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COWEN
COLLABORATIVE INSIGHTS February 25, 2019
Regulatory Considerations For CBD (Assaraf - Washington Research
Group)
2
Any portion of this report prepared by a 2018 Farm Bill
member of Cowen Washington Research — The Agricultural Improvement Act of 2018 (also known as the 2018 Farm Bill) was
Group is intended as commentary on _ signed into law by President Donald Trump on Dec. 20, 2018. The main CBD-related
political, economic or market conditions — changes in the law are that it: 1) declassifies industrial hemp as a Schedule | substance
and is notintendedasaresearchreportas — under the Controlled Substances Act, 2) shifts regulatory authority over hemp from the
defined by applicable regulation. — Drug Enforcement Administration to the Department of Agriculture, and 3) provides
autonomy for states to regulate the industry.
However, the 2018 Farm bill does not change the FDA's oversight authority over CBD
products intended for human consumption. The statutory language emphasizes that
“nothing in this subtitle shall affect or modify .. the authority of the Commissioner of
Food and Drugs ... under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act [FDCA]... to
promulgate Federal regulations and guidelines that relate to the production of hemp.”
FDA Implications
FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb issued a statement and FAQ immediately following
the signing of the 2018 Farm Bill, essentially reminding CBD manufacturers of FDA’s
continued regulatory authority over CBD products.
On the positive side, Gottlieb indicated that the FDA is open to engaging with industry
players early to clarify uncertainty and to help develop a clear and consistent pathway
for bringing legal CBD products to market. To that end, the FDA intends to hold a public
meeting “in the near future” to gather stakeholder input on CBD products, including the
perspectives of consumers and manufacturers. The FDA will use this meeting to inform
an “efficient regulatory framework for allowing product developers that meet the
requirements under [FDA] authorities to lawfully market these types of products."
On the other hand, Commissioner Gottlieb expressed concern over the proliferation of
CBD products making drug claims. According to Gottlieb, “the FDA requires a cannabis
product (hemp-derived or otherwise) that is marketed with a claim of therapeutic
benefit, or with any other disease claim, to be approved by the FDA for its intended use
before it may be introduced into interstate commerce. This is the same standard to
which we hold any product marketed as a drug for human or animal use. Cannabis and
cannabis-derived products claiming in their marketing and promotional materials that
they're intended for use in the diagnosis, cure, mitigation, treatment, or prevention of
diseases (such as cancer, Alzheimer’s disease, psychiatric disorders and diabetes) are
considered new drugs or new animal drugs and must go through the FDA drug approval
process for human or animal use before they are marketed in the U.S."
Even before the passage of the Farm Bill, the FDA has kept a close watch on certain
health claims being made by CBD manufacturers. A simple web search on the FDA's
website turns up dozens of previous warning letters to CBD manufacturers making such
claims (see below for links to FDA warning letters). According to Gottlieb, “the FDA will
continue to evaluate and take action against products that are being unlawfully
marketed and create risks for consumers.”
In his statement, Gottlieb also presented the following warning for CBD additives to
food and beverages:
“Additionally, it’s unlawful under the FD&C Act to introduce food containing added CBD
or THC into interstate commerce, or to market CBD or THC products as, or in, dietary
COWEN.COM 75
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| Filename | HOUSE_OVERSIGHT_024891.jpg |
| File Size | 0.0 KB |
| OCR Confidence | 85.0% |
| Has Readable Text | Yes |
| Text Length | 3,795 characters |
| Indexed | 2026-02-04T16:55:35.230098 |