Member Article

The ACI welcomes new FSA regulatory and precautionary guidance for the UK CBD industry

LONDON –Thursday, 13 February 2020 –

The Association for the Cannabinoid Industry (ACI) today welcomes the new regulatory and precautionary advice published by the Food Standards Agency (FSA). We believe it establishes a clear trajectory towards the development of a safe and legally compliant CBD industry in the UK.

Today’s update will be welcomed by consumers, the industry, and retailers alike. It will generate significant levels of industry investment in research and product quality which will place the sector on a sustainable path.

Over the past five years the UK CBD market has grown rapidly; today over 1.6 million people consider themselves to be regular consumers. The sector employs thousands of people in hundreds of businesses all across the country. Until now, it had grown in the shadows of the necessary regulation any such industry requires, perpetuating a lack of consumer confidence and business confusion.

The whole industry is now on notice and we are confident it will respond with urgency to the new clarity the FSA have provided.

The foundation goal of the ACI is to facilitate the creation of an ethical, high-quality and innovative cannabidiol industry in the UK. With the publication of this new guidance, we are emboldened in this mission. We will now intensify our work with the FSA, trading standards other Government departments to make this a reality.

Next month we will set out our vision for the future of the industry at the first Global CBD Summit in London.

Dr Parveen Bhatarah, Regulatory Lead, ACI “The FSA have today provided us with the regulatory clarity that the industry and consumers have been crying out for. It is critical that the industry now responds by undertaking all the investments required to ensure that we can deliver full regulatory compliance.”

Dr Andy Yates, Pharmacy Lead, ACI “This statement by the FSA is going to be welcomed by everyone connected with CBD in the UK; consumers, retailers, manufacturers and health care professionals. It sets a clear timetable for action and recommends a maximum daily dose and exclusions for use in vulnerable groups in the interim.”

Dr Sarah Gaunt, Global Regulatory Services (ACI Partner) “We support the approach taken by the FSA and will continue to be fully committed to working with ACI members to compile high quality data to support novel foods applications. We will continue our programme of work which delivers analytical equivalency testing and a series of toxicology studies to support the safety of CBD products.’

Dr Nick Horniman, Director of Regulatory Affairs, Sativa Group PLC “Sativa Group wholeheartedly welcomes the FSA’s groundbreaking statement which outlines a clear path towards a safe and legal CBD industry in the UK. We believe this will position the UK as world leaders in this sector. Sativa is fully engaged with the process of novel food approval, with the support of ACI, to ensure legal compliance.”

Stephen Mueller, Founder and CEO of Mile High Labs “We applaud FSA for recognizing the demand for CBD in the UK, and for taking the necessary steps to protect consumers. We are committed to filing our novel foods application and welcome the agency’s progressive focus on CBD compliance.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Imogen Daldy .