FDA 1: Time for U.S. FDA to Authorize Early Use of CBD Products

There is a way to go before the wholesale use of CBD and other hemp derived compounds are going to be widely available in the United States without limitations and disclaimers on their legality and use in food, cosmetics and drugs.

Just like any other legal product in the U.S., before a product can be used in food, beverages or other consumables, it must receive approval from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The FDA is governed by the Food, Drug and Cosmetics Act and regulates those products. In order to receive FDA approval, the products undergo stringent tests for safety, proper dosing and general use.

The FDA is considered highly thorough in its mission but also exceedingly conservative and slow. For example, drugs used to treat various ailments, including cancer, are often quicker to market and public use in other countries than they are in the U.S., due to FDA’s approach.

That said, the FDA is highly regarded and takes its mission of food and drug safety seriously. If a product is approved by the FDA there is good reason to believe it is safe to use. For that reason, it would be unfair to assume that the slow walk that the FDA is taking in regard to approvals for new hemp derived ingestibles, is more acute because the product in question is hemp or hemp derived. That said, there is already an active hemp products market in the U.S., which the FDA acknowledges.

Read the full article (first in a series) on HempToday.

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