Class Action Lawsuit Brought Against CBD Company for Deceptive Advertising

Just a week after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) stated that it could not give CBD a “generally recognized as safe” designation, a proposed class action has been filed against a CBD company in California. The complaint alleges that Infinite Product Co.’s CBD products are misleadingly labeled and illegal to sell because they use CBD as an additive to food and topical cream products in violation of federal law. The “generally recognized as safe” designation allows a substance to be used as a food additive without going through the FDA’s approval process. Currently, there is no federal regulation that allows the use of CBD as a food additive. This proposed class action could be the first of many against CBD companies offering consumer products and food containing CBD as an additive, and may provide further impetus to the FDA to provide more guidance related to CBD products.

The TSA Warms up to CBD in Words, but What About Deeds?

So the TSA claims to have changed its policy over the weekend to permit travelers to carry hemp-derived CBD products with them in flight. The TSA website has been updated to state that “products/medications that contain hemp-derived CBD or are approved by the FDA are legal as long as it is produced within the regulations defined by the law under the Agricultural Improvement Act of 2018.” 

At first read, this seems like oils, gummies, topicals, edibles – they’re all a go! Prepare for take off! But then we get down to enforcement and implementation, and I’m left scratching my head. The Agricultural Improvement Act of 2018 (or the 2018 Farm Bill, as it’s better known) does legalize hemp and hemp products, but only when grown under certain requirements, with state and/or federal approval. How on earth is a TSA agent going to know whether your CBD is derived from hemp that was legally grown in Kentucky or illegally grown in Texas? (Texas may be a bad example since hemp/CBD is about to be legalized there too, but you get the point.)

I for one doubt that TSA agents will be specially trained in the legality of CBD and hemp. The more likely scenario is that this change in TSA regulation is intended to accommodate FDA-approved Epidiliox, the first federally approved drug containing CBD. If any other form, it’s hard to know how TSA agents will treat CBD for the foreseeable future.