law Archives - Ministry of Hemp America's leading advocate for hemp Sun, 09 May 2021 20:05:34 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.2.2 https://ministryofhemp.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/Icon.png law Archives - Ministry of Hemp 32 32 Canopy Growth Sues GW Pharma Over CO2 Extraction Patent https://ministryofhemp.com/canopy-growth-gw-pharma-co2-extraction-lawsuit/ https://ministryofhemp.com/canopy-growth-gw-pharma-co2-extraction-lawsuit/#respond Wed, 30 Dec 2020 23:16:28 +0000 http://ministryofhemp.com/?p=64124 In late December 2020, Canopy Growth launched a lawsuit against GW Pharma, over Canopy's claims to own the rights to CO2 extraction.

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Canopy Growth Corporation recently launched a lawsuit against GW Pharmaceuticals over control of a commonplace CBD extraction technology.

Canopy Growth, based in Canada, launched their lawsuit on December 22, 2020. That’s the same day the massive cannabis corporation received an expansion on a key patent, according to Marijuana Moment.

The Canopy Growth lawsuit “will impact the industry for the next 100 years.”

Troy Ivan, CEO of ExtractCraft

The Canopy Growth lawsuit could have lasting consequences for the hemp and cannabis industry. At issue is a patent, currently owned by Canopy Growth, which covers CO2 extraction. Nearly every brand in the hemp and cannabis industry uses some form of CO2 extraction. This key technology has decades of use by chemists, cannabis researchers and scientists.

If they win their lawsuit, Canopy Growth wants GW Pharma to pay for the use of CO2 extraction in the creation of a prescription CBD drug. In theory, they could then demand fees from dozens or hundreds of other hemp companies. Some limitations apply to how long Canopy Growth could use the patent to demand licensing fees from other brands. However, the impact of the lawsuit could be long lasting, setting the tone for a growing industry.

A battle of cannabis-industry behemoths

UK-based GW Pharmaceuticals is the creator of Epidiolex, a CBD-based treatment for severe epilepsy. Epidiolex is the first U.S. Food & Drug Administration-approved medication based on a cannabis plant extract.

Canopy Growth Corporation claimed ownership over CO2 extraction, a key hemp industry technology, in a recent lawsuit. Photo: A photo of hemp plants and a dropper of hemp extract, shot in a golden glowing light resembling sunrise.
Canopy Growth Corporation claimed ownership over CO2 extraction, a key hemp industry technology, in a December 2020 lawsuit.

While multiple methods of extracting CBD and THC from hemp or cannabis exist, CO2 based extraction is the current gold standard. Consumers and researchers alike prize these extracts, which are pure and free of solvents and other toxins. Though the patent covers CBD or THC extracts, the best extracts usually feature other cannabinoids and terpenes to create the desirable “entourage effect.”

GW Pharma and Canopy Growth represent two of the most powerful companies in the industry. The core issue: whether basic cannabis extraction technologies can be patented, could reverberate for years.

Troy Ivan, CEO of ExtractCraft, told Ministry of Hemp that the legal battle between these two behemoths would be “incredibly fun to watch.”

However, he said that the results of the Canopy Growth lawsuit “will have a very powerful impact on the industry for the next 100 years, one way or another.”

Purchased patent leads to Canopy Growth lawsuit

At the heart of the Canopy Growth lawsuit is Patent 10,870,632, “a method for producing an extract from cannabis plant matter.”

In the lawsuit, Canopy Growth claims ownership over “pioneering processes for extracting cannabidiol (CBD).”

The patent specifically covers the extraction of THC and CBD, along with the related acidic forms (THC-A and CBD-A) of these major cannabinoids. Researchers at Bionorica originally obtained the patent. But Bionorica sold their cannabis research business to Canopy Growth in May 2019.

Ivan told us he believed Canopy Growth purchased Bionorica’s cannabis business, including the patent, “specifically for this agenda.” In other words, they intended all along to try to profit off of other brands’ use of this key technology.

In response to inquiries about the lawsuit, Canopy Growth sent us a brief prepared statement from Phil Shaer, their chief legal officer. The statement claims that the patent represents “pioneering processes for extracting cannabidiol (CBD).”

However, though the patent was first filed in 2001, it’s likely that cannabis enthusiasts and researchers have been using CO2 extraction since at least the 1990s.

Canopy Growth lawsuit could be ‘terrible for consumers and the industry’

“We have no interest in restricting access to Epidiolex®,” Shaer wrote in the Canopy Growth lawsuit statement, “but the Company should be fairly compensated for GW’s use of our intellectual property.”

Neither Shaer nor any other representative of Canopy would answer further questions from us.

If Canopy Growth wins, it seems unlikely that they will stop with demanding licensing fees from just GW Pharma. Why should they, when virtually every major CBD and THC extract producer uses CO2 extraction?

While stressing that he isn’t a patent lawyer, Eric Steenstra, president of Vote Hemp, expressed grave concern over the lawsuit.

“If Canopy prevails, it will be terrible for consumers and the industry.”

Could Canopy Growth become ‘patent trolls’?

It seems to us at Ministry of Hemp that Canopy is becoming what’s often known as a “patent troll.”

The Electronic Frontier Foundation wrote that the patent system “is “supposed to represent a bargain between inventors and the public.”

By protecting a unique invention for a period of time, inventors are encouraged to innovate, with that technology eventually becoming accessible to all after the exclusivity period ends.

“If Canopy prevails, it will be terrible for consumers and the industry.”

Eric Steenstra, President of Vote Hemp

In the hands of a patent troll, intellectual property doesn’t protect innovation. It stifles it. A patent becomes a weapon instead of protection.

While we’re not patent lawyers either, it appears that Canopy Growth wants to control a technology with widespread use. It could become prohibitively expensive for smaller companies to bring their products to market, even if they represented a new or unique use for a CO2 extract.

These added expenses and legal threats could be disastrous for the hemp industry, which is struggling to find its footing amid a pandemic, just 2 years after federal legalization.

We’ll continue to closely monitor the Canopy Growth vs. GW Pharmaceuticals lawsuit, and update this article accordingly.

Conflict of interest disclaimer: The author owned 4 shares of Canopy Growth stock, which he sold just before writing this article. As of this writing, he owns a single share of GW Pharmaceuticals stock in a very small portfolio of cannabis industry stocks.

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Hemp After Election 2020: Legalizing Cannabis Will Make Hemp Thrive (UPDATED) https://ministryofhemp.com/hemp-election-2020-cannabis/ https://ministryofhemp.com/hemp-election-2020-cannabis/#comments Tue, 08 Dec 2020 18:00:00 +0000 http://ministryofhemp.com/?p=63623 In election 2020, voters came out in support of cannabis in a big way. That's good news for the hemp industry too.

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After election 2020, we think the future is bright for hemp … and all forms of cannabis.

The 2020 election was a referendum on the legalization of cannabis, as much as it was a vote about who would represent us or lead the country. We believe that federally legalizing cannabis will help the hemp industry, too.

In the 2020 election, voters in 4 states legalized the possession of psychoactive cannabis (a.k.a “marijuana”) by adults. Two more states approved medical cannabis. In total, 36 states now support some form of possession of psychoactive cannabis, whether for medicinal or recreational purposes. And President-elect Joe Biden might be more supportive of legalization and reform of the war on drugs than any president in our lifetimes.

Legalizing cannabis is an issue many politicians dismissed or avoided discussing for years, even as more of the populace began to openly support the idea. Polls about cannabis legalization consistently show that the majority of Americans support both recreational and medicinal cannabis. And those numbers seem to increase with every year and every poll.

We believe that legalizing cannabis is good for the country, and good for industrial hemp too. Even though the U.S. legalized hemp in 2018, barriers remain that make it hard for our favorite plant to thrive here. Some of those would disappear if all forms of cannabis became legal.

Update December 2020: U.S. House of Reps passes ‘MORE Act’ Calling For Cannabis Decriminalization

About one month after the election, the U.S. House of Representatives approved the historic Marijuana Opportunity, Reinvestment and Expungement (MORE) Act. This bill would deschedule cannabis, making possession no longer a crime, and expunge past cannabis convictions as well.

The House voted to approve the MORE Act on December 4, 2020 despite heavy criticism from members of the Republican party. The vote was split largely along party lines. Republicans issued statements and took to Twitter to lambast their political opponents for even attempting to pass cannabis legalization legislation. As a result, passage in the GOP dominated Senate looks impossible.

“It’s important for farmers … it’s important to get people out of prison and for our own well being.”

As we discussed below and in a December 2, 2020 Ministry of Hemp podcast episode on cannabis legalization, this illustrates the stark divide between popular opinion and political will on psychoactive cannabis (a.k.a. “marijuana”). While Republican leaders like Sen. Mitch McConnell are enthusiastic in their support of another form of the same plant, too much stigma remains for them to openly embrace support of THC-rich cannabis. That’s even though psychoactive cannabis is generating billions for state economies during an intense economic downturn.

Not only would legalizing cannabis help clear up some remaining issues in the hemp industry, “it’s important for our farmers, it’s important for business revenues. … it is important to free up frivolous lawsuits and get people out of prison that should not be there and it’s important for our own wellbeing,” as our podcast host Matt Baum pointed out during our recent discussion.

With a run-off election imminent in Georgia and more political change ahead, support for cannabis could continue to grow. We think it’s time for Republicans to contact their lawmakers and tell them they support cannabis legalization too.

The connection between hemp and ‘marijuana’

Two years ago, Pres. Donald Trump signed the 2018 Farm Bill, a massive omnibus agricultural funding bill which included an amendment that legalized hemp.

Hemp advocates celebrated this long-awaited move but, despite bi-partisan support of industrial hemp, the new industry is off to a difficult start. Everyone from banks to social media companies continue to stigmatize hemp, associating it with cannabis which they still deem illegal. That makes it hard to grow the industry, or invest in new uses for the plant.

To fully legalize hemp, we need to support access to the plant in all its forms.

The fact that every state has slightly different laws for treating both hemp and cannabis creates an ongoing mess of legal confusion and prosecutions. Police don’t have reliable ways to tell the difference between hemp and cannabis. Some states are responding by banning smokable forms of hemp, despite their exploding popularity and the fact that the Farm Bill legalized all forms of hemp.

Industrial hemp is a different form of the cannabis plant that doesn’t get people high. Legally speaking, the only difference is that hemp needs to remain below 0.3% THC. Crops that go over this amount typically must be destroyed, causing a tremendous amount of waste at every harvest. 

Psychoactive cannabis is consumed for pleasure, its medicinal benefits, or both. Hemp has countless uses, from medicine to clothing to food and beyond. With their distinct uses, and distinct ways of being grown, the hemp and cannabis industries will probably always be separate.

But if we want to clear up the remaining legal hurdles around hemp, legalizing all forms of the plant seems like an obvious next step. Election 2020 brought us much closer to that goal.

A person in a baseball cap stands silhoutted in a brightly lit hemp field.
After election 2020, the future looks bright for cannabis … and hemp too.

The future of hemp after election 2020

Support for the total legalization of cannabis is creeping up in Congress. The MORE Act, which would legalize cannabis nationwide, could see a House vote as soon as next week. 

While it’s unclear if Congress is quite ready to take this step, the country as a whole seems ready. More than half of states allow cannabis possession in some form. We’re well past the stage where the federal government could effectively stop legalization. There’s just too much momentum. 

After the 2020 election, it seems likely that the U.S. may legalize cannabis, and fix hemp regulations too. Timing makes a big difference, however. It took hemp about a decade to really take off in Canada after they legalized the plant. Cannabis could end up legalized with so many strings attached that the black market continues to thrive. This dysfunctional, divisive political moment could delay progress for years.

To ensure a bright future for our favorite plant, cannabis and hemp need to become priorities for our legislators. If you love hemp, you need to put pressure on lawmakers to also legalize cannabis and to do so in a way that’s just and equitable.

If we come together in support of our favorite plant, we can ensure it thrives in every form.

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Hemp Lobbying With Evan Nison Of NORML https://ministryofhemp.com/hemp-lobbying-evan-nison-norml/ https://ministryofhemp.com/hemp-lobbying-evan-nison-norml/#respond Tue, 06 Oct 2020 22:52:51 +0000 http://ministryofhemp.com/?p=63013 Experienced cannabis advocate Evan Nison tells the Ministry of Hemp podcast about hemp lobbying and differs to lobbying for marijuana.

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This week on the Ministry of Hemp podcast, an experienced hemp advocate tells us about the current state of hemp lobbying in the United States.

Evan Nison joins our host Matt on this episode. Evan has been working to change hemp and marijuana laws in the U.S. for years now, with almost too many lobbying groups to name here. The two compare fighting for hemp and cannabis legalization and what the two separate battles can learn from each other. Despite legalization at the end of 2018, there’s a lot that needs to be done to create a stable, healthy setting for U.S. hemp to thrive.

About Evan Nison

Evan Nison is the youngest member of the NORML Board of Directors and also sits on the Board of Directors of Students for Sensible Drug Policy. He is the founder of the PR firm NisonCo, which connects leaders in the legal cannabis, medical marijuana, and hemp industries with influential journalists. He received the 2011 NORML Student Activism Award and High Times Freedom Fighter Award for his advocacy.

As part of his mission to build socially driven businesses, he co-founded Whoopi & Maya, a women’s-focused cannabis brand with actress Whoopi Goldberg and fellow NORML board member Rick Cusick. Some of his other efforts include a Northern California-based cannabis tour company and Bloody Good Vape & Smoke, a smoke shop in New Jersey he founded with a victim of cannabis prohibition. Evan has been mentioned in news sources such as the New York Times, CNN, Politico, USA Today, NBC New York, Bloomberg TV, Forbes, and has been profiled in many more.

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Thanks to our partners Ott Coffee for making this episode of the Ministry of Hemp podcast possible.

Brought to you by Ott Coffee

The Ministry of Hemp is proud to partner with Ott Coffee.

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Use the code ott15 to get 15% off your first purchase at Ott Coffee.

Be sure to check out episode 43 of our podcast for Matt’s interview with Alwan Mortada, CEO of Ott Coffee, too. Thanks Ott Coffee, for making today’s episode possible!

You’ve got hemp questions? We’ve got hemp answers!

Send us your hemp questions and you might hear them answered on one of our Hemp Q&A episodes. Send your written questions to us on Twitter, Facebook, matt@ministryofhemp.com, or call us and leave a message at 402-819-6417. Keep in mind, this phone number is for hemp questions only and any other inquiries for the Ministry of Hemp should be sent to info@ministryofhemp.com

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A photo of a close-up of a green hemp leaf, with a head shot of hemp lobbyist Evan Nison appearing in the center. Evan joined the Ministry of Hemp podcast to discuss how hemp lobbying differs from cannabis advocacy.
Evan Nison of NORML joined the Ministry of Hemp podcast to discuss how hemp lobbying differs from cannabis advocacy.

Hemp lobbying with Evan Nison: Complete episode transcript

Below you’ll find the complete transcript of episode 57 of the Ministry of Hemp podcast, “Hemp Lobbying With Evan Nison Of NORML”:

Matt Baum:
I’m Matt Baum, and this is the Ministry of Hemp Podcast brought to you by ministryofhemp.com, America’s leading advocate for hemp and hemp education. Welcome back to the Ministry of Hemp Podcast. Once again, this week, we are brought to you by Ott Coffee, O-T-T coffee, that is. You can find them at ottcoffee.com. Super pumped to partner with these guys because Alwan, who is their CEO sent me more free CBD coffee, and I officially love CBD coffee. You will love it too. I’ll tell you all about it later on in the show and a way that you can get 15% off your first order from ottcoffee.com, so stay tuned for that. Now, if you’ve been paying attention, you know that this is a show about hemp education advocacy. We call it the Ministry of Hemp after all. By the way, not a religious organization, so stop sending me those weird religious emails.

Matt Baum:
That’s not what we do here. We’re just preaching the word of hemp. Okay? You’re welcome to your thing. I’m going to do mine, but regardless. Today on the show, we are going to talk about marijuana for a little bit. It is hemp’s cousin, the same plant, literally the same plant as hemp, but with more THC. Today, I’m going to talk to Evan Nison. He is the youngest board member of NORML. NORML is the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws. Now, Evan also lobbied for hemp for a while, and that’s why I wanted to bring him on the show. I thought it would be really interesting to have a conversation about the differences of lobbying for hemp laws versus lobbying for marijuana laws. We ended up having a really interesting discussion. Evan is very cool and extremely busy. I would list off everything he does right here, but I think it’s better if you hear it from him. This is my conversation with Evan Nison.

Meet cannabis and hemp lobbyist Evan Nison

Evan Nison:
And I am the owner and founder of NisonCO PR, the treasurer of NORML National. I’m the board of directors of Students for Sensible Drug Policy, and also the co-founder of a couple of smoke and vape shops in New Jersey and a cannabis tour company in San Francisco.

Matt Baum:
You’re a busy guy, is what you’re saying. Do you have a lot of stuff going on?

Evan Nison:
Yes. Yes. I’m definitely pretty busy. I have amazing teams and if it wasn’t for them, I obviously wouldn’t be able to do, or we wouldn’t be able to do nearly as much, but I am definitely busy and my whole team stays pretty busy as well.

Matt Baum:
Fair enough. Let’s talk about NORML for a minute because I don’t think a lot of people know what that is. What can you tell me about NORML? As I understand it and maybe I’m wrong, but NORML was partially formed with help from Playboy Entertainment. Is that correct?

Evan Nison:
Yes. Actually, that is a less known story.

Matt Baum:
That blew my mind.

Evan Nison:
Yeah. Hugh Hefner actually made one of the original donations that founded NORML, and I believe in may have actually been on the Playboy jet from what I’m told, obviously. [crosstalk 00:03:14]. Yeah. That’s what I’m told.

Matt Baum:
Oh, wow. You weren’t around for that one. You’re a little too young.

Evan Nison:
Yeah. But from what I understand, and I believe High Times was also initially modeled after Playboy, which is why that centerfolds the bud. They were thinking that it would be Playboy or Penthouse, but for drugs instead of sex was like the model of High Times. High Times and NORML actually sort of helped create each other too. High Times helped fund NORML, and NORML promoted High Times, and both of those things sort of rose together, both the entities.

Matt Baum:
I never put that together, but yes, High Times is basically Playboy magazine, but instead of nude pictures, you get pictures of bud.

Evan Nison:
Yeah, exactly.

Hemp & cannabis lobbying with NORML

Matt Baum:
It makes perfect sense. I never really put that together, but there it is. Tell me about NORML. What is NORML? N-O-R-M-L, correct?

Evan Nison:
Yeah, exactly. It stands for the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws. Sorry. I almost crack there. The Reform of Marijuana Laws, and that’s exactly what it is. It’s a national organization. Actually, international, but primarily focusing on national and domestic issues in DC and state and local politics here. We’re a grassroots cannabis reform organization, nonprofit. When we say cannabis, we mean all of cannabis, including hemp, of course.

Matt Baum:
Right.

Evan Nison:
We view ourselves as the consumer lobby and we’re one of the oldest organizations standing. We actually were not the first cannabis legalization, nonprofit. Some people think that. That’s not true. There was a group before us called Lamar for legalized marijuana apparently, but one of the first and certainly the oldest longest standing cannabis reform organization. I’m the youngest board member as well. It’s pretty crazy. I set up these board meetings and some of these people helped found the medical marijuana movement and the legalization movement. It feels pretty surreal. I still honestly have a hard time grasping it.

Matt Baum:
How does a kind like you ended up the youngest board member of this massive… I mean, NORML’s pretty big. They’re huge. They’re nationwide. They’ve been around for a lot of years. How do you end up on the board of directors at your age?

Evan Nison:
Well, in my very particular case, I have a mentor who is also on the board who elected me, which helped [crosstalk 00:05:35].

Matt Baum:
Okay. That helps. Sure.

Evan Nison:
That definitely helped in this particular case, but I would think I was at the right place, the right time. Also, it was at a time where the movement was shifting from the 70s style, pi politicians in the face to exaggerate, to like the suit and tie type of deal. I remember one of the only people lobbying for cannabis reform in a suit and tie, and now obviously everyone’s wearing a suit and tie [inaudible 00:06:06] no longer have to because [crosstalk 00:06:07].

Matt Baum:
Right. That’s changed quite a bit. Yeah.

Evan Nison:
Yeah, exactly.

Matt Baum:
Probably for the better. I love the old hippy stuff too, but at some point, if we want to play the game, we have to wear the uniform. Right?

Evan Nison:
Exactly. Right. Exactly. Ironically enough, I actually kind of stopped wearing the uniform because I was mostly doing it to show like “stoners can also be professional,” and now we’re actually professional, so I don’t have to show it anymore.

Matt Baum:
Fair enough.

Evan Nison:
We’ve always been professional. Yeah.

Matt Baum:
This story started with, like you said, Playboy founding NORML. Recently, they also just launched a huge cannabis reform campaign. What can you tell me about that?

Evan Nison:
NORML or Playboy or…

Matt Baum:
NORML and Playboy together from what I understand have launched this cannabis reform campaign.

Evan Nison:
Honestly, I’m not familiar with that.

Matt Baum:
Okay.

Evan Nison:
We have three board meetings a year. I’m in touch with the staff on a regular basis, but we have our next board meeting on a few weeks. I assume that update is going to be coming down. I’ve mostly been focusing with them on the New Jersey campaign. We just did a promotion with Rick Steves, who’s the travel guru, has his own TV show.

Matt Baum:
Oh, yeah. Rick Steves from NPR. Yeah.

Evan Nison:
Yeah.

Matt Baum:
I love that guy.

Evan Nison:
He has a travel show as well.

State initiatives to legalize cannabis

Matt Baum:
Oh, okay. Tell me about the New Jersey campaign. What’s going on with that?

Evan Nison:
We have legalization for Up Cannabis, which would include hemp and hemp is already legal here in New Jersey. We include… It would be adult use for adults over 21 on this case, full legalization, on the ballot, but it’d be a constitutional amendment, so we’d still have to pass a statute through the legislature.

Matt Baum:
Right.

Evan Nison:
But the polling is very, very good. Almost two to one in support, so I’m very excited about that.

Matt Baum:
Okay. Now, let me ask you this. One of the things, we see marijuana on the ballot in a lot of states, New Jersey in this case. What does legalization of marijuana for adults? What does that do for the hemp space? Does that help the industrial hemp space or the CBD space? Does it affect it at all, or are we just talking about marijuana legislation here?

Evan Nison:
In this particular case, we are talking about marijuana legislation, but I believe they all tie into each other in the sense that they’ve all been stigmatized.

Matt Baum:
Sure.

Evan Nison:
Hemp itself is not as popular as it could or should be because of its stigma related to cannabis. I believe as the full plant becomes legal, all of its derivatives including medicines, fibers, all of it is going to be less stigmatized and consumed in higher volumes, if that makes sense.

Matt Baum:
Sure. Sure. I’m from Nebraska. We’re an exceptionally red state where we’re never going to make it legal unfortunately because of all kinds of stupid reasons, but we recently just had a bunch of petitions that went out to get medical marijuana on the ballot. It actually passed. Our wonderful governor said, “No. I’m not going to put it on the ballot. Sorry.” Because he’s just that kind of guy, but do you have other states right now outside of New Jersey that are like in NORML sites where you think you can make wins like this?

Evan Nison:
There’s actually not as many ballot initiatives as we were thinking initially, because of like you said, some governors didn’t put on the state. There were some issues with some of the states, but what we’re very excited about is the potential for New Jersey to be a domino effect or the potential for a domino effect from New Jersey. At that point, I imagine New York will probably pass legalization within the next few weeks. They will be giving…

Matt Baum:
New York’s been trying for a while, right?

Evan Nison:
They’ve been “trying.” I’ve lobbied extensively in New York. I think I mentioned I got one of the pens used to sign the New York medical marijuana law. I may or may not have mentioned that. Cuomo is not as supportive as he says behind the scenes.

Matt Baum:
I’ve heard that.

Evan Nison:
A lot of times, he’ll say he’s supportive of something, but he will actually use his political capital to do the opposite.

Matt Baum:
Yeah.

Evan Nison:
That’s one of the things that I believe has been happening in New York. I think that that calculus will change. The votes are like… The senate’s blue, the assembly’s blue and Cuomo’s in office. The Democrats in both houses have said that they’re ready to pass this. Every year, they’ve been saying that.

Matt Baum:
Yeah.

Nationwide legalization through the MORE Act

Evan Nison:
It’s just the governor. I know [inaudible 00:10:40] has basically say he wants it and not actually try to prevent it with his political weight. I think that calculus in his head might change. Of course, there’s Connecticut, Pennsylvania as well, Maryland. There could be a pretty serious domino effect there. Then, of course, the MORE Act. It got pushed. The MORE Act is going to be voted on in congress before the election. It got pushed until after the election, but that is really what we are trying to achieve is the MORE Act right now.

Matt Baum:
Can you tell us about the MORE Act real quick? Because a lot of people probably don’t know.

Evan Nison:
Yeah. The MORE Act is a legalization. It has a lot of social equity provisions. I’m not the expert in NORML on them, so I don’t know all of them, but it has the social equity provisions. It has adult use legalization. It has support in the house, which is huge. It really is what we want and was one of the reasons that we were founded to achieve is something like the MORE Act. I’m not saying that there won’t be work after, of course.

Matt Baum:
Of course. Yeah. I think hemp people found that out real quick. We’ve got a farm bill and we’re like, “Hooray, we did it.” They were like, “No, you didn’t.”

Evan Nison:
Right. Exactly.

Matt Baum:
You barely did.

Evan Nison:
Exactly. The MORE Act, I guess, is like the farm bills for cannabis consumers. Really, it’s going to be that level of a win where it’s not the full win, but it is a huge win.

Matt Baum:
Right. Okay. Now, just speaking from the cannabis space, what do you say to win these people over? When we have like a governor like we have in Nebraska who thinks it’s a gateway drug to heroin or something stupid, what do you say to these people that accuse you of just being a stoner in a suit that wants to get high? What is the purpose of… What is normal use to normalize this? How do you talk to these people?

Evan Nison:
Great question. In most situations, the way to respond to that, unless you’re talking to an actual elected official is, I myself, just turned 30. I used to say in my 20s, but now I guess in my early 30s.

Matt Baum:
You’re an old man now. You’re not a kid anymore. Sorry.

Evan Nison:
Yeah, exactly. I’m not really college age anymore. I used to say college aged, but now I’m early 30s. Now, most people can probably assume I’m a consumer or most people can assume I’m a consumer and I’m not the right messenger actually.

Matt Baum:
Right.

Evan Nison:
The best thing to do is for me to get a mother or a former cop or a current cop or a judge to make that argument for me. They’re called non-traditional allies.

Matt Baum:
Sure.

Evan Nison:
They’re the most impactful at convincing people. When you’re talking about any issue, you’re going to listen more closely to somebody who you’re surprised is supporting it than somebody who… Obviously that person’s a stoner, they’re going to stay there for legalization.

Matt Baum:
Right. The difference between bringing out like a video game playing rapper or your grandmother who like, “This really helped my grandmother’s glaucoma,” or the pain that they’re in or something.

Evan Nison:
Exactly. Yeah. A lot of our job and a lot of my job has been, throughout the years, especially in the earlier part of advocacy, was actually helping other people communicate to the press and to electeds who they would listen to more than me, frankly.

From hemp lobbying to cannabis PR

Matt Baum:
Sure. Sure. You have lobbied for hemp in the past. Tell me a little bit about that.

Evan Nison:
Yeah. Actually, we were talking before the segment, me lobbying for hemp pro bono is what led to me having a PR firm organically, accidentally, I should say. Same thing.

Matt Baum:
Yeah. I think that organically is a nice way to say accidentally, basically.

Evan Nison:
Yeah. I was lobbying for industrial hemp in New Jersey, and I’d put out a press release and a company contacted me saying that they wanted to help support that bill. I was like, “Well actually, I’m doing this for free. You could hire a lobbyist and I’d be happy to manage them, but also I think I could probably just pass this if I have enough time to do it. Right now, I’m doing it a couple hours a week. I’m driving down a train, and meeting with whoever’s down here.” They’re like, “I’m down to do that. Let’s do that.” That turned into a paid lobbying gig. Then, during that paid lobbying engagement, I wound up getting them so much media that they got me PR tools as well, and asked me to focus on PR in addition to lobbying. Then, that led by word of mouth to my first 30 clients, which led to me hiring people. Now, we’re a PR firm and have like 22 or 23 employees.

Matt Baum:
It’s an American success story, [inaudible 00:15:35].

Evan Nison:
We’re like becoming a company. Yeah. We’re becoming a company. We’re becoming a company. Yeah.

Thanks to Ott Coffee for sponsoring our show

Matt Baum:
This is great. Yeah. This is perfect. Let’s take a quick break, so we can talk about our partner this week. Ott Coffee is partnering with us for a second week in a row. For a second week in a row, you can get 15% off your first purchase at ottcoffee.com, or you can hit them up and get a free sample just by paying the $5 shipping. Now, Ott Coffee has figured out a fantastic way to combine CBD and very high quality coffee. I say very high quality because I am a coffee snob. Alwan, the CEO sent me some and I loved it. You can hear our full conversation about how he started his company back in episode 43 of this show. The idea is very simple. You combine coffee with CBD for an alert, focused and mellow state of mind, minus the annoying jitters, anxiety and crashes that come with caffeine.

Matt Baum:
I love coffee and I need caffeine to wake up. It’s a crutch, and I have been thinking about trying to see if I could cut it out of my diet someday, but I love it too much, so I don’t plan on it. Now, another reason I don’t plan on it is because now I can get CBD with my coffee. Just like they said, it takes away that jittery thing. I drink it too fast, I admit, and I drink too much of it. But when you mix it with CBD, it seems to mellow me out just enough, so I’m focused and I’m alert and I’m awake, but I’m not vibrating. My heart is not racing, and I slowly come down the other side. I don’t hit a caffeine crash and decide that I need to grab more coffee.

Matt Baum:
If I do, they have a decaf as well. It’s a part of their relaxation series. It’s a medium roast coffee blend with smooth notes of caramel, chocolate and fruity flavors. I particularly love their productivity series. This is the full caffeinated version. It’s a medium roast coffee blend with smooth notes of caramel, chocolate and vanilla flavors. They are both fantastic. Like I said, you can try a free sample at ottcoffee.com. Just pay the $5 shipping or you can use the code OTT15. THat’s O-T-T 15 for 15% off your first order. Like I said, it’s just great coffee.

Matt Baum:
If you listen to the episode or interview of Alwin, he talks about also being a huge coffee nerd and how he sources his beans and how much they care about quality, free trade, organic coffee, and excellent quality CBD that is infused into those beans. I can’t stress enough how excited I am about Ott Coffee and huge thanks to them for partnering with us to bring you this show. If you enjoy the Ministry of Hemp Podcast, please head over to ottcoffee.com, buy some coffee and use the code to let them know not only are you listening to this show, but you want to support companies that support Ministry of Hemp. That’s ottcoffee.com. As always, I’ll have a link in the show notes for this episode.

Getting to know Evan Nison

Matt Baum:
What was your background? Did you come out of law? Did you come out of city government? How does this start?

Evan Nison:
Well, when I was in college, I never liked classes. I tried my best to not attempt the classes to be honest, but I really enjoyed learning.

Matt Baum:
I did too. Yes. Same here.

Evan Nison:
Yeah. I tried to do things outside of the class, like lobbying, holding press conferences for medical marijuana and things like that. By the time I got out of college, I had experienced lobbying. I experienced holding press conferences. I knew a bunch of legislators and I was kind of well positioned. Again, this is at a time before the industry. There wasn’t many of us who are really involved. There was probably 20 at most. We all knew each other across the country.

Matt Baum:
Sure.

Evan Nison:
Maybe that’s an exaggeration, but 20 really, really, really into it people.

Comparing cannabis advocacy with hemp lobbying

Matt Baum:
You’ve lobbied for hemp. You’ve lobbied for marijuana. Which do you think… This might be a silly question. Do you think one is more difficult to sell to the public than the other? Because even though they’re the same plant, one does a different thing and one has less THC. Do you think that selling hemp to a state to get legalized or legalizing marijuana? Which one do you find more of a battle in?

Evan Nison:
That’s a good question. Legalization of cannabis, of high THC cannabis was harder in the sense that we’re talking about “a drug.” We’re talking about addiction. We’re talking about people’s kids. We’re talking about driving. Like there is a lot, there is a lot of really, really sticky issues for public.

Matt Baum:
Sure. Sure.

Evan Nison:
But there was an extreme amount of interest in it. This was more of the case obviously back in the day, but I remember when we put out a first press release of one of our clients going from Wall Street to the cannabis industry, that was like Wall Street Journal covered it on their actual paper, in their front section and things like that. There was just a lot more opportunity to talk to the public with hemp. There is interest in it, but it’s not as much interest, but I think hemp is easier.

Evan Nison:
The real reason that I will say that is because of farming because the Republicans have tied… Especially in congress, the Republicans have tied themselves to farmers in middle America, in Kentucky. That has played perfectly into our narrative… Into their narrative, rather. Whereas with cannabis legalization, we’re talking about inner city, youth being arrested. I guess there would be farming, but I think it’s viewed differently. I want to say hemp has been easier, but it’s been harder to actually have the platform to speak on.

Matt Baum:
It does seem like that because it seems like marijuana was legalized in different states well before we even started talking about hemp and the concerns for marijuana were such that like coming out of the 70s and 80s, where of course, we learned that marijuana just ruins lives and destroys civilizations as we know it, whereas hemp had none of that tied to it other than the fact that it looks like marijuana. It just seems so ridiculous. First, to be fair, the whole thing is ridiculous and it should all be legalized. Period.

Evan Nison:
Yes. Right.

The future of hemp lobbying

Matt Baum:
Okay. End of story. But I can see how the arguments against marijuana, which were so ingrained for racial stereotypes, for crime stereotypes and whatnot. Overcoming that almost seemed to be easier just due to interest whereas hemp right now doesn’t have that same interest outside of some pain relief, helping farms, replacing certain things in the industrial as far as plastics and fabrics and whatnot. What do you think the way forward now that hemp is legal? It’s totally legal, but still having all these problems. What do you see the way forward for hemp being?

Evan Nison:
That’s a good question. Figuring out the issue and making sure that the farm bill is implemented correctly, even if that means additional legislation or fixes is going to be very important. I’m not a hemp farmer. I know there’s incredible amounts of issues. I don’t know all of them in detail, but there’s going to need to be stakeholder meetings with hemp farmers and things like that to really figure it out. I think that the agencies should be empowered to do that, so we don’t have to go back to congress all the time. That would be big because I do think that the federal agencies are not opposed to this. Once congress allows it, they’ll happily regulate it and try to support the industry. They just need the ability and latitude to be able to make the decisions they need to.

Matt Baum:
Sure.

Evan Nison:
It’s not often. I actually encourage more bureaucracy [inaudible 00:23:41]. If the agencies don’t have it, then the congress has it and congress has the worst bureaucracy.

Matt Baum:
Right.

Evan Nison:
That’s pretty important. I think also like in a weird way, this is going to tie into psychedelics what I’m about to say. It’s to your point, which I know is totally on top of… Off the map in cannabis, but to your point on hemp being legalized after cannabis, I think that there is a huge faction of people that was like cannabis illegal because there’s a reason. It wouldn’t be made illegal if there wasn’t a reason, and they made that same judgment with hemp. I remember my parents, they’re very open-minded, but they’re like, “No. That doesn’t make sense. There’s obviously a reason they would make this illegal. If it was just a plant, and whatever.”

Matt Baum:
Oh, of course.

Evan Nison:
I think when cannabis became legal and people were like, “Holy shit. We actually were lied to for decades.” Now, they’re reevaluating hemp, and this is where psychedelics comes in. That’s been making much more progress than I would have ever dreamed of.

Matt Baum:
Yeah. Definitely.

Evan Nison:
Like mushrooms are being decriminalized. I think that it all stems from people being like, “Holy shit, we maybe are lied to sometimes about these things.”

Matt Baum:
Absolutely. You mentioned about how hemp has really pushed for federal agencies to make rulings on things. It doesn’t seem… Maybe I’m wrong. Correct me if I’m wrong, but it doesn’t seem like marijuana is pushed as hard. It seems like marijuana has gone more for a state by state win as opposed to going to federal agencies and saying, “All right. Let’s get a full US-wide lift on this, sort of like we did with the farm bill for hemp.” Am I mistaken here, or is that correct?

Hemp & cannabis in Congress

Evan Nison:
That is correct. Well, that’s part of what we want for the legalization, right? Something like the MORE Act that would bring this conversation to a national level rather than state by state. To some extent, it will be on both levels forever just like hemp and even alcohol laws are now, which is [inaudible 00:25:43] constitution because prohibition, of course.

Matt Baum:
Of course.

Evan Nison:
Yeah. Well, we tried for both, right? The MORE Act, we are trying to get it voted on before the election. It seems like it will be pushed off and I don’t ever want to give credit to him ever again, but I think it’s because of Mitch McConnell.

Matt Baum:
Yeah.

Evan Nison:
Kentucky being… Hemp is just as much of a Republican issue. Actually frankly, hemp is probably more of a Republican issue right now than it is a Democrat.

Matt Baum:
It’s way more of a Republican issue. Most definitely.

Evan Nison:
Yeah. Yeah.

Matt Baum:
If you look at where it’s grown, they’re mainly red states.

Evan Nison:
Right. That would be my hypothesis is that because the Republicans took this off as their issue and the Democrats, of course, would go along with it because we would have taken it up as our issue as they are probably.

Matt Baum:
Sure. Sure.

Evan Nison:
Or a Democrat, then it just is a breeze. Right? Cannabis can be like that potentially. There is certainly as much bipartisanship in terms of support or almost as much bipartisanship in terms of support. It’s just the Democrats… I mean, the Republicans haven’t actually made it their issue.

Matt Baum:
Right. Right.

Evan Nison:
If they had to vote yes or no, or abstain, I think they would vote yes or abstain depending on if they thought they needed their political calculus. But it probably will not be their issue, but they’re not opposed to it. You’re not seeing ads either anywhere of saying, “Kamala Harris sponsored…” Yeah.

Matt Baum:
Is that out of fear, do you think? Is that what it is? Like, “We’re just scared to… We know it’s very popular, but there is an older electorate that’s a little [inaudible 00:27:19] about the whole thing and we’re afraid to touch it.” Is it just fear?

Evan Nison:
I think it’s actually just momentum. I think it’s just the fact that it’s been decades and decades and decades and all of these politicians have decades and decades and decades of wreck of audio and video talking about the drug war, all this stuff.

Matt Baum:
Of course. Yeah.

Evan Nison:
The fact that no one’s fighting it is huge. In some levels, it’s not enough, right? We want people to support it.

Matt Baum:
Of course.

Evan Nison:
But like I was saying, there was no ads against Kamala Harris and Biden because Kamala Harris sponsored legalization in the congress. There is opposition against Biden for supporting things like the RAVE Act and the drug war. I think the more that that happens, hopefully the Republicans will take it up, but maybe it’s just because it’s a drug issue or because they were the ones who took the real hard stance in the 90s, and they don’t want to fully admit they were wrong. I’m not sure. It’s obvious to see why they took up hemp as an issue. It’s harder to see why they’re not taking a cannabis.

Is legalization inevitable?

Matt Baum:
Do you think it’s inevitable at this point? Has one too many dominoes fallen already, and this is just going to happen and you can either get on the right side of history or try and push back, but is it inevitable? Is this coming?

Evan Nison:
Yeah, I believe. I think everyone thinks it’s inevitable and almost no one is even really trying to push back anymore.

Matt Baum:
Yeah. It seemed like that, right?

Evan Nison:
Yeah.

Matt Baum:
It just seems like there’s some delay tactics basically, but they’re not even delayed tactics in the sense, like maybe we can push this off until it goes away. From what I’ve seen, especially like McConnell, like you mentioned, who we’ve talked about a lot on this show, he was very pro-hemp and behind his farmers. He’s kind of backed off and disappeared a little bit since then, but he’s fighting a lot of weird battles right now. I’m not defending the guy.

Evan Nison:
Right. Exactly.

Matt Baum:
I can’t stand him, and I don’t agree with anything he says outside if his hemp stance.

Evan Nison:
Yeah. Exactly. Exactly. I am exactly the same place.

Matt Baum:
It just does like whenever we get closer to these elections, they seem to get quieter on these subjects to ensure that their older voting base doesn’t think that they’re trying to legalize marijuana, so the hippies take over the country, which…

Evan Nison:
Totally. The reason that the MORE Act was pushed was not because the Republicans wanted to delay the vote. It’s because there were Democrats within the caucus who wanted to delay the vote and those are Democrats and it’s politically okay. Politicians are like… They’re like scared animals in terms of new things. In some way, you can use that against you or use that against them. If you kick somebody out of office for something, all the politicians take notice of that. They’re very reluctant to do new things. When elections approach, they’re very, very nervous to do anything new or potentially controversial even if it’s not actually controversial. That’s just how they are.

Matt Baum:
Now, I don’t know why I’m even bringing this up, but what has it been like to work with the current administration in Washington? They can’t be friendly to this, judging them on a lot of their other policies.

Evan Nison:
Right. That’s a good question. I should actually ask our lobbyists about the Trump administration. We speak mostly about congress because that’s where most of the action is happening. I think… I don’t know this. This is my belief because we haven’t really talked too much about the White House yet, and I don’t know if that’s just because the MORE Act would still have to get through the senate or whatever. But my hunch is that there is probably a belief that if something gets to the president’s desk, not no matter who they are, but if they’re Republican or Democrat, it will probably get signed by Trump, by Biden, by whoever because for all the reasons we mentioned, like their support, it’s inevitable.

Matt Baum:
Sure.

Evan Nison:
By the time it got to the president’s desk, they will all have to have been in the house and the senate who put it there. Unless we have a warrior, it doesn’t happen this next four years. We have a drug warrior somehow in 2024 or 2025, I guess is when they’d be inaugurated. I think that the president will not be the issue is my guess.

Matt Baum:
Are you calling your shot? Are you saying next five years, you think this happens? Feel free. Call your shot. I’m not going to track you down in five years and be like, “You’re wrong.” Like, “Try again.”

Evan Nison:
If I had $100 bill and I had to put it on one, I would say yes, it will probably get done the next five years.

Matt Baum:
That’s amazing.

Evan Nison:
I don’t think politicians…. Yeah, it is amazing. Just like politicians don’t really want to vote on this, they also don’t want it around either.

Matt Baum:
Right.

Evan Nison:
I think they kind of want it off their plate as soon as it’s convenient.

Matt Baum:
Okay. You signed this and people freak out and go, “Oh, we can’t believe they’d signed that.” Then, you look how much money starts coming into your state and you look how much benefit comes from it. That probably silences quite a few detractors.

Evan Nison:
For sure. States will always… Again, just like alcohol, there will always be places that do not allow it. Right?

Matt Baum:
Sure.

Evan Nison:
I don’t think there will ever be a situation unless we enshrine it into the constitution. Even in that case, like I was mentioning alcohol isn’t fully true now. There’ll always be local bans, state bans, things like that, but there should be national possession legalizations and you can’t get arrested in any place and things like that.

Matt Baum:
100% agree. What do you think is the single best thing that us… You guys seem to be killing it, by the way. NORML is really out there slaying it.

Evan Nison:
For sure.

Consumer advocacy for hemp

Matt Baum:
What do you think the single best thing that we could do in the hemp world? We don’t have a NORML like you guys. You’re representing us. Thank you. We appreciate it.

Evan Nison:
Anytime. Anytime.

Matt Baum:
But what’s the single best thing you think we could be doing in the meantime? Is it literally just like writing your congressman, writing your senator, letting them know you’re interested because we collected ballots. We collected signatures here in Nebraska. It did no good. None. They told us to shut up, even though we got the amount of numbers. What do we do?

Evan Nison:
Yeah. That’s ridiculous. I think making sure that it’s clear what the needs of the hemp industry are, would be very important. If you think cannabis industry needs, you automatically… Well, it’s a different position obviously, but you think banking, you think taxation. There are certain things that the cannabis industry has made it abundantly clear. It needs to be able to thrive. When you think about hemp, there aren’t necessarily as clear of a set of policies that the hemp industry wants any people to adopt. Right? That might just because we just got a huge win in the Farm Act and it has to shake itself out, but I think being clear and concise about that as it shakes out and figuring that out as an industry and community would be beneficial, for sure. Because if you go out and if you have 100 things that you say you want, probably nobody’s going to have time. If you all talk about the same three to five things, you’ll probably get all three to five things.

Matt Baum:
Yeah. Or at least two of them, which would be great.

Evan Nison:
Right. Yeah. Exactly. Yeah.

Matt Baum:
Come on.

Evan Nison:
Exactly. That’s something.

Matt Baum:
You have been fantastic. It’s amazing your breadth of knowledge on this and everything that you’re doing in to fight for this. We’re rooting for you. We’re on your side. We’re your allies and we’re on your side.

Evan Nison:
I appreciate it. I appreciate it. I’m on your side. We’re all on the same side.

Final thoughts from Matt

Matt Baum:
It’s true. We are all on the same side. Thank you again to Evan for coming on the show. I will have links to all the amazing things that he is involved in, in the marijuana and hemp world. I just think it is incredible that there’s people out there like Evan who do understand that we need to do the dance and we need to wear the suits sometimes, and we need to do our homework and we need to come prepared. We can’t just scream and yell. We’re going to organize. We have to let our leaders know that this is a priority and we have to let them know what those priorities are. Let’s get it together, hemp. Let’s do this.

Matt Baum:
Thanks again to Ott Coffee for partnering with us. Like I said, be sure to check out the show notes and check them out. Speaking of the show notes, here at Ministry of Hemp, we believe that an accessible world is a better world for everybody. There is a full written transcript of this episode also in the show notes. If you need more hemp in your life, we have got all kinds of cool articles up on ministryofhemp.com right now, including another CBD review from a brand called Helix Naturals. They do joint relief balm that helps with pain. Be sure to check that out and check out one of our top posts right now about hemp and plastic. Hemp makes great plastic, so why isn’t hemp plastic everywhere? It’s a fantastic article. Speaking of hemp plastics and hemp fibers, next week on the show, we’re going to be talking to a company that is making hemp shoes.

Matt Baum:
I’m super excited for you guys to hear this one. If you want to be cool like Ott Coffee and actually support the Ministry of Hemp because you liked this show, you like our site and you want to help spread the word of hemp education, do me a favor and review this podcast. Wherever you’re listening to it, give us a star rating or a short written review. It really helps to move us up in the search algorithms so people can find us and head to patreon/ministryofhemp.com, and become a ministry of hemp insider. It’s going to get you access to early articles and podcast extras. I’ve got one from this episode where I’m talking to Evan all about his cannabis tour company out of San Francisco. It’s a little quiet right now because of COVID, but it’s a really cool idea. It’s helping normalize the idea of cannabis farming in California.

Matt Baum:
Head to patrion/ministryofhemp. Become a Ministry of Hemp insider right now, and huge thank you to everybody that already has. We’ll see you back here for another episode next week. Right now, it’s time to go. I like to sign off the same way every time by saying, remember to take care of yourself. Take care of others and make good decisions, will you? COVID is still out there. It’s coming back. Wear a mask, continue to wash your hands, and play it safe, you guys. No joke. Flu season’s here as well. Get a flu shot. If you haven’t, register a vote. This is Matt Baum with the Ministry of Hemp signing off.

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The FDA & CBD: FDA Warning Letters Hint At Future CBD Regulation https://ministryofhemp.com/fda-cbd-2019/ https://ministryofhemp.com/fda-cbd-2019/#respond Mon, 23 Dec 2019 15:19:38 +0000 http://ministryofhemp.com/?p=59465 The 2018 Farm Bill gave the FDA power to regulate CBD. But, the FDA still hasn't given guidance on how CBD should be made.

The post The FDA & CBD: FDA Warning Letters Hint At Future CBD Regulation appeared first on Ministry of Hemp.

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Even as CBD’s popularity grows, so does confusion about its legal status and the Food and Drug Administration’s handling of CBD. In reality, the FDA currently does not regulate CBD.

What this means is that the FDA isn’t monitoring the ingredients, purity, or methods used to make CBD products. Instead, they have been using their authority to warn certain “bad actors” in the industry that claim their products can treat or cure illnesses. In official FDA terms, these are known as “disease claims.”

This distinction is understandably lost on a lot of people. An October 2019 survey by the Grocery Manufacturers Association found that most Americans falsely believe CBD products are regulated.

In December, the FDA issued a “consumer update” about the safety CBD. The administration also sent 15 warning letters to CBD brands around the same time. This only added to the tension and confusion. Is CBD safe? Is it legal?

To clear all this up, we wanted to take a closer look at what the Food and Drug Administration is actually doing and saying about cannabidiol and hemp extract supplements, and what they’re likely to do in the future. First, let’s look at what we know about the safety of CBD.

Is CBD safe? Is CBD legal?

To recap, the 2018 Farm Bill made hemp legal.

That includes hemp products like CBD. The same amendment took hemp out of the control of the Drug Enforcement Administration. It also reinforced the FDA’s power to regulate foods, supplements and medicine made from hemp.

But, so far, the FDA hasn’t issued any clear regulations, leaving the industry metaphorically holding its breath.

“There’s no science behind these scare tactics.”

Jonathan Miller, general counsel to U.S. Hemp Roundtable

Their recent consumer update certainly takes an ominous tone, however. The document warns about numerous potential (but largely unproven) safety risks around CBD. Multiple experts we spoke with pushed back against this document.

“There’s no science behind these kinds of scare tactics,” said Jonathan Miller, general counsel to the U.S. Hemp Roundtable.

The first line of the consumer update should set the tone for the rest:

“The FDA is working to answer questions about the science, safety, and quality of products containing … CBD.”

None of what follows in their document is proven. Rather, the FDA instead is saying these possible issues warrant a closer look.

“In fact, there’s a lot of science — even that the FDA has done — which demonstrates [CBD’s] safety,” Miller noted.

Some global agencies concerned with health agree with that assessment. The World Health Organization ruled that CBD seems safe, with no potential for abuse. The World Anti-Doping Agency ruled CBD safe for use by athletes, and other similar agencies overseeing sports have followed suit.

Of course, CBD can have side effects and, very rarely, drug interactions. Since the drugs involved could include psychiatric medications and heart medications, the FDA is right that more investigation is needed.

You can find more information in our article on CBD side effects. When in doubt, check in with a medical professional before taking CBD.

The FDA is challenging the CBD industry

It’s the FDA’s job to be extremely cautious about new substances. Epidiolex, a prescription epilepsy drug made from CBD, also complicates the administration’s approach.

Epidiolex, a prescription epilepsy drug based on CBD, complicates the FDA's treatment of over-the-counter CBD supplements. Photo: A researcher in a lab coat and stethoscope holds a hemp leaf in one hand and a bottle of hemp extract in the other.
Epidiolex, a prescription epilepsy drug based on CBD, complicates the FDA’s treatment of over-the-counter CBD supplements.

A clause in the FDA’s policies known as the “IND Preclusion” (IND stands for “investigational new drug”) prevents supplements from including active ingredients in pharmaceutical drugs. That means anyone making CBD-infused edibles, or selling their CBD as a nutritional supplement is technically violating the IND Preclusion.

“We’re trying to get them to use their authority to waive the IND Preclusion,” said hemp advocate Joy Beckerman, president of the Hemp Industries Association.

The FDA “exceedingly overstates the health risks of CBD.”

Joy Beckerman, president of the Hemp Industries Association

There is precedent for drugs appearing both in medicine and consumer products. Caffeine is one obvious example. Beckerman added:

“The public guidance exceedingly overstates the health risks of CBD derived from hemp, and it ignores the vast majority of the scientific evidence of the safety of CBD.”

Research that found potential drug interactions with CBD used dosages far in excess of the amount normal home CBD users are likely to consume. The experts we spoke with saw recent developments as a challenge from the FDA to the industry to prove that CBD is safe at the dosages found in consumer supplements.

“This is an opportunity for the industry to demonstrate that these products are safe and there is the ability to distinguish hemp supplements and hemp foods from CBD prescription drugs,” said Garrett Graff. Graff is managing attorney at Hoban Law Firm, specializing in representing the hemp industry.

“At the end of the day, it comes down to establishing parameters that distinguish between pharmaceutical application and conventional application,” he added.

What the FDA warning letters mean for CBD

What’s most important to note is that the FDA hasn’t actually set any rules about how CBD should be sold. Instead, they only warn brands that make flagrant claims about their products. This leaves the industry on its own to determine how their supplements get made and marketed.

The FDA doesn't currently regulate CBD, but they do act against brands that make unrealistic health claims. Photo: A researcher in a lab coat and stethoscope holds a hemp leaf and a vial of CBD extract.
The FDA doesn’t currently regulate CBD, but they do act against brands that make unrealistic health claims.

Sending 15 warning letters at once seems like a lot, but the experts we interviewed said it’s just a sign of how bureaucratic agencies like the FDA function. In all, the FDA sent about 70 letters warning CBD brands since 2014.

“There’s nothing new or novel about these letters,” observed Beckerman.

Many aspects of the letters are identical to those the FDA might use about any supplement maker who made unrealistic disease claims. Some of the brands warned in the latest round even implied that their CBD supplements could cure or treat cancer. That kind of claim is wildly irresponsible and not backed up by scientific evidence.

“There’s nothing new or novel about these letters.”

Joy Beckerman, president of the Hemp Industries Association

In general, in the dozens of letters the FDA sent, they’ve never gone after brands that were careful not to make disease claims. At the same time, it’d be easy to cross the line. Even publishing customer testimonials could be considered making a claim.

And none of the warning letters ever resulted in legal action.

“In most cases,” Beckerman said, “the companies are either not around anymore or they’ve come into compliance.”

“So the warning letters did their jobs with those recipients and we’re confident that they’re going to do their job with these 15.”

What’s coming next for CBD & the FDA

Eventually, the FDA is expected to publish regulations for production and sales of consumer CBD products. But that could be months, or even years away.

“We need to put pressure on the FDA,” Miller said, “and put pressure on Congress to put pressure on the FDA to come out with regulations.”

Members of Congress, like Sen. Mitch McConnell, are on the record enthusiastically backing hemp. However, the current political climate puts hemp further down on the list of priorities, despite bipartisan support.

“This kind of environment benefits the bad apples.”

Jonathan Miller, general counsel to U.S. Hemp Roundtable

In the meantime, the industry has already taken action. While approaches vary, many brands now track every aspect of their products from hemp plants to final supplements. Many brands now use “GMP” certified facilities or manufacturing practices to make their CBD. Transparency matters too, and top CBD brands now offer third party lab results showing their products potency and purity. These moves could be a model for final FDA regulations.

“We’re a new industry and name another new industry that calls to the federal government ‘please regulate us,'” said Miller.

The current lack of regulation actually benefits scammers with fake products, he said.

“In this kind of environment where there’s threats being made and no regulations, it benefits the bad apples.”

With CBD becoming a billion-dollar industry, there’s immense pressure on the FDA to find a path forward. CBD oil products are unlikely to disappear.

But it’s clear a lot is riding on the FDA, and it’s possible the industry might have to take to the courts if the final regulations don’t meet the needs of CBD consumers and the industry.

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Banking Rights in the Hemp Industry: We Need “SAFE” Banking https://ministryofhemp.com/hemp-banking-rights/ https://ministryofhemp.com/hemp-banking-rights/#respond Sat, 21 Dec 2019 22:03:27 +0000 http://ministryofhemp.com/?p=59470 Editor’s Note: Jonathan Miller is general counsel for the U.S. Hemp Roundtable. He submitted this op-ed on recent developments in hemp banking rights. -KO The hemp industry has experienced and continues to see a surge of growth and awareness nationwide. Following passage of the 2018 Farm Bill, permanently legalizing the crop and removing hemp from […]

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Editor’s Note: Jonathan Miller is general counsel for the U.S. Hemp Roundtable. He submitted this op-ed on recent developments in hemp banking rights. -KO

The hemp industry has experienced and continues to see a surge of growth and awareness nationwide. Following passage of the 2018 Farm Bill, permanently legalizing the crop and removing hemp from its classification as a controlled substance, consumer demand for hemp and hemp products like CBD have skyrocketed.

Unfortunately, there remain many challenges. Confusion about hemp’s legal status — and the differences between hemp and its intoxicating cousin, marijuana — has too often stymied commerce in the industry, particularly with traditional banking products and merchant services being limited in their availability to those trying to grow their businesses.

New federal guidance opens doors

This month, we witnessed a breakthrough development. Upon the bipartisan urging of Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and Senator Ron Wyden, four federal banking regulatory agencies — Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, the Federal Reserve, Financial Crimes Enforcement Network — joined by the Conference of State Bank Supervisors — issued joint guidance confirming the legal status of hemp and the requirements for banks providing financial services to businesses.

Secure banking is a key target, and ongoing problem for the hemp industry.

The new guidance achieves many necessary benchmarks integrating hemp and banking, such as no longer requiring banks to file suspicious activity reports for customers solely because they are engaged in the growth or cultivation of hemp in accordance with applicable laws and regulations. Further, the guidance clarifies the difference between hemp businesses and marijuana businesses — adding yet another point of relief to banks concerned with national and state legality.

The hope is that the joint guidance should alleviate any fear of audits or regulatory crackdowns that have slowed financial institution integration with the hemp industry. However, this does not require banks or financial entities to participate in business with hemp companies. Nor does this guidance directly address the legality of hemp-derived CBD commerce.

Hemp banking rights and the SAFE Banking Act

With all of this in mind, there is still work to be done. Priority #1 is passage of the SAFE Banking Act.

Without the SAFE Banking Act, hemp banking rights remain in a legal gray area. The hemp industry is financially and legally vulnerable. Photo: A hemp lead sitting on a fanned-out stack of $100 bills.
Without the SAFE Banking Act, hemp banking rights remain in a legal gray area. The hemp industry is financially and legally vulnerable.

This bipartisan legislation, initially focused on providing a green light to marijuana banking in states where pot is legal, was amended to ensure a separate safe harbor for hemp, with far fewer hoops since it is not a controlled substance. It also directs federal financial agencies to provide clear guidance to both banks and other financial institutions — such as credit card companies — that hemp and CBD commerce are legal. The bill was passed overwhelmingly by the House in September and we are hopeful to see full Senate consideration soon.

Banking is one of the key targets that the hemp industry is aiming to secure, as this will allow for an increase in legal hemp business growth and practices. The goal of the U.S. Hemp Roundtable is to provide consumers with safe and legal hemp products along with the knowledge that the companies are meeting the highest standards and complying with national and state law.

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If Hemp Is Legal, Why Are People Getting Arrested For Hemp? https://ministryofhemp.com/arrested-for-hemp/ https://ministryofhemp.com/arrested-for-hemp/#comments Mon, 19 Aug 2019 21:38:56 +0000 http://ministryofhemp.com/?p=58069 Despite the legalization of hemp, confusion remains among law enforcement. In a few rare instances, police are still arresting people over hemp.

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Despite the legalization of hemp in the United States, confusion remains among law enforcement, especially due to inconsistent state and federal laws. In a few rare instances, police are still arresting people over hemp products.

The 2018 Farm Bill legalized hemp, marking a major achievement for hemp advocates and the industry. Under the law, states can make their own laws around hemp and CBD. However, they aren’t supposed to interfere with interstate commerce or Native American groups using hemp.

Due to a lack of awareness, even these rules are inconsistently applied. Prohibition is still having its effects on the nation. And some innocent people are suffering from it.

In some cases, one unintended consequence of hemp legalization is less police enforcement of laws around psychoactive cannabis (“marijuana”). Some police in Texas and Florida say they’re no longer prosecuting low level cannabis crimes because they can’t differentiate legal hemp from illegal marijuana.

But in other cases, police are still cracking down on a few stores for selling CBD, and more rarely, CBD consumers. Many states are struggling to develop their own set of regulations even as CBD stores pop up all over.

It’s important to note that thousands of people use CBD every day, safely and without legal consequences. According to a recent Gallup poll, 14% of Americans have tried CBD products. You can buy CBD online and get it shipped anywhere in the U.S. and it’s even sold in many natural grocery stores and some drugstores.

Recent arrests of truckers with hemp in Idaho and elsewhere are a troubling sign of the confusing legal landscape around hemp. Photo: A row of tractor trailor trucks lined up in a parking lot.
Recent arrests of truckers with hemp in Idaho and elsewhere are a troubling sign of the confusing legal landscape around hemp.

Still, we wanted to look at some recent notable exceptions to see what they can teach us about the state of hemp in America.

Truckers in Idaho arrested over hemp

“Local law enforcement shouldn’t be allowed to test [hemp] in the field because there is so much variance between the tests.”

Cannabis attorney Frank Robison, on the Ministry of Hemp podcast

The law has no ability to protect you if authorities can’t tell the difference between hemp and marijuana. Of course, you may eventually be able to get out of a nasty predicament. But sometimes at the cost of an arrest, fines, and potential jail time.

At the end of January, two truck drivers working with the Big Sky Scientific, LLC were transporting hemp through Idaho. At a weigh station, law enforcement picked up the smell of “marijuana” and, after taking a look, seized the product and took the truck driver into custody.

We talked with lawyer David E. Landau of DuaneMorris, the firm currently battling the issue, on the prospect of events as such happening to anyone.

“We now have to advise clients, if you’re shipping hemp, stay out of Idaho and several other states,” Landau proclaimed. “And it just raises questions about what triggers the perpetuation of the act.”

USDA responds to trucker arrests

These and similar incidents are severe enough that the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) released a legal opinion on May 28. They emphasized that the 2018 Farm Bill prohibits interference with interstate commerce of hemp and hemp products. This is regardless of whether you can sell, process, or grow hemp within that state.

Unfortunately, this legal opinion alone can’t decide the Big Sky Scientific case, or prevent other truckers from facing similar consequences.

The arrests provoked a backlash both from truckers and Idaho lawmakers, some of whom hope to pass new laws to prevent future occurrences. In the meantime, some police officials are still threatening to arrest truckers for transporting hemp through the state.

Uncertainty over hemp’s legality remains in Nebraska

After opening a vitamin supplement shop almost two years ago, Jacob Johanson saw the medical potential in CBD and quickly expanded his offerings. 

“I was under the assumption that we were good to go after the Scottsbluff case had been thrown out and after the signing of the Farm Bill 2018,” Johanson told the Ministry of Hemp, referring to another police raid in Scottsbluff, Nebraska.

When he put up a Facebook post promoting his products, police informed him cannabidiol is still illegal in Nebraska. He quickly took down the post along with the products he had put on the shelf.

“The local police performed an undercover sting on my shop later that week,” Johanson explained. “The undercover cop informed me that he is a detective and they just performed a sting to ensure I was no longer selling CBD.”

Police raids on CBD stores continue despite hemp legalization. Photo: A red and blue light bar on top of a police car, seen at night.
Police raids on CBD stores continue despite hemp legalization.

“Once I stopped selling CBD my customers insisted that CBD is a necessity and was the only thing that helped them with pain,” he continued. “I empathize with my customers and wished I could do more for them but informed them that, due to the local police, I am no longer able to sell CBD.”

Selective enforcement of hemp prohibition

“I was then informed by my customers that other businesses were, in fact, selling CBD and that is where they went once it was no longer available at my location.”

Johanson took actions as any other person in an extremely competitive business would. He began selling CBD again a few months later. But he only sold to customers he knew or those who were referred by people he knew.

“It has no doubt been one of the more challenging times in my life.”

Jacob Johanson, Nebraska small business owner

“To be honest, I was scared for the future of my business,” Johanson told us. “We are a vitamin, supplement and training shop. Not strictly CBD. So, I also had to take into consideration the rest of my business.”

Word got out and Johanson ended up selling a tincture and salve to an undercover cop. Police charged Johanson with possession and sales of a controlled substance. Fortunately, he wasn’t arrested, his assets weren’t seized, and his shop wasn’t closed down. Needless to say, this was a relief, though a bit of a surprise.

“This process has been very scary for me because I’ve looked into lawyers and the fees for one of them was going to be $15,000-$25,000,” Johanson said.

“That is a big hit for a small business owner like myself. Needless to say it has been a very stressful time. Not knowing what is going to happen to your business, your loved ones, and your life in general. It has no doubt been one of the more challenging times in my life.”

The unfortunate truth is Johanson is one of several who CBD vendors hit with challenging times. Other stores, like Cajun Cannabis in Lafayette, Louisiana, also faced police actions.

Arthritis patient arrested with hemp CBD outside Disney World

A similar story took place outside Disney World in Orlando, Florida in May. Police arrested Heather Burkhalter, a great-grandmother with arthritis, for having CBD oil on her.

One interesting feature of Burkhalter’s story: she was carrying a CBD isolate, meaning the product didn’t even have the tiny amounts of THC allowed under federal law. Furthermore, she even took precautions to carry around a note from her doctor.

Despite the 2018 Farm Bill, some people still get arrested over hemp. Photo: A hemp leaf with a pair of handcuffs.
Truckers, and in one rare case, a great grandmother on her way to Disneyworld, have faced arrest over hemp possession.

However, that didn’t stop her arrest which led to a felony charge, 12 hours in jail, and a bond of $2,000. Her arrest was based on a THC test that came back positive even though the CBD product claimed to have none.

Police field tests are notoriously inaccurate, which is one factor leading some jurisdictions to stop prosecuting for small amounts of cannabis altogether. They simply don’t have the equipment, or the people power, to test every sample accurately.

Police eventually dropped Burkhalter’s charges. Still, these situations as such are more than just a hassle. They can hurt someones livelihood. And these incidents of people getting arrested over hemp challenge our right to access natural, legal plant-based supplements like CBD.

Moving forward with legal hemp

Michael Bronstein, president of American Trade Association for Cannabis and Hemp, had some advice to share.

“I’m most concerned as to whether or not there’s clarity in the pathway going forward,” he said. “That there are practices that are adhered to.”

“The past of CBD is not likely to be the same as what the future of CBD is,” Bronstein explained.

The hemp industry nervously but eagerly awaits upcoming regulations from the FDA over the use of CBD in nutritional supplements. Some things are clear, especially after recent crackdowns on some CBD companies.

“People also have to be cautious about making medical claims,” said Landau.

“To say CBD is a treatment for anything is also prohibited under FDA rules. Unless you’ve been approved for a drug, like Epidiolex for example, you can’t make claims like CBD products relieve anxiety, back pain, headaches … none of those claims are appropriate right now.”

Still, with so much money already invested in hemp, Landau expects to see a clear path forward. “This is an important American business that we see developing here.”

Even organizations like the American Legislative Exchange Council, a conservative, Republican-led legislative think tank, seem to think it’s important to support hemp. ALEC discussed bills to support hemp growing and cannabis banking at their August meeting in Austin, Texas.

We define the future of hemp

If you’re thinking about becoming a CBD business owner, Landau declared you’re going to need to “get a good lawyer!”

Everyday hemp advocates, including CBD consumers, can play a role in normalizing hemp. Photo: A hand holds a hemp leaf to the sky.
Everyday hemp advocates, including CBD consumers, can play a role in normalizing hemp.

While we suspect arrests of CBD consumers and raids on legal CBD stores will soon be a thing of the past, regulations around hemp will remain complex. Maintaining compliance with laws and regulations is already a full-time job at many CBD companies, adding to the cost of CBD products.

As for the truckers, hemp advocates hope paperwork showing they’re carrying legally grown hemp will be sufficient to avoid arrests. In a recent episode of the Ministry of Hemp podcast, cannabis attorney Frank Robison suggested this was an easier option than expecting police to operate complex testing equipment in the field. He explained:

“So long as they have appropriate documentation from the state that complies with the states, state law and regulations indicating that the hemp trust shipment is compliant … local law enforcement shouldn’t be allowed to test it in the field because there is so much variance between the tests.”

We can’t forget the massive potential of the hemp and CBD industry. And it’s people like you and I — business owners, consumers, and farmers — who are defining this industry. As hemp advocates, we can help by educating our communities and lawmakers about this plant and everything made from it.

2018 was a big year for the hemp and CBD community. Still, we have a ways to go to reach the future some lawmakers still don’t realize we deserve.

Kit O’Connell and Matt Baum contributed reporting to this article.

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Flying With CBD Oil: Are You Allowed To Fly With CBD Products? https://ministryofhemp.com/flying-with-cbd/ https://ministryofhemp.com/flying-with-cbd/#comments Tue, 13 Aug 2019 16:50:44 +0000 http://ministryofhemp.com/?p=54446 Flying with CBD oil seems like a natural choice. And now, we’re happy to report you can safely bring it on domestic flights.

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When bringing CBD through airport security, you may need to place it with other small liquids in a ziplock bag, under the TSA's "3-1-1 rule." Photo: A woman holds out her arms during a TSA security check before flying.
When bringing CBD through airport security, you may need to place it with other small liquids in a ziplock bag, under the TSA’s “3-1-1 rule.”

Flying with CBD oil seems like a natural choice. And now, we’re happy to report you can safely bring it on domestic flights.

Editor’s Note: We updated this article in August 2019. -KO

CBD is a wonderful addition to your daily supplements, and it’s only natural that you’ll want to take it with you on trips and vacations. Fortunately, recent changes to Transportation Security Administration policy now make it possible to fly with CBD.

Recent changes in TSA regulations make it possible to fly with CBD oil in the U.S.
Recent changes in TSA regulations make it possible to fly with CBD in the U.S.

Below, we’ll share a few tips for flying with CBD. Please note, this article only applies to flights within the U.S. Consult with customs officials or legal experts before bringing CBD on any international flights.

What the TSA says about flying with CBD

In December 2018, the United States legalized hemp products with an amendment to the passage of the Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018, better known as the Farm Bill. This major change completely took hemp and hemp products out from under the of control of the Drug Enforcement Administration.

It still took months, until May of this year, for the TSA to catch up.

Although hemp and “marijuana” are different, the TSA policy on CBD is still found under its entry on flying with medical marijuana:

Marijuana and certain cannabis infused products, including some Cannabidiol (CBD) oil, remain illegal under federal law except for products that contain no more than 0.3 percent THC on a dry weight basis or that are approved by FDA.

In plain English, the Farm Bill defined (and legalized) hemp as a form of the cannabis plant with under 0.3% THC, the component of marijuana that makes people feel high. Any hemp products which meet this legal requirement for low THC content, such as the legal CBD products sold throughout the U.S., can now be brought on a plane. Other cannabis-derived products are also allowed on the plane if they’re approved by the FDA. Currently only one medication, Epidiolex, meets that requirement.

Tips for flying with CBD

CBD now falls under the same regulations covering all other items you bring through security. That includes regulations restricting liquids.

When bringing CBD oil through airport security, you may need to place it with other small liquids in a ziplock bag, under the TSA's "3-1-1 rule." Photo: A woman holds out her arms during a TSA security check before flying.
When bringing CBD through airport security, you may need to place it with other small liquids in a ziplock bag, under the TSA’s “3-1-1 rule.”

Here’s some tips for bringing different types of CBD supplements on a plane:

  • CBD capsules — In general, pills and capsules don’t need any special treatment. Even “softgels” aren’t considered liquids when flying.
  • CBD gummies and other edibles — It’s not routine, but occasionally TSA agents do request screening of food. In that case, remove your CBD edibles for screening along with any snacks you’re carrying.
  • CBD tinctures, oil and topicals — Like all liquids or gels, you will either need to put this product in your checked bag or make sure you meet the 3-1-1 travel rules. That includes all CBD oils and tinctures, and topical CBD like balms or salves.
  • CBD vapes — Don’t put CBD vape pens or vape batteries in your checked bags due to the risk of fire. Anything with a rechargeable battery must be carried onto the plane. Vape cartridges or small vape “juice” bottles can go in your ziplock baggie or your checked bag.

Final tips on traveling with CBD

We were thrilled to hear that the TSA had changed their guidelines on CBD. CBD is a super-supplement providing many benefits for travelers including reducing inflammation and symptoms of anxiety.

Even under these updated guidelines, TSA agents at the security checkpoint always have the final say whether any item makes it through.

If your CBD is turned away for some reason, you could take a dose before entering security and then either mail the product to yourself, or discard it and buy new CBD at your final destination. If this happens, it certainly sounds inconvenient, frustrating, and even expensive. But it’s better than missing a flight or causing a serious delay for yourself or others.

In general, thanks to changing laws and the changing American culture, you should be able to fly with CBD without worrying.

Have you tried flying with CBD? Let us know about your experience. You can reach us by email, on social media, or in the comments below.

Ellijah Pickering contributed reporting to this article.

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Transporting Hemp: Interstate Commerce and International Hemp https://ministryofhemp.com/transporting-hemp-podcast/ https://ministryofhemp.com/transporting-hemp-podcast/#respond Wed, 31 Jul 2019 21:28:25 +0000 http://ministryofhemp.com/?p=57994 On this episode of the Ministry of Hemp Podcast Matt sits down with Frank Robison, Attorney at Law who provides legal advice and counseling to a wide array of clients in the cannabis (marijuana and hemp) space including industry, university and not for profit organizations. Frank and Matt have a discussion of the problems facing […]

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On this episode of the Ministry of Hemp Podcast Matt sits down with Frank Robison, Attorney at Law who provides legal advice and counseling to a wide array of clients in the cannabis (marijuana and hemp) space including industry, university and not for profit organizations. Frank and Matt have a discussion of the problems facing transporting hemp in the U.S. and abroad.

We want to hear from you too. Send us your questions and you might hear them answered on future shows like this one!

Send us your written questions to us on TwitterFacebook, email matt@ministryofhemp.com, or call us and leave a message at 402-819-6417. Keep in mind that phone number is for hemp questions only and any other inquiries for Ministry of Hemp should be sent to info@ministryofhemp.com.

Don’t forget to subscribe to the Ministry of Hemp Podcast on iTunes or your favorite podcast app. If you really want to help us out, we’d love for you to rate or review the show.

Thanks again for listening! Contact sales@ministryofhemp.com if you’re interested in sponsoring our podcast or other content on our website.

More about hemp and the law

Here’s some resources from our archives about hemp law and transporting hemp:

A truck speeds across a rural highway at sunset. Transporting hemp remains legally complex, both across state lines and for international imports and exports of hemp.
Transporting hemp remains legally complex, both across state lines and for international imports and exports of hemp.

Transporting hemp: Episode transcript

Below you’ll find the full written transcript for this episode:

Matt Baum: Hello again. My name is Matt Baum and you are listening to The Ministry of Hemp Podcast. And today on the show we are talking about interstate commerce, imports and exports specifically, you guessed it, the importing and moving of hemp. The 2018 Farm Bill all but decriminalized hemp, removing it from its Schedule I drug status, and realizing that this is a cannabis plant with less than 0.03% THC, which means it can’t get you high in a nutshell. So now that hemp is legal, farmers, truckers and retailers all live in a state of nirvana where we’re celebrating hemp and everyone is happy, right? Well, not exactly. Currently hemp still lives in sort of a gray area while the FDA and USDA figures out how we’re going to define it based on how much THC is present, based on what type of isolate is present. There’s so much that goes into it. And lucky for us, I found somebody much smarter than me to explain the challenges in something that should be simple, moving hemp around the United States

Meet Frank Robison.

Frank Robison: So like it… My name’s Frank Robison. I’m a cannabis attorney, most of my client base are in the hemp business or in hemp. I have some sort of nexus to the hemp industry at various levels, from growers to processors to entities that make and sell hemp products. And some of those clients actually are vertically oriented and they do all of the… They do everything from growth processing, product development to retail sales. I have been practicing in this area of law for about seven years. I started practicing in with ‘cannabis law’ as very interestingly a state of Colorado, University of Colorado attorney. And I was very… I was immediately attracted to-

Matt Baum: Frank’s a pretty amazing guy and he’s exactly who we want fighting for hemp in this country, but he also speaks legalese. He’s a lawyer and he’s good at what he does. So I will break in here and there during our interview to spell some stuff out, break down some acronyms and just clarify things a little bit.

Frank Robison: … regulation. As I was advising in the export control space, I would inevitably get questions about importations.

Matt Baum: Sure.

Frank Robison: And I figured the best way to have a crash course in importations was to become a US customs broker because [crosstalk]

Matt Baum: Yeah, why not? You got time. It’s not like you have a full time job. I mean go for it.

Frank Robison: And so I’m very much of an overachiever in that sort sense. And so because becoming a customs broker is, it’s quite a difficult task to do between the US Department of Homeland Security background check and the test you take, it’s quite a process to become a US customs broker. And the tests you take has about a 20% passage rate where the average bar exam test has somewhere between 60 maybe 70% passing rate.

Matt Baum: Okay. So that’s 80% failure?

Frank Robison: Yes. So you have an 80% failure rate on the US customs broker test.

Matt Baum: Good Lord.

Frank Robison: Yeah. Yeah. It’s very difficult. And it’s a highly regulated industry. In fact, it’s more regulated, from my perspective, than other legal industry and it’s regulated… And I think that’s appropriate because you have the tools, you have the knowledge, you have the understanding of how to clear products through customs.

Matt Baum: Sure.

Frank Robison: Go with a civic code, with civic code that’s associated with any given type of merchandise.

Matt Baum: What Frank is saying is it’s very hard to import or export anything in this country. And when you add in the fact that you’re importing or exporting hemp, a product that is effectively been illegal in the United States for the last 75 years, the USDA and FDA still haven’t quite figured out how we’re going to do this. It’s pretty damn difficult.

Frank Robison: FDA has a wide range of views on whether or not it’s admissible. And when I say a wide range of views is the FDA agent in Cincinnati, Ohio may have a different view than the FDA agent-

Matt Baum: Of course.

Frank Robison: … managing the port in Denver, Colorado.

Matt Baum: And there’s no fixed line-

Frank Robison: And Denver is also a port even though it’s-

Matt Baum: … there’s no fixed line or numbers right now. There’s no standard so everybody just sort of is kind of calling their shot.

Frank Robison: There is in a way. So right now what I’m seeing is that they’re marching to a beat of messages… The messages that the FDA has communicated to the general public after the stakeholder meeting in Maryland at the end of May, and that is consistent with the farm… and is very much consistent with the Farm Bill. It’s very much consistent with the FDA’s view over the past few years. But the message is pretty consistent. CBD is not a… so CBD specifically may not be put into food according to the FDA or dietary supplements because it would at the time when the FA features first came out, it was an investigative new drug. Now it is a drug in the form of an I-L-X.

Matt Baum: Right. Now, just recently, The US Food and Drug Administration, the USDA approved Epidiolex, which is a cannabidiol or CBD oral solution for the treatment of seizures associated with two severe forms of epilepsy. There were some tests. It’s proven to work, but now that means that CBD, it can be considered a pharmaceutical drug. That can complicate things a bit.

Frank Robison: And a drug is per se if included in a food or dietary supplement an adulterant and you cannot put adulterants into food or into dietary supplements. In my view, this is an extreme position to be taking, particularly with respect to cannabinoids, including CBD that are found in whole hemp extract or full spectrum or even broad spectrum. It’s when you start getting closer to isolate, I think that the FDA has an argument that it is similar to Epidiolex and may or may not be permissible to import into the United States or export respectively from the United States to any given country. But again, I just think it’s an argument in many cases it’s just misguided.

Matt Baum: Let me ask you, is it only because in the sense of an isolet, they’re saying that this isolet does one thing and therefore the FDA says, well then it is acting as a drug because it is being applied to do one thing only as opposed to a broad spectrum?

Frank Robison: No.

Matt Baum: Is it that simple?

Frank Robison: The comments that I’ve seen directly from FDA agents in the field have been more even simple than that because it contains CBD. CBD is a drug. A drug is an adulterant when it is included in food or dietary supplement. It’s not because you’re making the structure function claim. It’s not because you have non-compliant packaging. It’s because-

Matt Baum: Purely definition, that’s it.

Frank Robison: … It’s purely definitional. That is correct. And where I see the seizures happening, it’s when it’s packaged in a finished form, like when it’s packaged in a consumer-ready form. Or I also see seizures with respect to isolate. I think that the FDA has an, again, an argument, it has an opinion that there’s some basis to their opinions, some basis to their argument with respect to dietary supplements and food that are consumer-ready. I disagree with them strongly on many levels.

I don’t think they have a basis to be seizing isolate. It makes absolutely no sense to me when it’s packaged, for example, in a five kilo container and it’s been [inaudible 00:08:16] for the processing. It’s not consumer-ready. It could be used for many applications. And if you look at the definition of industrial hemp under the 2018 Farm Bill, it includes any cannabinoid.

Matt Baum: Right?

Frank Robison: CBD cannabinoid, cannabinoid is not a scheduled substance. Epidiolex is scheduled. Epidiolex as a drug is scheduled, but it has a specific manufacturing process. It has a specific dose. It’s encapsulated. Is a specific product that is intended to treat a specific medical condition. It is extremely, from my perspective, distinct from a sack of isolet and it’s just not even close to anything like a food product or a supplement product that contains a broad spectrum of cannabinoids back from the-

Matt Baum: Right. We’ll talk about the difference between-

Frank Robison: … from the whole planet [inaudible]

Matt Baum: … a drug…

For those of you who don’t know what we’re talking about, the DEA schedules drugs, all drugs, not just illegal drugs, but all of them into five different categories. Number one being the most illegal and abusive and addictive. And that’s where hemp and marijuana lived for a long time, right alongside heroin and cocaine. The further away you get from one, Schedule V, for example, where you’ll find Pepto-Bismol and Acetaminophen and analgesics, stuff like that, that people aren’t going to abuse. That’s probably where Epidiolex is going to live. But don’t quote me on this, I’m not certain.

So where these seizures, the seizures you’re talking about, are these international seizures or are these national or is it both?

Frank Robison: So the seizures that with respect to CBD are always international. So it’s either outbound out of going out of the United States or something coming into the United States. Generally, though I am aware of one a seizure that was at a checkpoint, and I can’t remember if it was New Mexico or Southern California when we had a CBD company, a CBD ‘company’ just driving near the southern border. CBP had a checkpoint for immigrants-

Matt Baum: CBP is the Customs and Border Patrol.

Frank Robison: … that was focused on immigrants. The truck, pickup truck was full of hemp-based products and that truck was, the merchandise in that truck was seized and that was not intended to be exported from the United States. So I am aware of situation.

Matt Baum: But it’s still drugs as far as they’re concerned. They’re Like, oh-

Frank Robison: What’s that?

Matt Baum: … it’s obviously drugs. They’re drug dealers. Stop them.

Frank Robison: Yeah. And it’s really unfortunate when something like that happens because then all of a sudden, certain data gets put into a database.

Matt Baum: Right.

Frank Robison: That tag follows people involved in that transaction for a long time and that’s just not-

Matt Baum: It’s not fair.

Frank Robison: … it’s fundamentally unfair.

Matt Baum: It’s just not fair. Right.

Frank Robison: Yeah. It’s a depravation of your constitutional rights particularly, your right to due process among others. And so you know you have a right to, fundamental constitutional right of noticing the opportunity to be heard and to be seizing a product inside the United States and not providing someone with that right is just from a lawyer’s perspective, it goes back to just the travesty of justice. Why we become lawyers, [inaudible] we want people to have their property, their life or their liberty taken without an opportunity to be heard.

Matt Baum: So let me ask you, is a major impediment here, is the major problem the way that the FDA is defining this or is it more of the way that say local law, law enforcement is carrying out what they feel is their job? Or is it a mixture of both?

Frank Robison: Well, with respect to the interstate transport of hemp and hemp products, it’s local law enforcement and the fact that the federal government from, in my view, has only issued limited guidance and we’re in a period where the federal government hasn’t promulgated rules, hasn’t conducted work. Although they have conducted some, they haven’t conducted readily accessible and easily understandable workshops with respect to the 2018 Farm Bill. And I think they’re hesitant to do so because regulations haven’t been promulgated. That said regulations are, pursuant to my understanding, imminent. And when I say imminent, I’m talking this fall or early winter of 2019.

Matt Baum: Oh, that’s fantastic.

Frank Robison: Yeah, it is been moved up from its original, it’s going to take about a year to do to again, to like again, I think the last I heard was something in September or October should be provided, should be so some sort of emergency rule making should be enacted by up by then.

Matt Baum: And at that point there’ll be an education that is basically handed down to law enforcement. So when you do pull someone over with flat like hemp flower or hemp stalks, they can say, here’s our process, here’s what we do, here’s the way we should test it. I mean, is that all in there?

Frank Robison: Hopefully. That’s to be seen. And so what we could see and again, at the local level, what we could see so distinguishing it from the conversation, the parallel conversation we’re having about the international seizures and the international issues that we’re seeing with the import and export of of hemp, which is an agricultural commodity. In any event we’ll set that aside, but that’s actually applicable to the local issues.

Matt Baum: Absolutely.

Frank Robison: Like you should hopefully in the regulatory process you’ll see something about testing standardization in field-testing, but you might not. We may not see that and that might come down through informal policy statements, that might come down through educational workshops. That might not come down at all because states have a right to regulate hemp more stringently than they do, than the federal government. And the 2018 Farm Bill that says they do not have the right to impede the interstate transport of hemp.

And so you might see some confusion because there’s two provisions within the 2018 Farm Bill that should be easy to understand but may not be easy to understand for people that want to consider hemp marijuana, which is not. Hemp is hemp and marijuana is marijuana, but it should be easy to understand that states may have legal frameworks that are more strict than the 2018 Farm Bill, but they are not under any circumstance allowed to restrict the interstate transport of hemp.

And so how that unfolds is to be seen as you mentioned, as you questioned, hopefully that is clarified through rulemaking. I fear that it will not be, and it will be clarified through court cases-

Matt Baum: Of course.

Frank Robison: … legal actions.

Matt Baum: … Of course, because there’s going to be holed out. There’s going to be people that say, I don’t care. You’re not bringing marijuana through my state and-

Frank Robison: Judicial precedent. Exactly, correct.

Matt Baum: And you can say as many times as you want, it’s not marijuana but until they can sit down and listen.

Frank Robison: And hopefully they listen to the industry and industry stakeholders about testing procedures, uniform testing procedures in the field, if any. And when I say if any, I think that it’s appropriate that so long as the state of origin that has a agricultural pilot program as they’re called today, under the 2014 Farm Bill or a agricultural plan under 2018 Farm Bill. So long as they have appropriate documentation from the state that complies with the states, state law and regulations indicating that the hemp trust shipment is compliant with that program or plan respectively then local law enforcement shouldn’t be allowed to test it in the field because there is so much variance between the tests. I mean it could go, it can even vary from the same piece of machinery to the same piece of machinery, the same testing technologies to the same testing technology because the way that machine is calibrated or because of the understanding of the user of the machine is lacking.

They might not understand how to use such a sophisticated piece of machinery. That said, there are people developing field tests that are supposedly quite accurate, but again, these are things that in my view, we’re putting a risk between point A and point B. Point A being the country where they hemp is grown, point B where the hemp is lawful to possess, manufacturer, process. Let’s just use an example from Kentucky to Colorado.

Matt Baum: Sure.

Frank Robison: We were putting in the hands of local law enforcement and particularly all those states, between Kentucky and Colorado, the potential to misapply what from my perspective should be clear federal law. Compliant hemp, hemp grown compliantly, products derived from hemp grown compliantly shouldn’t be stopped, shouldn’t give rise to legal jeopardy for anybody much less for a guy that’s getting paid 5,000 bucks to truck it from point A to point B. It’s absolutely unconscionable that an individual like that would spend time in jail.

Matt Baum: Now, let me ask you, which do you think is more difficult right now, importing hemp from out of the country and bringing it in or just moving hemp within the US?

Frank Robison: It depends on the form. And ironically when we’re talking about flower, I think the import and export of flower is relatively straightforward.

Matt Baum: Really?

Frank Robison: Yeah. The interstate transport of flower is relatively complex because it looks like, it smells like it’s cousin or we’ll just call it a distant cousin just to make sure [inaudible]

Matt Baum: Yeah, distant cousin.

Frank Robison: Hemp is not marijuana, hemp is not marijuana, but in any event to local law enforcement, it looks the same. I think most CBP, people that work with CBP at this point understand that hemp is not marijuana and there are ways to demonstrate and document that it is not so. And that said, getting back to the, switching gears, I know we’re bouncing back and forth between the interstate issues and the international issues. International issues really come into play with again, with as we were talking about earlier, with consumer-ready products. Products that are packaged with, by, for consumers that have CBD listed as an ingredient. And whether or not it’s a subset of the ingredient… within the ingredient list. When I say subset it’s going to say something like whole hemp extract and then it says something like parenthetical, you know CBD, CBN, or terpenes, or it just says CBD, products of that nature are quite regularly being seized.

Matt Baum: Let me ask you a question-

Frank Robison: And again… Yeah, go ahead.

Matt Baum: If you go to amazon.com right now and you search CBD, there are thousands of hits that you will get.

Frank Robison: It’s amazing.

Matt Baum: And I mean most of it is garbage. A lot of it even says it’s made with stems and whatnot, which isn’t even how you do it. How is Amazon selling all these products? And a lot of them look like from Chinese sellers. They have to be importing that stuff, right?

Frank Robison: So people are selling bill of sale to Amazon and Amazon’s buying it. I am very well aware of many, many entities that are selling that it’s derived from stalk and cells, because I look at these products on a regular basis-

Matt Baum: And it’s garbage.

Frank Robison: … because I’m also a bit aware of any one, yeah, they’re… I’m sorry?

Matt Baum: It’s pure garbage. I mean it’s just fake.

Frank Robison: Yeah. Well it’s either, if it is made from stalk and sterile seeds, it’s of very low quality as you say, garbage product, or they’re just plain and simply misrepresenting and that it’s made from flower and they’re getting it on Amazon and that’s their marketing shtick. And doing that would run a foul with Amazon’s policies. Amazon’s policies do state, seller’s policies do state that you cannot sell product from cannabis flower on I don’t remember the exact verbiage, it’s been a minute or more since I read the policy, but it’s something along the lines of you can’t sell flower. You are able to sell products derive from stalk and sterile seed. So people read the policy and then they market their product product according to their policy in order to get it approved on Amazon.

Matt Baum: So let me ask you, does that mean Amazon is, in your opinion, I’m not saying let’s damn them to hell, but does that mean Amazon is actively promoting the sale of a product that is completely bunk basically?

Frank Robison: I don’t think so. I think the better way to say that would be that the sellers that are on Amazon, that understand Amazon’s policy and they’re using it to their advantage to make sales.

Matt Baum: So it’s a bad policy and the sellers are using it basically?

Frank Robison: Yes. I don’t know if I want to call it a bad policy. I think it’s a… I don’t think it’s a surprising policy given the FDA’s rhetoric on CBD products, which I think is really, I think as one of the more unfortunate things that’s going on in the background of this wonderful moment of the 2018 Farm Bill where hemp is descheduled as it should have been 45, 50 years ago or more. It never should have been, well, let’s just say ever because it never should have been scheduled. But in any event it has been, it’s been long overdue the descheduling of hemp and Amazon has a policy that predates the 2018 Farm Bill that focuses in on the stalk and sterile seed component of the definition of marijuana that under The Controlled Substances Act, and people understand the policy and they navigate accordingly. Is that Amazons…, Is Amazon the customer, its seller police? I don’t think that’s their responsibility.

Matt Baum: No, no. And they’re playing it safe obviously. They can look and they don’t want this stuff seized, they want to make money on it and if they do it this way, it doesn’t get seized. The person that gets it is happy, you, they’re happy even though it might not be the best product.

Frank Robison: I think they need to believe they’re their sellers too. I mean, I don’t think they’re in a position where they can ‘police’ what their sellers are selling. I mean they need to rely upon the representations that their sellers are making. If someone makes a misrepresentation, I don’t think that it would be fair to put the burden on Amazon to go check the traceability, the lot traceability of those stalks and seeds for [inaudible 00:23:17]. I mean that would be an undue burden on a company like Amazon. That said, if it did, pursuant to their policy that products would probably be removed. But again, I think the policy is unfortunate. I think that we should embrace products that are made from cannabis, excuse me, hemp flowers.

Matt Baum: Right. It’s a bad policy. I mean, that’s what it comes down to.

Frank Robison: I think it’s a bad policy, but it nevertheless, it’s their policy.

Matt Baum: Right. And they’re doing-

Frank Robison: They have the right to make a policy.

Matt Baum: … Jeff Bezos has to cover his butt. I get it.

Frank Robison: I don’t know if it’s covering their butt, but I mean maybe it’s a matter of not having updated the policy since the 2018 Farm Bill or maybe it’s a matter of not wanting to update the policy until the FDA clarifies the waters that it’s muddy.

Matt Baum: Exactly. Okay. Let me ask you one more question on this. What is the one thing that could change tomorrow that makes your job easier as an importer, exporter, moving stuff wearing around and interstate commerce? What’s the one thing that you would like to see change?

Frank Robison: Can I get one on both sides of the fence, Matt?

Matt Baum: Absolutely, absolutely. Please, please.

Frank Robison: So, the one thing on the international import and export of goods that I would like to see changed is that the FDA would acknowledge that CBD that is found in a whole hemp extract is a distinct compound, is distinct, excuse me, from CBD in the form of Epidiolex. It is just quite simply not the drug Epidiolex and that to me is a just bluntly a no-brainer. If you look at the World Health Organization, still the World Anti-Doping Association almost two years ago deemed CBD not to be a regulated substance. The World Health Organization has deemed a whole hemp extracts in CBD in particular not to pose a public health issue.

And so collectively you take those, you take issues like various established, credible international bodies and you also look at the difference between Epidiolex and what people are putting into food or supplement like products, I mean it’s just night, it’s just as you said generally, it’s night and day. It’s apples and oranges. So on one hand you have a benign substance. Many entities aren’t putting that CBD isolate. Even if we did agree with the fact that CBD isolate in itself was the same thing, assuming for the sake of argument that CBD isolate is substantially equivalent to the drug Epidiolex. I mean that’s not what people are putting into-

Matt Baum: Exactly.

Frank Robison: … that’s not what many stake holders are putting into their products. They’re putting in whole hemp extract, full-spectrum type of oils. And so I would like to see some sort of FDA rhetoric on that so that customs and the FDA officials that work with customs on a regular basis don’t seize products that are packaged for retail human consumption. It just doesn’t, from my perspective, make sense so long as that product is compliant with the laws of country of importation. And so you have products being seized that are being exported from the United States that are perfectly compliant with the country of importation’s laws. And that’s just creating…. It’s causing people to endure costs to clarify those situations with customs.

And so some, again, so to get back to your question, some sort of simple clarification with respect to products that are containing whole hemp full-spectrum extracts. That said, I don’t think, and from a practical perspective, the FDA is willing to go all the way to isolates, but I would like to see that as well. I think it’s in the range of things that they should feel comfortable doing clarifying their view on whole hemp extracts.

Matt Baum: Right. So what about here at home?

Frank Robison: Interstate… I’m sorry, go.

Matt Baum: I said what about here at home? Interstate?

Frank Robison: So interstate here at home, clear guidance. That’s said, we saw fairly clear guidance statement from the General Council of the United States Department of Agriculture, which was very welcome approximately I would think at this two months ago. I don’t know the date off the top of my head. That letter, that opinion from the General Council of the United States Department of Agriculture was about five months overdue, but to its credit it came, so he clarified certain issues. I would like to see additional clarification with respect to the interstate transport of hemp and hemp-based products come out of the United States Department of Agriculture to ensure that nobody’s ever sees another day in jail because of a misunderstanding at the local law enforcement level.

Matt Baum: Because of a completely legal substance. That’s like arresting someone for moving corn.

Frank Robison: It’s like arresting someone for moving soybeans or corn.

Matt Baum: Exactly.

Frank Robison: That’s correct. Or even let’s go to a product that has a high concentration of terpenes. Let’s go to perhaps akinesia, St John’s-wort, [inaudible 00:28:31], products like this. So just very frustratingly at the local level, a field test is a litmus test. It’s very much akin to a pregnancy test.

It’s either you’re pregnant or you’re not. And what triggers a field test is not only, the [inaudible] presence of THC, though that does trigger a field test, but it also can be the presence of other cannabinoids and the presence of terpenes that are commonly found in cannabis. And so all of a sudden you’re using a field test that is inherently unreliable to field-test products, hemp and other hemp products in the field. And local law enforcement is using that positive litmus pregnancy test to establish probable cause and probable cause should not be established to search and seize anyone’s merchandise for an inherently unreliable field test for an agricultural commodity-

Matt Baum: Not to mention-

Frank Robison: … although agricultural commodities could also trigger it.

Matt Baum: … And not to mention the fact that we’re asking the highway to patrol to be chemists at the same time. Like this is not their job. This is not what they do.

Frank Robison: We’re not. And we want them… And that gets back to a point we were talking about earlier, which I think is the way to address this issue is to rely upon state of where…

Matt Baum: Frank and I wandered off on a few tangents after this, but it was wonderful to talk to him. And it’s one of those things you don’t think about. There was a recent case in Oklahoma with a trucker that was pulled over and arrested for hauling hemp and spent four weeks in jail. And the good news is Frank has some good news about that. I can’t talk about it yet because there’s something that’s going to happen next week, but we’ll revisit that on the show. I want to thank him so much for coming on here and thank you to everybody that’s been listening to the show and calling us with your questions. You can always call us and leave us a message at (402) 819-6417 and leave us your hemp related question. We answered them right here on the show. My buddy Kit and I just did it last week and we’re going to do it again soon.

If you dig what you’ve heard here, please leave us a rating or write as a review even. It really helps to make the show more discoverable for people that are looking for this information and it also makes me feel pretty good because I produced this whole thing. You can find us on Twitter, @MinistryofHemp, on Facebook, \ministryofhemp, and you can always email me, matt@ministryofhemp.com with any of your questions or anything you’d like to hear or even some creative criticism. I’d just like to hear from you, the listeners. For now, this is Matt Baum with the Ministry of Hemp saying, take care of yourself, take care of others, and make good decisions, will you? This is the Ministry of Hemp Podcast signing off.

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Legal Hemp In Texas: Lone Star State Legalizes Industrial Hemp https://ministryofhemp.com/legal-hemp-in-texas/ https://ministryofhemp.com/legal-hemp-in-texas/#respond Mon, 27 May 2019 20:23:06 +0000 http://ministryofhemp.com/?p=57210 A bill passed by the Texas Legislature will usher in a new era of legal hemp in Texas. The same bill will also explicitly legalize the sale of CBD oil supplements by licensed vendors.

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A bill passed by the Texas Legislature will usher in a new era of legal hemp in Texas. The same bill will also explicitly legalize the sale of CBD oil supplements by licensed vendors.

“It was voted out of the House and the Senate unanimously,” said Coleman Hemphill, president of the Texas Hemp Industries Association, a recently formed chapter of the national Hemp Industries Association nonprofit. Ministry of Hemp is also a member of the HIA.

HB 1325 passed the legislature and was sent for signature on May 26. Texas Governor Greg Abbott is expected to sign the bill into law. However, it’s unclear when farmers will actually be able to plant the crop.

UPDATE June 29, 2019: On June 29, 2019, Gov. Abbott signed the hemp bill into law. -KO

“Texas will have to wait until the USDA puts out its [hemp growing] rules, which who knows when that will happen,” said Hemphill.

Predictions for the release official federal guidelines on hemp growing vary from late this year to sometime in 2020.

The bill also clarifies the legality of CBD oil supplements in Texas. Everyday people would be allowed to possess and consume CBD, a massively popular nutritional supplement derived from hemp with numerous benefits. However, CBD sales would be limited to permitted establishments, a process that will be overseen by the state’s health department.

The Texas legislature unanimously voted to legalized hemp, reflecting widespread support for the plant. Photo: A view of the exterior of the Texas Capitol rotunda, with the state and U.S. flags flying outside.
The Texas legislature unanimously voted to legalized hemp, reflecting widespread support for the plant.

Hemphill was optimistic the licensing process would remain simple and not shut out existing or smaller vendors.

“It should be pretty broad and open,” he said.

The Lone Star State, with its abundant space and long fertile growing season, could be a powerhouse in the growing national hemp industry someday.

A CLEAR PATH FORWARD FOR HEMP IN TEXAS

The bill sets forth clear guidelines for the Texas Department of Agriculture.

These guidelines include limits on the amount and type of fees that can be collected. Fees for applying for a hemp growing license would be limited to $100, with additional limited fees per hemp growing site. The state is also allowed to collect fees if it performs testing for THC levels. Following the current international standards, industrial hemp cannot have more than 0.3% THC. That’s far below the amount present in psychoactive cannabis that makes people feel high.

However, unlike many other hemp growing programs in the U.S., farmers who accidentally grow hemp that tests “hot” (above 0.3% THC) won’t necessarily be forced to destroy their crop.

“It can either be processed into fiber or it can be further processed to below the 0.3 threshhold,” Hemphill told us.

Texas hemp guidelines are expected to overall follow federal guidelines, including those around people with drug convictions. Under the guidelines set forth under the 2018 Farm Bill, many people felony drug convictions would be barred from being a producer in the hemp industry.

Additionally, because Texas did not participate in earlier hemp “research” programs set forth under the 2014 Farm Bill, state officials probably won’t issue hemp growing licenses until the USDA publishes its guidelines.

The bill also prohibits the in-state production (but not sales or use) of smokable hemp products.

CBD REGISTRATION PROCESS TO BE DETERMINED

While stores throughout Texas already sell CBD oil, it’s legal status has been unclear until now.

Although the 2018 Farm Bill removes hemp from the Drug Enforcement Administration’s list of banned controlled substances, the Food & Drug Administration continues to express concerns about the legality of CBD in food or supplements. There have been a few police raids on Texas CBD stores and even arrests at Texas airports over CBD.

HB 1325 should provide clarity around these issues.

“This bill does explicitly allow for CBD in food products and in animal products,” he explained.

The Texas Department of State Health Services will create the guidelines for registration. Hemphill hopes hemp advocates like his organization can ensure the process is fair and easily accessible. Large vendors with multiple locations, such as grocery stores, would only need to obtain one license for their entire operation.

A new bill legalizes hemp in Texas. Photo: The Texas flag superimposed on a background of hemp leaves.
The Texas Legislature just legalized hemp in Texas.

Hemphill doesn’t like that the bill implies that hemp is harmful by requiring vendors to be licensed. CBD has few side effects and the World Health Organization has noted that CBD is very safe with no potential for abuse.

However, he’s also hopeful the process could be good for customers. Some states require CBD vendors to offer third-party lab results and other information about the quality of their products. Similar regulations could protect Texas CBD buyers.

TEXAS HEMP INDUSTRY COULD BE POWERFUL

With unanimous support by Texas legislators, Hemphill sees few remaining hurdles to the future of hemp in Texas.

Though the growing season would allow a fall planting of hemp in the state, unfortunately he doesn’t think farmers will be allowed to plant before spring of 2020 at the earliest.

Support for CBD and hemp comes amid continued resistance to psychoactive cannabis. Bills to legalize recreational cannabis or expand Texas’ extremely limited medical marijuana program failed to pass. They’re expected to be reintroduced in 2021, the next time the state legislature meets.

Ministry of Hemp will continue to closely follow hemp in Texas in the future. We expect the Lone Star State to be a major player in this growing industry, which is predicted to reach almost $2 billion in sales by 2022.

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Despite Cannabis Legalization, Access To Legal CBD In Uruguay Is Challenging https://ministryofhemp.com/cbd-in-uruguay/ https://ministryofhemp.com/cbd-in-uruguay/#respond Wed, 06 Feb 2019 20:44:00 +0000 http://ministryofhemp.com/?p=54883 Access to CBD in Uruguay remains difficult, despite the South American country's overall progressive leadership on cannabis law reform. That could be starting to change this year.

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Access to CBD in Uruguay remains difficult, despite the South American country’s overall progressive leadership on cannabis law reform.

December 2018 marked five years since cannabis became legal in Uruguay. After Law 19.172 was approved — enabling the State to regulate the cannabis supply chain, from growth to trade – Uruguay seems to have founded a true benchmark in the world, becoming the very first country to legalize recreational and medical cannabis.

Taken under Pepe Mujica’s government – which was considered a role model for leftists in Latin America – this brave step towards regularization represented more than a juridical benchmark. By walking through the wooded capital of Montevideo, it is possible to realize that the legislation has also set a new moral paradigm in the Uruguayan society.

It is not rare to spot a family smoking together at the ramblas (Montevideo’s riverbanks), or even turn the TV on and unexpectedly come across a popular morning show discussing the benefits of cannabis with its audience. The stigma around cannabis definitely belongs to the past.

Progressive in several other aspects (such as legal abortion, affirmative action for the trans community and gay marriage), Uruguay’s policies may sound ideal to many people. But with regards to cannabis, the implementation of Law 19.172 still faces substantial issues: the pioneer country in legalizing marijuana still moves slow when it comes to regulated medical cannabis and legal CBD products.

CANNABIS LAW REFORM BEGAN IN 1970S

Although it was only with Law 19.172 that Uruguay gained a comprehensive, effective legal instrument for the regularization of cannabis, the country first adopted a more tolerant posture towards drugs in 1974 – curiously, during the Uruguayan Military Dictatorship. Over forty years ago, the Law 14.294 already exempted from legal penalty all the individuals carrying, using, or giving away up to 40 grams of marijuana.

Damian Collazo, a grower with CLUC, one of Uruguay's first cannabis clubs, examines plants in their cannabis farm. Although recreational cannabis is legal, access to CBD in Uruguay is limited. CLUC cannot legally sell CBD products.
Damian Collazo, a grower with CLUC, one of Uruguay’s first cannabis clubs, examines plants in their cannabis farm. Although recreational cannabis is legal, access to CBD in Uruguay is limited. CLUC cannot legally sell CBD products. (Photo: Ministry of Hemp / Beatriz Miranda)

By 2012, when Pepe Mujica’s cabinet presented to the Congress the first draft of Law 19.172, the pro-cannabis discussion had already gained sufficient ground. In 1998, Law 17.016 allowed citizens to consume a somewhat larger amount of marijuana (compared to 1974); in 2000, President Jorge Batlle assumed a pro-legalization position; and in 2010, the Congressman Lacalle Pou presented a bill allowing citizens to grow cannabis for personal use.

Since 2013, Law 19.172 stipulates that Uruguay’s government is in charge of regulating all the import, export, growth, harvest, production, acquisition, distribution, storage and trade of cannabis and marijuana-derived products.

Diego Olivera is the President of IRCCA’s key board, the Uruguayan Institute of Regulation and Control of Cannabis. Created with Law 19.172, IRCCA is in charge of supervising the cannabis’ production process, formulating public policies, providing scientific data on cannabis and coordinating scientific cooperation.

Like most pro-cannabis Uruguayans, Olivera evaluates the five-year-period of regulated marijuana as a positive one.

“We are convinced that we adopted the right model,” he said.

On the other hand, he does admit: the regulated medical cannabis market remains a challenge for Uruguay.

LEGALIZATION IN URUGUAY: A MATTER OF PUBLIC SECURITY

Unlike Canada, which legalized medical cannabis in 2001, and recreational cannabis only in 2018 (clearly focusing on a public health strategy), the legalization in Uruguay turned, in principal, to the public security issue.

Olivera said:

“In 2012, 2013, the public discussion evolved very much around security. But this was not an agenda for Uruguay until the 21st century. The public security debate did not really take part of the Uruguayan culture. The cannabis regulation appeared as a response, a strategy to fight the narco-traffic.”

Indeed, Law 19.172 foresees a cannabis regulation strategy that promotes public security, public health and individual rights, altogether. But, due to a greater concern with security, recreational cannabis — and its users, consequently — have been the priority on the last five years. Thus, Uruguayans still wait for a more democratic access to regulated medical cannabis.

Today, Uruguay offers three legal options for the access to recreational marijuana: buying up to 40 grams out of four weed varieties (with higher or lower THC levels), offered at 17 authorized pharmacies; growing up to 6 cannabis plants at home; or becoming a member of one of the 114 cannabis clubs. On the other hand, a patient who suffers from refractory epilepsy, for example, can only find one legal CBD product at Uruguayan pharmacies: Epifractan.

Although Law 19.172 was approved in 2013, Epifractan, a Cannabidiol extract, sold in concentrations of 2 percent and 5 percent, has only been on the market for a year. The only available CBD medicine in the pharmacies, however, is financially inaccessible to many of its users (the 5 percent formula costs up to 200 dollars).

For purchasing imported CBD products, Uruguayan patients have to clear several bureaucratic hurdles, like obtaining a special prescription and an authorization from the Health Ministry. Beyond that, shipping these medicines is still quite expensive, and the government doesn’t provide any bureaucratic or financial assistance for this transaction.

With so many obstacles to access regulated medical cannabis, an unofficial market of CBD-derived products has developed in Uruguay in the last years. Sustained mainly by a network of friends and relatives, these users, or patients, represent over half of the medical cannabis’ consumer market in Uruguay.

CBD IN URUGUAY: MOST PEOPLE BUY UNAUTHORIZED OR HOMEGROWN CBD

According to a research by Monitor Cannabis Uruguay, two thirds of users access CBD-derived products (oils, lotions, etc.) by buying it from unauthorized artisanal producers, by receiving it as a gift (from friends or relatives) or by producing it from their homegrown marijuana.

Maria José Milles and Damián Collazo have been involved with the production of cannabis at least since 2014, when, along with approximately 20 other people, they founded CLUC (“Cultivando Liberdade Uruguay Cresce”, which means “By Growing Freedom, Uruguay Grows”). CLUC is one of the first registered cannabis clubs in Uruguay.

Although none of them knows people who buy Epifractan in the pharmacies, they do know Uruguayans who produce artisanal Cannabidiol oil themselves.

“We cannot sell homemade CBD oil to other people, but we produce it ourselves and give it as a gift to people we know … I personally make it for myself, but also for my mother and a few friends,” said Milles, who is in charge of CLUC’s administration and accounting.

Gardener and agronomist, Damián Collazo takes care of the seeding of ten different cannabis varieties at CLUC. According to him, there are CLUC members who also produce CBD oil to treat serious diseases.

“One of our club managers produce it and give it to her mother, who has cancer,” he told Ministry of Hemp.

For Diego Olivera, there is a mistaken presumption among users that cannabis is a “magical substance,” capable of healing almost everything. He also warns for the risk of self-medicating with a product that was not tested, and whose efficacy and safety isn’t guaranteed.

Diego Olivera, President of IRCCA, in his office with a thermos and mug of mate. IRCCA regulates cannabis in Uruguay, and Olivera anticipates a much greater diversity in hemp and cannabis products in 2019.
Diego Olivera, President of IRCCA. IRCCA regulates cannabis in Uruguay, and Olivera anticipates a much greater diversity in hemp and cannabis products in 2019. (Ministry of Hemp / Beatriz Miranda)

CANNABIS & HEMP IN URUGUAY: A HORIZON FOR FREEDOM

The year of 2019 promises to be better for CBD in Uruguay and medical cannabis users overall. In November 2018, Canadian group Aurora (one of the licensed companies that produce cannabis) inaugurated Uruguay’s first production center for medical cannabis. Aurora’s medicines are expected to be launched in February this year. What’s more, 32 groups already have IRCCA’s authorization to research and produce medical cannabis.

Eduardo Blasina is the director of Montevideo Cannabis Museum, founded in 2016 as an effort to demystify cannabis. Also, he is a partner of Symbiosis, one of the first companies to have won the government’s bid to produce marijuana. Right now, Symbiosis is working on two medical products: a refined CBD oil and a “raw” (the whole extract). They hope to launch both near the end of 2019.

At the moment, Uruguayan political party IR — a member of Frente Amplio, the left-wing political coalition that is in power right now — is working on a bill that reclassifies CBD-oils as phytotherapeutic compounds, instead of medicines. Inspired by Colombia’s and Czech Republic’s laws, the bill aims to facilitate the access to regulated medical cannabis products by allowing smaller producers to become regular sellers.

Considering that, so far, only international companies have been able to meet Uruguay’s rigorous requirements to produce medical cannabis, this bill could mean a more democratic official CBD market.

Diego Olivera is optimistic about the future of medical cannabis: “This year will clearly witness advances in research. We hope to prioritize accessibility, turn the market more dynamic, and invest in other cannabic industries, such as food and cosmetics,” he said.

Despite all the remaining challenges, Blasina also thinks that the implementation of Law 19.172 is at a good pace. He is happy with the legislation, and supports that Uruguay can’t miss the great opportunities ahead:

“More than cannabis tourism, we should invest in ‘tourism of freedom,’ which stands for the idea ‘you smoke if you feel like.’ As a progressive country, we really have the potential to become a multicultural society.”

For more information about cannabis & CBD in Uruguay:

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