Proposed Bill Requires all CBD Products In Illinois To Meet Testing Requirements

Rerolled from a High Times Original Article

CHICAGO (AP) — A proposed bill would require all CBD products sold in Illinois to meet testing requirements that would be developed by the state Department of Agriculture.

CBD is a cannabis extract that
does not cause a high but is marketed as a healing remedy to alleviate
conditions such as anxiety or chronic pain. The product’s regulation is
so lax that even those in the industry have voiced concerns, the Chicago
Tribune reported.

“We were really unnerved by the lack of
consistency and regulation, and the wide variety of manufacturing
processes that companies were using,” said Coco Meers, co-founder of
Chicago-based CBD company Equilibria.

Meers said CBD products can contain harmful pesticides or heavy metals and may not have the promised amount of cannabidiol.

“At the end of the day, everything gets called CBD, but all CBD is not created equal,” Meers said.

Chicago-based LeafyQuick, a retailer of CBD products, only sells products that have been tested, said co-founder Rahul Easwar.

“When
we tell them, ‘Hey, this is third-party tested,’ it’s more like, ‘OK
great, but tell me what flavor you have,’” Easwar said. “It’s more of an
afterthought or it’s not a thought at all.”

The bill would
require any untested products to be removed from store shelves and
online shops, according to Rep. Bob Morgan, who introduced it in the
state legislature Oct. 2.

Potential fines start at $1,000 and
increase with more violations. The fines would go to a newly created CBD
Safety Fund to be used for enforcement.

“This legislation would
give the Department of Agriculture the ability to step in to make sure
we are selling products that are safe for people to use,” said Morgan, a
Democrat representing the Chicago suburb of Deerfield.

Legal CBD
has become ubiquitous in many of its forms, whether it’s cream, bath
bomb or gummy bears. Last year, President Donald Trump’s signed a farm
bill that legalized the cultivation of industrial hemp, from which CBD
can be derived.

Since then, business has boomed. Sales of CBD
products in the U.S. are expected to reach $5 billion this year — a more
than 700% increase from last year, according to Chicago-based cannabis
research firm Brightfield Group. By 2023, the market could grow to $23.7
billion.

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Rerolled from High Times