UK / EU Cannabis Compliance

Article: Nearly 3,000 products advance in UK’s $800 million CBD sweepstakes

Published

2 years ago

March 28, 2023

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Hemp Today reports

The UK Food Standards Agency (FSA) has now advanced a total 2,847 CBD products to the second stage of its three-stage approval process for new (or “novel”) foods. In the most recent development, 2,692 CBD isolate products submitted in a joint application from EIHA projects GmbH, a consortium of the European Industrial Hemp Association, were moved to the “validated” category on the FSA’s register.

FSA is sorting out applications for roughly 12,000 individual products as it works to clarify a flourishing gray market that has seen retail outlets flooded with CBD products over the past several years, raising safety concerns.

The EIHA consortium has another 2,205 products in a second application for CBD distillates which remains at the first stage of the FSA’s review, “awaiting evidence.”

A second consortium organized under the UK’s Association for the Cannabinoids Industry (ACI) also had products in a joint application recently “validated” by the FSA. Those applications cover 29 isolate and distillate products but ACI said they could carry the fate of up to 4,000 products.

The validated products now face safety assessment based on reviews for toxicology and other technical benchmarks.

400 products removed

A total of 400 product applications are now in the “removed” category and are no longer in the running to receive market approval. FSA does not disclose the causes for removals, but has said they reflect withdrawal by applicants, or that the products in some way failed to meet the agency’s criteria. Products struck from the list may no longer be offered to consumers under FSA rules.

More than 300 product applications that have been removed were from JM Wholesale Ltd. of the UK. But that company still has more than 400 products that continue in the first stage of the review. British Cannabis, which submitted the most products (1,471) to the FSA review process, has seen 15 products disqualified; and RX Pharmatech, the No. 2 applicant (801), had eight fall off the list but still has nearly 800 in contention.

To get onto the FSA’s public list of CBD products – and therefore remain on the market pending final approval – products already in distribution had to have been on sale before Feb. 13, 2020. Those introduced to the market after that date were not eligible for the agency’s consideration.

FSA’s challenge

FSA was inundated with CBD applications early last year after stakeholders complained about the review process that guides the one-time chance for producers to get their gray-market products legal. The agency eventually reopened the application window by one full year, which eventually brought a flood of products to the list, nearly quadrupling the original number under review from roughly 3,500 to more than 12,000.

FSA said it expects the first CBD products to be fully authorized during the latter half of 2023 if the evidence necessary for safety assessments is complete. The authorization process can take more time if additional studies are required, according to the agency.

ACI has estimated the domestic CBD market at roughly £690 million ($830 million/€785 million).

Source: https://hemptoday.net/nearly-3000-products-advance-in-uks-800-million-cbd-sweepstakes/

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UK / EU Cannabis Compliance

UK: Celeb Big Narstie To Open Medical Cannabis Office In Essex

Published

2 months ago

September 21, 2024

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High & Polite write

Big Narstie to medical cannabis office in Essex

Hold onto your spliffs, folks—because Big Narstie is making serious moves in the medical cannabis game!

The grime legend, comedian, and all-around UK icon is turning an old Barclay’s bank in South Woodham Ferrers into his very own medical cannabis office.

Yep, you read that right—Big Narstie Medical is officially open for business, ready to deliver “high-quality medicinal cannabis” to UK patients in need.

Now, we know what some of you might be thinking—“Big Narstie? Medical cannabis?”

But let’s be real, who better to bridge the gap between everyday people and the life-changing potential of medicinal cannabis?

Since the UK legalised medical cannabis in 2018, patients suffering from severe epilepsy, chemo-induced nausea, and MS have found relief through legal weed.

Narstie’s move isn’t just about the clout (though let’s be honest, a medical cannabis office is pretty cool).

He’s shining a much-needed spotlight on the benefits of medical cannabis, especially for those who don’ realise it can be legally prescribed.

So, whether you’re a fan or not, this is one groundbreaking move worth keeping an eye on.

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UK / EU Cannabis Compliance

German Medical Cannabis Associations Call For Wider Regulatory Reform

Published

10 months ago

January 14, 2024

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In July 2023, Germany’s federal government commissioned the Federal Joint Committee (G-BA) – the body responsible for determining which medical treatments are covered by the country’s statutory health insurance – to amend the current regulations around medical cannabis prescriptions.

The G-BA is in the process of deciding four specialist areas for which the current approval requirement should no longer apply, making it easier to obtain insurance coverage for the medicine.

However, the country’s medical cannabis associations say this does not go far enough and have called for the approval requirement to be removed for all conditions in which cannabis has shown medical efficacy.

Medical cannabis has been legal in Germany since 2017 and can be prescribed by any doctor for patients with serious medical conditions. It is one of the few countries globally where the treatment can be covered under the public health insurance system in certain cases.

But currently, for patients with statutory health insurance, the costs of medical cannabis are only covered if previously approved by the insurance company.

This application process is said to be ‘daunting, lengthy and bureaucratic’ for doctors and patients, with 30-40% of applications being rejected.

https://businessofcannabis.com/german-medical-cannabis-associations-call-for-wider-regulatory-reform/

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UK / EU Cannabis Compliance

Portugal: Full Legalisation on the Horizon?

Published

2 years ago

April 7, 2023

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Cannareporter writes….

The legalization of cannabis may be introduced in the Portuguese Parliament and there may be political will and consensus for the approval of this regulation to be faster. In the “March for Cannabis” Manifestation, members of various parties, power and opposition, participated and revealed that it may be in 2023 that the proposal for the legalization of cannabis will enter parliament.

The staircase of the Assembly of the Republic building brought together, after the demonstration that headed from Largo do Camões, the various participants of the March for Cannabis, convened by the Mothers for Cannabis Associative Movement. It was at a time dedicated to interventions that the possibility of legalizing cannabis in the near future in Portugal was unveiled by various political leaders.

According to Francisco Themudo, National Secretary for the Rights, Freedoms and Guarantees of Socialist Youth, who addressed those present, he reasoned that there may be will, but above all, the necessary political conditions to move towards a comprehensive regulation of cannabis.

The leader stated that “smoking is an act of freedom, and that we have the right to do it safely”, defending a legal framework where the cannabis plant is not illegal. Fabien Figueiredo, former deputy for the Bloco de Esquerda and proponent of the bill to legalize personal consumption in 2021 But if there were any doubts, confirmation that, in the corridors of São Bento, cannabis is more than just talk, came from the Deputy of the Liberal Initiative, Rodrigo Saraiva. To the participants, the deputy said that it could even be in 2023 that the parliament will receive some proposals for discussion, “already with some prior consensus”.

Read full report

https://cannareporter.eu/en/2023/04/02/legalization-in-portugal-may-advance-later-this-year-with-political-consensus/?mc_cid=c0a48fdbf5

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