The only licensed producer of CBD products in the British Isles is contemplating legal action against the UK and Jersey Governments following the limiting of export of Jersey Hemp’s CBD Wellness products to the UK.
The company has been cultivating hemp at its Warwick Farm base since 2019 to create CBD (cannabidiol) wellness products, and is currently seeking novel foods status from the UK Food Standards Agency. Taking an organic approach, Jersey Hemp doesn’t spray its plants with pesticides, herbicides or other agricultural chemicals, and had recently announced a sales partnership with UK retail giant, Tesco.
According to the BBC, the Home Office has restricted the export of Jersey Hemp’s products to the UK after it found low levels of THC (tetrahydrocannabinol) in its products, a decision the company said received “subsequent support of the Jersey authorities”.
“This decision, which contradicts a legal opinion affirming the compliance of Jersey Hemp’s products with relevant legislation, is a clear error in both law and judgment,” said the company.
If this decision is upheld, it could “effectively render the entire CBD market in the UK illegal” says the firm, which has already faced significant financial fallout and redundancies initially affecting over half of its workforce.
But there was more bad news to come.
“We are incredibly frustrated and saddened by this news which has unfortunately left us with no choice but to close certain aspects of the business and lay off two-thirds of our workforce,” said a Facebook post published early last week.
The firm also expressed serious concerns over the exclusion of licensed companies from the £300 million UK market, while non-licensed CBD companies are permitted to sell their products as long as they are imported from outside the British Isles.
Jersey Hemp’s release concerning the situation makes no mention of the THC aspect as reported by the BBC. Whether THC was present or not, it’s a potential issue that all CBD users should be aware of – particularly in jurisdictions such as much of Australia where there is a zero tolerance for the presence of THC in the bloodstream when driving. Even trace amounts of THC in a CBD product can be problematic in such circumstances.
Concerning relevant legislation in the British Isles, Jersey Hemp maintains its products meet all three criteria outlined in Regulation 2 of the Misuse of Drugs Regulations 2001, qualifying them as “Exempted Products.”
