How the Farm Bill Progresses Cannabidiol Like Never Before
Like the rest of the United States cannabidiol (CBD) market, the owners of CBDPure found themselves in a gray area that no other thriving consumer health market had experienced in some time.
Due to the legal status of hemp-derived CBD, companies found themselves walking precarious lines. Not only did the federal classification of CBD leave the market in flux, varying state laws left businesses having to navigate a different set of regulations than producers in other states may have to follow. Compliance with one set of rules meant treating a different set of state rules as secondary. Some sellers chose to ignore state rules, assuming federal rules would trump. Others simply buried their heads in the sand, and hoped nothing would happen. For these CBD sellers trying to be extra-compliant, that meant not shipping to some states, like Arkansas or Louisiana, until a proper resolution could be found.
However, recent changes on the federal level now make it much more precise as to what companies in the CBD space can and cannot do. One such benefit from the changes should be the further emergence of full spectrum CBD oil. This stands to provide significant gains for companies such as CBDPure that have a track record of good compliance and positive feedback.
It may be odd to conceive of an industry earning over $800 million in sales for 2017 isn’t in the mainstream. However, with CBD oil, that is precisely the case. Despite the exploding popularity the last year of CBD among health-conscious consumers, mainstream acceptance was lagging because of the outstanding regulatory concerns. Now, with the law clearer than ever, hemp-based CBD could soon see its name recognition surging.
The Farm Bill Legalizes Hemp
Until 2014, the United States relied on importing industrial hemp. That year brought the passing of the 2014 Farm Bill, which signaled the first sign of forward progress on full CBD legislation in America in the last 48 years.
This year, after much back and forth between federal lawmakers, the $867 billion 2018 U.S.Farm Bill passed in December. While the bill covers numerous parameters, one key standout is the legalization of hemp. Under the federal law, the production of hemp is now completely legal. Cultivators are allowed to produce the plant as long as it contains under .3% of THC in its chemical makeup. Numerous restrictions still apply in regards to interstate commerce and other market standards for other industries. This includes no change at the FDA, meaning that CBD and THC may still be banned locally from food products being sold across state lines.
That said, there are numerous benefits for the market thanks to the bill’s passing. By legalizing the plant, the Farm Bill clarifies the status of CBD much more than ever before. Additionally, the passage of the law has opened up CBD cultivation across the country, despite a few persisting interstate regulatory issues. More so, it provides protection for the cultivators of the crop. While it may not be a complete success, the news is undoubtedly a significant step forward.
Opting for Full Spectrum
Consumers can purchase two different types of hemp-derived CBD. The first option is the lesser used isolate. Isolates are 99% “pure” CBD. The product is purified of the rest of the cannabinoids and compounds in the hemp plant by chemically stripping the other natural components out. With isolate, the product is sold in powder form and usually mixed with other foods and beverages.
The more commonly consumed, and preferred, option is full spectrum CBD oil. CBD products listed as full spectrum, sometimes referred to as whole plant, offer the entire natural profile of the plant. Unlike isolate, full spectrum provides consumers with CBD as well as other cannabinoids including CBN, CBG and several others. This includes a low, non-psychoactive concentration of THC, which still cannot exceed .3% under the new regulations.
Some opt for isolate as they want purely CBD that is free of any compounds or contaminants that may be in the plant, or concerned that any THC at all may be problematic for them. While the health concerns are understandable, they are far more a rumor than fact. Meanwhile, the benefits of full spectrum can be found in the healing properties of each cannabinoid. CBD gets the fair share of attention for its extensive list of healing properties. However, others like CBC can promote bone growth, while CBDA inhibits cancer cell growth. Those examples just scrape the surface of a growing list of cannabinoids and benefits worth exploring at length. More importantly, study after study confirms that it is the synergistic effect of all the natural cannabinoids and terpenes working together that truly “supercharge” the positive effects of CBD, not just isolated CBD itself.
Buying Trusted Products
As mentioned, the FDA will largely continue its prior position on CBD and THC products being sold from state to state. In a recent statement, FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb, M.D. said, “In particular, we continue to be concerned at the number of drug claims being made about products not approved by the FDA that claim to contain CBD or other cannabis-derived compounds.”
The FDA’s sentiment is one echoed by the CBD industry. While improvements have lessened concerns to a degree, a number of CBD products continue to mislabel or misrepresent what the product contains. Some claiming “natural hemp oil” may mislead consumers about the true amount of cannabidiol present, while others have overstated health claims or claim “cures” that can be attributed to their CBD products.
Consumers must be mindful of the products that they purchase. “If a seller of CBD is saying that they are selling THC-free full-spectrum oil, or that their product is a “cure” for any disease or condition, that seller should probably be avoided, or at least viewed with a high degree of skepticism.” said CBDPure President CJ Montgomery, “The excitement behind CBD has attracted some new sellers to the market that don’t always have the attention to proper science, compliance and testing that they should.”
Like a growing portion of the market, CBDPure offers transparent lab test results for its products on the company’s website. Additionally, the company provides 90-day guarantees on its locally-grown non-GMO, organic standard hemp CBD products. The company says that this approach to sales, which mirrors most thriving customer service-focused health companies and industries, has resulted in “thousands of satisfied CBD customers from all walks of life.”
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