MJBiz - August 2023 - 16

INDUSTRY DEVELOPMENTS National & International
Cannabis News
Regulators Ding Delta-8 THC
Brands Over Packaging
The U.S. Federal Trade Commission
(FTC) and the Food and Drug Administration
sent cease-and-desist
letters to six companies that market
delta-8 THC products " in packaging
that is almost identical to many
snacks and candy children eat. "
The companies, based across
the United States, manufacture
and market products that contain
the intoxicating hemp-derived
cannabinoid and resemble popular
brands including Cheetos, Doritos
and Nerds candy, the FTC said in a
news release.
The warning letters allege
violations of the U.S. Food, Drug,
and Cosmetic Act, including using
an " unsafe food additive " and the
introduction of " adulterated food
into interstate commerce " as well as
" unfair or deceptive marketing. "
The companies named by the FTC
are:
* Delta Munchies in Los Angeles.
* Dr. Smoke in Kansas City,
Missouri.
* Exclusive Hemp Farms in Gilroy,
California.
* The Haunted Vapor Room in
Franklin, New Jersey.
* Nikte's Wholesale in
Albuquerque, New Mexico.
* North Carolina Hemp Exchange
in Raleigh, North Carolina.
The letters demand that the
companies " immediately cease
marketing edible delta-8 THC
products that imitate conventional
foods. "
Cindy Barton, proprietor of
The Haunted Vapor Room, told
MJBizDaily she " immediately "
pulled the offending products after
receiving the warning. She said the
store only sold the products and did
not manufacture them.
16 August 2023 | MJBizMagazine
Meanwhile, Luxembourg approved
a law that legalizes homegrown
cannabis and largely ends
criminalization of the drug-but
the statute stops short of reversing
the prohibition-era restriction on
marijuana sales.
The new law allows residents
to grow up to four plants per
household. The plants must not be
visible from the road. The law also
permits consumers to possess up to
3 grams outside their residences.
Germany and Luxembourg
Make Progress on Cannabis
The German government published
a draft law for the first pillar of its
cannabis legalization process that
will govern marijuana cultivation
for recreational purposes.
The bill is expected to reach
the federal Cabinet for approval
in mid-August. After that, the
draft law will be scrutinized in
both the Bundestag-Germany's
parliament-and the Bundesrat
sometime this autumn.
Germany expects the bill to
become law before the end of 2023.
Details of the draft law include:
* Limiting home cultivation to
three cannabis plants per adult.
* Limiting legal cannabis
possession to 25 grams
(0.88 ounces) per adult.
* Cultivation association
members will be limited to
25 grams of cannabis per day or
50 grams per month.
* People up to age 21 are limited
to a maximum of 30 grams
per month with a limited THC
content of 10%.
* Implementing a general
advertising and sponsorship
ban for cannabis and cultivator
associations.
Canadian Panel Urges Bigger
Role for First Nations
A Canadian Senate committee is
urging the federal government
to revise the country's adult-use
cannabis law to give First Nations
the authority to regulate their own
production and sales programs.
The recommendation is one of
many contained in a new report
by the Senate Committee on
Indigenous Peoples, which spent
2022 examining the implementation
of the 2018 Cannabis Act and how
the end of prohibition affected First
Nations.
The group of 14 senators heard
testimony from 29 witnesses, and
their report provides an overview of
the challenges Indigenous peoples
face in the regulation or restriction
of cannabis on their reserves.
The report concluded that some
First Nations have been blocked
from participating in the regulated
cannabis industry. " First Nations
missed out on significant economic
opportunities, which are no longer
available now that the cannabis
market is largely saturated. "
The report's 13 recommendations
are directed toward Canada's
federal government and a panel
that is currently conducting its own
review of the federal law.
MJBiz - August 2023

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