The EU’s highest court has ruled that CBD is not a narcotic because “it does not appear to have any psychotropic effect or any harmful effect on human health.”

The ruling comes as the result of a lawsuit in France against a company that makes CBD oil from whole hemp plants. In France, only the fiber and seeds of hemp plants containing less than 0.2% THC can be used commercially.

The EU court ruled that France’s law banning the use of whole plant hemp-derived CBD went against the EU’s law on the free movement of goods.

“The national court must assess available scientific data in order to make sure that the real risk to public health alleged does not appear to be based on purely hypothetical considerations,” the court ruled.

“A decision to prohibit the marketing of CBD, which indeed constitutes the most restrictive obstacle to trade in products lawfully manufactured and marketed in other [EU] member states, can be adopted only if that risk appears sufficiently established,” the court wrote.

While individual countries can ban the free movement of goods for things like narcotic drugs, the court’s ruling means that those rules don’t apply to CBD.

Plus, as the court cited in their ruling, France has not banned synthetic CBD, which has the same properties as plant-derived CBD—making the prohibition of plant-derived CBD inconsistent.

The court’s decision could potentially open up the legal CBD market in Europe. Many CBD products currently exist in the grey market under rules that allow cannabis to be sold for agricultural purposes. Regulations about cannabis edibles and CBD have been stalled and in limbo, but the court’s decision could reopen a pathway to selling CBD edibles as food in Europe.

“With today’s ruling, CBD companies can expect a clearer route to achieving compliance across the EU. The harmonization of cannabinoid regulations could finally become a reality,” wrote the UK-based Association for the Cannabinoid Industry.

 

Thailand’s first full-time medical marijuana clinic opened in Bangkok this month. Thailand is the first Southeast Asian country to allow medical marijuana, though cannabis has not been legalized, and there are harsh penalties for recreational use.

The Ministry of Public Health anticipates between 200 to 300 patient visits daily, and nearly 2,200 patients have registered for treatment with medical marijuana. On its first day, the clinic gave away free cannabis oil to nearly 400 people. Patients who visit the clinic will receive two weeks of free care.

Thailand has approved 38 medical conditions for treatment with medical marijuana, including Parkinson’s, epilepsy, Multiple Sclerosis, and cancer. In the future, Thailand may expand its medical marijuana policy to include allowing patients to cultivate up to six plants at home.

Chad Tribble, one of the co-founders of Mountain High Suckers who recently visited Thailand to speak and attend the Elevating Cannabis Expo 2019, told the Bangkok Post about the wide range of uses and products that can be derived from cannabis.

“You can infuse the oils, the cannabis compounds into a lotion which delivers the medicine through your skin instead of smoking or eating it. You can probably feed animals such as elephants with the by-product from the plant as well.”

Thailand already has about 25 cannabis clinics, but access to them is limited to hospitals, and they’re only open part-time.

“This is a pilot clinic, because we cannot produce enough doctors with expertise in cannabis,” said the country’s public health minister Anutin Charnvirakul.

Until at least 2024, only Thai companies will be licensed to cultivate the plant. Tribble sees huge potential in Thailand for CBD and cannabis businesses in the coming years.

“Thailand is a great prospect for foreign companies to be able to work with Thai companies to offer products for people to use medically,” Tribble said.

Despite Thailand’s current harsh drug laws, and recent 180 on medical, the country has a long history with cannabis. Before its ban in the 1930s, cannabis was used for clothing and other fabrics, as well as food. A Thai boat noodle soup called kuaytiaw reua used cannabis as a spice.

“It is vital to remember that cannabis is one of the 50 Fundamental Herbs of Chinese Medicine and dates back 4000 years in Asia,” Dr. Jenelle Kim, Founder & Chief Formulator of JBK Wellness Labs, told Forbes. “Beginning thousands of years ago, the healing properties of cannabis were used to help balance a variety of conditions–from calming the mind and body, balancing digestive disorders, easing pain and fatigue, among others.”

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and other members of Congress are urging the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to speed up its guidance on hemp-derived CBD products. Specifically, Congress wants the FDA to issue formal “enforcement discretion” regarding CBD.

Hemp was legalized last year thanks to the 2018 Farm Bill, which made CBD legal as well. However, without guidance from the FDA, hemp and CBD are in a regulatory gray area. Lawmakers say that the FDA’s current approach to CBD has “created significant regulatory and legal uncertainty for participants in this quickly evolving industry.”

Currently, the FDA prohibits adding CBD to food or drinks marketed beyond a single state or to be added to food as a dietary supplement. Because of the regulatory confusion, some local governments have insisted that CBD is illegal in their state.

“Given the widespread availability of CBD products, growing consumer demand, and the expected surge in the hemp farming in the near future, it’s critical that FDA act quickly to provide legal and regulatory clarity to support this new economic opportunity,” lawmakers wrote.

The FDA has said it could take years to finalize CBD regulations. Congress isn’t waiting, and the US Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Agriculture is working on guidelines to submit to the FDA. According to U.S. Hemp Rountable, Congress is working on rules that would require the FDA to:

Lawmakers wrote that they appreciate that the FDA has pursued “enforcement actions against the worst offenders,” but that “it can do so while eliminating regulatory uncertainty for farmers, retailers, and consumers.”

“Without a formal enforcement discretion policy, anyone participating in the growing marketplace for legal hemp-derived products will continue to face significant legal and regulatory uncertainty.”

McConnell, who has been supportive of the hemp industry, does not support ending marijuana prohibition. Asked to comment of legalizing hemp but not cannabis, McConnell said that hemp is “a different plant. It has an illicit cousin which I choose not to embrace.”