Survey: Voters Desire Greater Regulatory Oversight of Commercially Marketed CBD Products
Washington, DC: More than eight in ten US voters desire greater federal regulatory oversight over the labeling and marketing of commercially available CBD products, according to survey data compiled by the National Consumers League and provided by GQR Insights.
Respondents expressed support for holding manufacturers accountable if they mislabel their products or make inaccurate claims about their products’ efficacy. Eighty-six percent of respondents supported having the US Food and Drug Administration “test and regulate CBD products.”
Third-party testing of commercially available CBD products has determined that they typically possess lower percentages of cannabidiol than is advertised on the label. Many of these products have also been found to contain THC and other additive agents. A 2019 report compiled by the online watchdog group LegitScript.com found that the overwhelming majority of commercially available CBD products are marketed in a manner that is inconsistent with current FDA guidelines.
Survey data compiled last year by the Grocery Manufacturers Association reported that three out of four Americans falsely believed that the FDA already regulates commercially available CBD products. In fact, the agency has yet to issue any guidance regarding regulatory pathways for these products. Most recently, FDA representatives reaffirmed to Congress, “It is not currently lawful to add CBD to human or animal food, … [and] CBD products cannot be lawfully sold as dietary supplements.”
Additional information is available in the NORML fact-sheet, ‘FAQs About Cannabidiol.’