defined more by what did not happen than what did ...

What’s next as Malta becomes first EU state to legalise recreational cannabis?

Written by Freddie Dawson | 20th December 2021

Malta becoming the first EU country to legalise recreational cannabis in some form will still have a commercial impact even though the regulations do not create a retail market ...

What do Luxembourg and Malta’s legal cannabis plans mean in practice?

Written by Freddie Dawson | 9th December 2021

Will proposed plans to legalise recreational cannabis in Luxembourg and Malta change much in terms of EU business? ...

European Council approves increased 0.3% THC limit for 2023 in new CAP

Written by Freddie Dawson | 2nd December 2021

Hemp varieties with up to 0.3% THC will soon be able to be added to the European common variety list following a vote by the European Council to adopt an EU Common Agricultural Policy (CAP)...

European Commission commentary on French CBD rules raises wider questions

Written by CannIntelligence | 19th November 2021

Questions on European policies banning flowers and outlining permitted THC levels in food ingredients have been raised by a commentary from the EC to a French proposal ...

Court of Cassation ruling spreads more confusion over French legal position

Written by CannIntelligence | 25th October 2021

The highest court in France has confirmed the decision made by the EU Court of Justice (CJEU) in the Kanavape case – but the decision has contributed to uncertainty over the legality of hemp-derived...

France facing legal battle over coming decree to ban the sale of CBD flowers

Written by CannIntelligence | 19th October 2021

The French ban on CBD flowers looks set to go ahead, with a decree expected to be officially published at the start of November – and an immediate legal appeal against it likely ...

Lidl has a change of heart, removing edible hemp products from its shelves

Written by CannIntelligence | 21st September 2021

Discount supermarket chain Lidl has removed foods containing hemp from its stores in Germany, Ireland and the Netherlands amid concerns that the products contain excessive levels of THC ...

Horse sense or dog trial? The science and law behind CBD petcare products

Written by CannIntelligence | 1st September 2021

CBD pet products remain in a grey area in terms of both legality and effectiveness – but there have been some attempts in both to shed light into the darkness ...

A long process – Europe’s still asking questions about novel food submission

Written by CannIntelligence | 14th July 2021

A year and eight months after Cibdol submitted its novel food application for EU authorisation of synthetically produced CBD, the Swiss company is still fielding questions from the European Food Safety Authority (ESFA) ...

Euro cross-party group to push for EU harmony on medicinal cannabis rules

Written by CannIntelligence | 12th July 2021

A new cross-party European parliamentary group wants to help patients across the European Union get better access to medical cannabis and advance the EU’s cannabis resolution of 2019 ...

Italian company gains EU validation for synthetic CBD novel food application

Written by Freddie Dawson | 8th July 2021

The European Commission (EC) has validated a novel food application submitted by the Italian company Farmabios for a synthetic CBD. This is the first step to gaining novel food authorisation from the European Food Safety...

EU ‘non-paper’ lays out the current state of European cannabinoid regulation

Written by Freddie Dawson | 6th July 2021

The Council of the European Union (CEU) has published a “non-paper” clarifying its thinking on the legal position of cannabis, hemp and cannabinoids within the EU and giving an overview of the current regulatory position ...

Irish novel food enforcement coming – but not on cold-pressed extracts

Written by Freddie Dawson | 30th June 2021

Enforcement action will take place in the coming months against CBD products on Irish retailers’ shelves that violate EU novel food regulations. However, cold-pressed hemp extracts will not be included ...

It’s complicated: German court ruling adds further confusion to hemp law

Written by CannIntelligence | 3rd June 2021

The legality of selling hemp flowers as well as hemp leaf tea in Germany is no clearer despite the recent ruling by the country’s highest court that low-THC industrial hemp flowers could – in principle...

EU Commission considers bringing CBD vapes under tobacco regulation

Written by CannIntelligence | 20th May 2021

European tobacco control rules could be extended to specifically cover the vaping of CBD, a new report from the European Commission suggests ...

Anxiety in Northern Ireland, UK’s EU gateway, as novel food deadline looms

Written by CannIntelligence | 11th March 2021

As the UK’s deadline for novel food applications looms, many firms are upbeat about the prospects for CBD businesses in Northern Ireland, but almost all those CBD-Intel spoke to expressed frustration at a lack of...

European Commission decides CBD from entire plant can be used in cosmetics

Written by Freddie Dawson | 27th January 2021

CBD extracted from the whole Cannabis sativa plant will be allowed in cosmetic products in the EU, according to a preliminary conclusion by the European Commission conveyed to CBD-Intel ...

Brexit terms deliver a huge headache to UK and European CBD firms and users

Written by CannIntelligence | 27th January 2021

British CBD brands are suspending shipping to the EU, European customers are hit by unexpected import fees, and UK entrepreneurs are struggling to establish their start-ups, as Brexit regulations cause chaos ...

Dutch health ministry provides relief for UK patients forgotten in Brexit deal

Written by CannIntelligence | 25th January 2021

Dutch officials have granted a six-month reprieve to find a solution to an omission in the Brexit negotiations that threatens to deprive British epilepsy patients of access to cannabis-based medicines ...

European report outlines CBD retail practices and urges clarity on the rules

Written by Freddie Dawson | 11th January 2021

A recently published report from the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction (EMCDDA) highlights the diverse retail make-up and unclear regulatory outlook of the European CBD sector ...

It could have been so much worse: 2020 was CBD’s year in the waiting-room

Written by Freddie Dawson | 1st January 2021

For many 2020 will always carry an asterisk. The CBD industry was – overall – more fortunate than many other sectors ...

A world of change – but don’t expect 2021 to deliver very much new regulation

Written by CannIntelligence | 31st December 2020

Multiple jurisdictions are planning significant legislation on both CBD and hemp-related matters, but it seems regulation in 2021 could be defined as much by what doesn’t happen as by the progress made ...

The long wait goes on for a successful European novel food application

Written by Anthony Traurig | 28th December 2020

Officials from the European Commission (EC) met with CBD-Intel to discuss the status of novel food applications in light of the ruling in the Kanavape case ...

Brexit: more clarity for international trade, but change ahead for vapes?

Written by David Palacios | 24th December 2020

While a post-Brexit regulatory review in the UK is likely to focus much more on nicotine vaping than on CBD, equally there are likely to be knock-on effects for providers of CBD products – whether...

Kanavape ruling could kick-start French CBD industry – but not everyone’s happy

Written by CannIntelligence | 3rd December 2020

The decision by the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) in the Kanavape cape that CBD cannot be treated as a narcotic has been welcomed in France – though not by the official...

Switzerland opens a door by allowing non-EU catalogue varietals to be grown

Written by Freddie Dawson | 24th November 2020

Starting next year, Switzerland will allow the commercial growing of all hemp varieties with a THC content below 1% – even those that are not in the European Union catalogue ...

EU court rules at last in Kanavape case: CBD cannot be deemed a narcotic

Written by Freddie Dawson | 19th November 2020

CBD must not be regarded a narcotic drug, even under UN Convention definitions, whether or not it is extracted from hemp flowers, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) has ruled ...

Little fear of a glut in the UK market if EU decides to classify CBD as a narcotic

Written by CannIntelligence | 3rd November 2020

Companies do not feel much risk of a glut of CBD-containing food, drink and dietary supplement products or cannabinoid ingredients coming into the UK market if the EU classifies CBD as a narcotic ...

No plans to ease restrictions on flowers, says UK Home Office

Written by CannIntelligence | 29th October 2020

The UK Home Office has stated it has no plans to ease restrictions on using flowers for extraction before the EU exit transition period ends on 1st January 2021 ...

EU ‘tax’ on plastic packaging waste could mean another tangle of red tape

Written by Pablo Cano Trilla | 20th October 2020

EU member states will have to decide how to implement a planned European levy on non-recycled plastic packaging waste – to fund it from national budgets or make industry pay for the waste it produces...

German city’s ban on foods containing natural CBD extracts faces legal test

Written by CannIntelligence | 7th October 2020

A decision by the German city of Düsseldorf to prohibit the sale of all foods containing CBD, including in natural extract form, faces a legal challenge from local hemp wholesaler Hempro International ...

Opposing politicians attack European Commission view on ‘narcotic’ CBD

Written by CannIntelligence | 15th September 2020

MEPs with very different political outlooks have attacked the European Commission’s initial opinion that CBD could be classed under United Nations conventions as a narcotic ...

Worse delays feared for European CBD novel food authorisations

Written by CannIntelligence | 27th August 2020

Do not expect European novel food authorisations before the end of 2022 at the very earliest and do not expect generic authorisations to cover non-applicant products, a new report from CBD-Intel warns ...

German firm waits to hear whether new CBD oil will be deemed ‘novel food’

Written by CannIntelligence | 24th August 2020

A German company is still waiting to hear from the authorities two months after launching new CBD products that could be considered food supplements ...

Think tank urges Poland’s government to raise THC limit for hemp growers

Written by CannIntelligence | 16th July 2020

An influential Polish think tank has released a report calling for a relaxation of Poland’s cannabis regulations ...

EIHA launches novel food application consortium project

Written by Freddie Dawson | 26th June 2020

A new consortium project from the EIHA will put four separate novel food applications in to European and UK authorities after performing the necessary toxicological and safety studies ...

LATEST ALERTS