Photo credit to Agriculture Canada

By The Canadian Press

Hemp industry looks to Ottawa for regulation changes

May 17, 2019 | 4:07 PM

OTTAWA –– Health food and hemp industry groups want Ottawa to change the regulations for C-B-D to treat the cannabinoid as a natural health product rather than a drug.

The Canadian Health Food Association and the Canadian Hemp Trade Alliance say C-B-D, a non-intoxicating compound which can be derived from cannabis and hemp, should be removed from the prescription drug list.

The groups also want a regulatory pathway to allow for C-B-D derived from industrial hemp to be included in natural health products and supplemented foods.

Since Canada legalized pot for recreational use, C-B-D is regulated similarly to cannabis products and must be purchased through a legal recreational retailer or, for medical patients, through a licensed producer or seller.

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The groups argue that C-B-D, or cannabidiol, does not produce a high and there is a growing body of evidence of its potential therapeutic uses.

At the same time, Health Canada is changing its process for issuing cannabis licenses to reduce wait times and better use the agency’s resources.

The agency says new applicants for licences to grow, process or sell cannabis must now have a fully built site that meets the regulations when they submit their application.

Prior to this, cannabis license applicants could submit an application with their plans and get approval before building.

Health Canada says over the past three years, more than 70 per cent of licensing applicants which passed its initial paper-based review have yet to submit the required evidence to demonstrate they have built a facility that meets the regulatory requirements.

The change comes as cannabis retailers across the country continue to face supply challenges, more than six months after Canada legalized pot for recreational use.