Hemp

UNPA announces hemp policy, signs up first CBD member

17-Oct-2019 By Hank Schultz

The United Natural Products Alliance has announced a new policy on hemp extracts while at the same time announcing its first member engaged exclusively in the business.

FDA warns pregnant and breast-feeding women to avoid CBD and cannabis products for fear of ‘serious risk’

17-Oct-2019 By Elizabeth Crawford

FDA warned pregnant and breast-feeding women yesterday to avoid CBD, THC and marijuana in any form, including the proliferation of food, supplements and cosmetics containing CBD and other cannabis-derived ingredients that currently are flooding the market...

Editor's Spotlight

Massive CBD extraction facility opens in Colorado

09-Oct-2019 By Hank Schultz

On Tuesday, Oct. 9 Mile High Labs opened what the company calls the country’s largest CBD extraction facility in Broomfield, CO.

Letter urging new CBD regs sent to all members of Congress by trade associations

09-Oct-2019 By Hank Schultz

Yesterday four trade associations representing the dietary supplement industry sent a letter to all 535 members of the US Congress urging them to make CBD a legal dietary ingredient and to give FDA the resources to regulate the sector.

Plaintiff's Bar turns attention to CBD with wave of lawsuits alleging products contain ‘significantly lower levels' than advertised

08-Oct-2019 By Elaine Watson

As widely predicted, the plaintiff’s bar has turned its attention to the burgeoning CBD category with a series of lawsuits alleging that products contain “significantly lower levels of CBD than advertised.”

Oncologist Stephen Hahn reportedly poised to be next FDA chief

04-Oct-2019 By Danielle Masterson

President Trump is poised to nominate Oncologist Dr. Stephen Hahn to head the Food and Drug Administration, pending completion of the vetting process, several news outlets are reporting.

House passes CBD banking bill

26-Sep-2019 By Hank Schultz

A bill that will allow companies selling CBD products to access banking services has been approved by the US House of Representatives.

US House to vote today on hemp/CBD banking measure

25-Sep-2019 By Hank Schultz

The US House of Representatives is expected to vote today on a bill that would clear the way for full banking services for companies dealing in hemp/CBD products.

NSF to start offering hemp/CBD testing, certification

24-Sep-2019 By Hank Schultz

NSF International has unveiled a new certification program for the hemp industry, which the organization says will help address the ongoing quality questions in this sector.

Cash crop: Thai authorities approve use of hemp in food, cosmetics and CBD in herbal products

04-Sep-2019 By Tingmin Koe

Hemp and CBD are now allowed for use in herbal products made in Thailand after the authorities relaxed restrictions on their use.

Chinese firm HMI opens tech centre in Kunming to drive R&D of CBD and hemp health products

29-Aug-2019 By Tingmin Koe

Chinese firm HMI Group has opened a tech centre in Kunming to speed up the R&D of CBD and hemp-based health foods.

UNPA webinar explores the path forward for CBD: ‘All sides are beginning to lawyer up and lobby up… the stakes are high as clearly the market opportunity is enormous’

23-Aug-2019 By Elaine Watson

Interest in CBD is “off the charts,” but those mulling the regulatory path forward for the hottest functional ingredient of the moment might be well advised to consider how other cannabinoids will fit into the regulatory framework going forward, says...

New Age Beverages delays roll-out of CBD-infused beverages owing to regulatory uncertainty

09-Aug-2019 By Elaine Watson

The rollout of New Age Beverages’ CBD-infused beverages has been delayed owing to the regulatory uncertainty over CBD, which makes navigating the territory “as murky as the Strait of Hormuz,” CEO Brent Willis told analysts yesterday.

CBD is on fire, says Brightfield, but market remains dogged by regulatory confusion and ‘unclear terminology surrounding hemp’

12-Jul-2019 By Elaine Watson

The US market for foods and beverages featuring hemp-derived CBD – from relaxation drinks to gummies – could be worth $2.5bn by 2023, or 10.5% of an estimated $23.7bn market for CBD products (spanning everything from pharmaceuticals to petfood), predicts...

Thrive Market halts sales of hemp-derived CBD products

20-Jun-2019 By Elaine Watson

Natural products online marketplace Thrive Market has temporarily halted sales of hemp-derived CBD products after its merchant processor demanded it cease selling them amid uncertainty over their legal status, but says it is in conversations with a new...

Gaia Herbs starts sales for its new full spectrum hemp extract

31-May-2019 By Adi Menayang

Gaia Herbs, a leading brand of botanical supplements in terms of sales with distribution in national chains like CVS and Whole Foods Market, has started sales for its full spectrum hemp extract line on its website and will roll out across natural and...

BBB Labs launches quality assurance seal for its hemp extracts

22-May-2019 By Elaine Watson

We’re no longer in the ‘Wild West’ when it comes to hemp-derived CBD, but buyers can still get burned if they don’t do their homework, says Colorado-based BBB Labs, which has launched a quality assurance seal for its hemp extracts to reassure partners...

Hemp market’s rapid evolution complicates business planning, expo attendees told

02-Apr-2019 By Hank Schultz

The hemp industry is advancing so rapidly that the timeline of decades of other sectors is being compressed into just years, attendees at a recent trade show were told.

From the Editor's Desk

Can the CBD industry avoid the ‘bust’ part of the boom cycle?

28-Mar-2019 By Hank Schultz

The market for CBD products is booming. It’s up to the industry to ensure that this isn’t followed by a major bust.

Editor's Spotlight

Nature's Way strategy and innovation chief shares how a legacy company is keeping up with the times

27-Mar-2019 By Adi Menayang

At the Natural Products Expo West show this year, we caught up with the chief strategy and innovation officer at legacy supplement brand Nature’s Way to talk about consumer trends, CBD, and the body of laws that regulate supplements.

Ancient Nutrition founder on new products, DSHEA at 25 and hemp-CBD

15-Mar-2019 By Stephen Daniells

With growth “like a rocket ship”, a new range of hemp-CBD products, and a continued commitment to keto and protein, “2019 is going to be a great year”, says Ancient Nutrition product innovator and founder, Jordan Rubin.

Gaia Herbs unveils 'less clinical' new package design, hemp line, and more at Expo West 2019

12-Mar-2019 By Adi Menayang

North Carolina-based Gaia Herbs, an herbal supplement company, unveiled new packaging design as well as a handful of new products at last week’s Natural Products Expo West show in Anaheim, CA.

'What we're wrestling with is whether CBD is an ingredient play, or something huge brands can be built around'

Trendspotting at Expo West 2019: CBD explosion, oatmilk on fire, protein still hot, sugar under attack

11-Mar-2019 By Elaine Watson

The fact that CBD is not a legal ingredient in foods and supplements - at least not yet - did not deter scores of exhibitors at Expo West, who added it to everything from soda to protein bars (absent any claims), with some opting for isolates, but most...

CBD and nootropics boom: Bod Australia reveals record revenue and expansion aims

23-Jan-2019 By Cheryl Tay

Australian firm Bod Australia reported a record US$872,240 (A$1.22m) revenue for Q4 2018, due largely to portfolio expansion and new distribution agreements.

Attorney: ‘I see all these emails saying once the Farm Bill passes, CBD is legal in all 50 states; that’s just not true’

11-Dec-2018 By Elaine Watson

There is good news in the impending* Farm Bill for industrial hemp – which will be removed from Schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act - but this does not suddenly make the on-trend ingredient CBD (cannabidiol) legal in foods, beverages and supplements,...

Hemp’s cognitive help: Elixinol’s supplements finding favour amongst Japanese consumers

06-Dec-2018 By Tingmin Koe

Hemp oil supplements are gaining higher acceptance in Japan, with manufacturer Elixinol ramping up its investment in the country on the back of more favourable advertising rules.

AHPA president talks midterm election results, CBD, and pre-market notification

19-Nov-2018 By Adi Menayang

From the 2018 midterm election results to the rise of CBD, Michael McGuffin, president of the American Herbal Products Association, talks about how the association is approaching the most recent changes in the supplements space.

'Ignorance is amok... not even the investors are asking the right questions. It’s total anarchy'

SPECIAL FEATURE: What is the regulatory status of CBD in food and beverage products?

11-Oct-2018 By Elaine Watson

If you ask the FDA or the DEA if CBD (cannabidiol) is permitted in foods, beverages and supplements, the answer is a pretty unequivocal NO. If you ask the scores of companies currently selling it in everything from CBD-infused soda to smoothie kits, the...

Hemp Boom: Thorne’s hemp oil sales exceeds company expectations

27-Sep-2018 By Adi Menayang

Hemp Oil + by legacy supplement company Thorne Research is relatively new, released only in March this year. The product launch proved to be the company’s ‘most successful’ so far, according to one exec.

Sessions opens door for stepped up cannabis enforcement; effect on CBD sphere unclear

05-Jan-2018 By Hank Schultz

A move announced yesterday by US Attorney General Jeff Sessions to allow federal prosecutors to pursue marijuana enforcement cases further unsettles the regulatory underpinning for those companies seeking to use hemp derivatives for nutritional products.

Canadian firm Hempco plans move into CBD extraction as it absorbs losses from S. Korea market retreat

03-Jan-2018 By Hank Schultz

Canadian manufacturer Hempco says it will capitalize on new cannabis laws coming into force to move beyond foods based on hemp seeds into the market for CBD ingredients. The strategic play will help offset losses from a debacle in South Korea, where low...

Market growth continues to fuel CBD ferment

21-Dec-2017 By Hank Schultz

Despite the clouded regulatory picture, development of CBD-based products is continuing in the US.

Marine Ingredients launches platform pairing omega-3s, phytocannabinoids

22-Sep-2017 By Hank Schultz

Marine Ingredients has announced the launch of a new product platform that combines the benefits of omega-3s with those of phytocannabinoids.

Colorado CBD brand takes aim at national specialty retail distribution

14-Aug-2017 By Hank Schultz

Colorado-based brand NuLeaf Naturals is expanding its distribution footprint beyond online sales into brick and mortar retail for its line of CBD products.

Raw material supply for CBDs increasing rapidly

02-Jun-2017 By Hank Schultz

Despite the continued uncertainty of the regulatory position of CBD products, the raw material supply of the ingredient is ramping up rapidly.

Hemp product sales slowly inch up as cultivation barriers get more lax

17-Apr-2017 By RJ Whitehead

Retail sales of hemp food, CBD, and supplements posted $285.3 million in sales in 2016, according to data by retail research firm SPINS and Vote Hemp, a non-profit advocating a freer market for industrial hemp.

Canadian firm to launch cannabidiol nutraceutical in UK

28-Mar-2017 By Emma Jane Cash

A functional food containing cannabidiol and hemp seed oil has been launched in the UK by Canadian hemp seed product manufacturer, HempCo, under the brand name PlanetHemp.

HIA sues the DEA: ‘Stop treating hemp as something illicit’

09-Feb-2017 By Adi Menayang

The Hemp Industries Association (HIA) has filed a motion to hold the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) in contempt of court for disregarding a 2004 ruling that hemp fiber, stalk, sterilized seed and oil are specifically exempted from the definition...

Canadian algae developer pivots toward cannabis

01-Feb-2017 By Hank Schultz

Development stage company Algae Dynamics Corp is among the latest dietary supplement firms to succumb to the allure of CBDs and other fractions of the cannabis plant.

Are barriers for hemp cultivation going down? New report documents industrial hemp legislative progress in US

17-Jan-2017 By Adi Menayang

Last year saw the addition of four new ‘Hemp States’ (Florida, Alabama, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island), according to Vote Hemp’s 2016 States Report.

Demand for CBD still outstrips supply despite production expansion, hemp grower says

06-Jan-2017 By Hank Schultz

The supply of industrial hemp is ramping up quickly, as a company formed by growers in Kentucky reported $2 million in payments to farmers for the 2016 crop. But demand for CBD still far outstrips supply, a company officer said.

Second CBD-containing gum hits shelves

09-Dec-2016 By Hank Schultz

Another new delivery mode for CBDs is making way in the market with the launch of MedCBDX Chewing Gum, offered by Mastix LLC.

CBD marketer goes for functional food positioning

09-Dec-2016 By Hank Schultz

A new marketer of CBD products is hanging its hat on a functional food positioning and restricting claims to other ingredients in the products in an effort to find a regulatory safe harbor.

So some states legalized recreational marijuana. What’s in it for hemp?

18-Nov-2016 By Adi Menayang

Hemp and marijuana come from the same plant species, but in terms of psychoactive constituents, the two are very different. Will the recent legalization of recreational marijuana in some states positively benefit the hemp industry as well?

Hemp-focused MLM adds ultra-high dose CBD supplement to offerings

01-Sep-2016 By Hank Schultz

The first network marketing company to focus on hemp products has added an ultra-high CBD content dietary supplement product to its line.

Evo Hemp to expand use of US-grown hemp: 'It's only a matter of time before the federal cultivation ban is lifted'

13-Jul-2016 By Elaine Watson

With 28 US states now allowing farmers to grow industrial hemp – a crop that stubbornly remains on the DEA’s controlled substances list although it has no psychoactive effects – it is only a matter of time before the federal ban on its cultivation is...

HIA petitions DEA to remove industrial hemp from controlled substance list: ‘It has no potential whatsoever for drug abuse’

02-Jun-2016 By Elaine Watson

The Hemp Industries Association and the Kentucky Hemp Industry Council have filed a petition with the US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) to remove industrial hemp plants from its list of controlled substances.

Hemp food and personal care US retail sales estimated at $283 million

15-May-2016 By Adi Menayang

According toThe Hemp Industries Association (HIA), total retail sales of hemp food, supplements, and body care products in the US in 2015 approached $283 million. With auto parts, building materials and clothing added, the figure rose to at least $573...

Pressure mounts for regulatory clarity on CBDs

21-Mar-2016 By Hank Schultz

The recent spate of FDA warning letters on the use of CBD as an ingredient in dietary supplements seems to have done little to dampen formulators’ enthusiasm for its use in new products. The situation is unprecedented in the herbal products sphere, observers...