To say that the United States has a complicated relationship with hemp is an understatement. In this edition of The 411 on 420, Perkins Coie partner Barak Cohen discusses hemp’s complicated past and promising future with Eric Steenstra, founding member of the Hemp Industries Association, Vice President of the California Hemp Council and President of
Five Takeaways From California’s New State Industrial Hemp Bill
Earlier this month, California legislators passed a law, AB 45, aimed at providing guardrails for an expanded consumer marketplace for products containing hemp and hemp-derived cannabidiol (CBD) in California. Given that the bill will take effect immediately following Governor Newsom’s signature, cannabis businesses, and businesses looking to add hemp to their products, should take note of the new law. With the new law’s passage, many hemp-derived CBD products will be able to enter the market legally in California. Here are five key takeaways from AB 45 for the cannabis industry.
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Delta-8: A New Low in Highs
Most Americans are familiar with the term “THC” at this point. What they might not yet appreciate is that common nomenclature is actually referring to Delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol or “Delta-9” THC. That’s the scientific terminology for the molecule in marijuana that’s well-known for its psychoactive properties—i.e., what causes a “high.” Delta-9 is a cannabinoid and there are hundreds of different cannabinoids within any given cannabis plant.
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California Bill Offers Insights into Future of CBD Regulation
California was an early state to legalize marijuana for recreational use, but the state has been slower to regulate hemp-derived products such as cannabidiol (“CBD”).
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Cannabis Law: A Primer on Federal and State Law Regarding Marijuana, Hemp, and CBD
Perkins Coie is proud to announce the launch of “Cannabis Law: A Primer on Federal and State Law Regarding Marijuana, Hemp, and CBD,” published by the American Bar Association, authored by various Perkins Coie Cannabis Law attorneys, and edited by Barak Cohen, chair of our Cannabis Law industry group, and Michael Bleicher. Until
USDA’s Final Rule Makes Hemp Easier to Grow, Harder to Test
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) published a final rule today, building off the interim final rule it issued in October 2019 and incorporating both public comments and the agency’s takeaways from the 2020 growing season. In general, the final rule makes modest adjustments to the interim final rule in order to make it less onerous for producers to grow hemp while imposing stricter requirements on how crop must be tested.
Most importantly, the final rule recognizes that growers may accidentally produce crop that contains more than 0.3 percent THC and raises the limit for negligently doing so from 0.5 percent to 1 percent, but requires that producers test for total THC levels in crop, rather than for delta-9 THC levels. Testing for total THC levels makes it more likely a crop could exceed the legal limit for THC in hemp.
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European High Court Finds CBD Is Not A Narcotic
The European Court of Justice (ECJ), the EU’s highest court, ruled on November 19th that cannabidiol (CBD) derived from the entire hemp plant was not a narcotic under applicable law. The ECJ found: “the CBD at issue …is not a drug.”
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New York State Proposes New Cannabinoid Product Regulations
On October 27, 2020, the New York State Department of Health issued proposed regulations regarding cannabinoid hemp products. These proposed regulations (available here) are open for public commentary until January 11, 2021. They would change how products containing hemp-derived cannabinoids, including cannabidiol (CBD), are manufactured and sold in New York State. While the industry continues to await federal guidance from the FDA, these proposed regulations offer a glimpse into what actions the federal government might take with regard to CBD.
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Former Part Owner of Hemp Company Sues for Misappropriation of Hemp-Based Trade Secrets Allegedly Valued at $3.8M
A former part owner of a failed venture sued the venture’s former CEO, Paul Smith, alleging he misappropriated trade-secret hemp strains, selling them to a Canadian cannabis company for nearly $4 million.
In its September 21, 2020 complaint, Big Wuf Enterprises, LLC and its principal, W. John Short, allege their former venture, YCG Holdings LLC,
FDA Guidance Offers Clues Regarding Future Federal CBD Policy
Amid sustained legislative pressure for regulatory guidance and the FDA’s recent submission of draft enforcement guidance regarding cannabidiol (CBD) to the White House, signs from the FDA indicate increased momentum towards a federal pathway for the CBD market. This momentum from the FDA is affected by the approach to CBD taken by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). While the industry awaits the FDA’s forthcoming guidance policy on CBD enforcement, the FDA’s approach articulated in two recent guidance documents contains important signals.
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