France’s green party reacted angrily to a new regulation that bans the sale of CBD flowers and leaves, calling the decision “stupid, absurd, and the worst kind of nonsense,” further stating that it’s, “a real New Year’s gift to drug dealers.”
A government decree on December 31 stated that the sale of CBD flowers or leaves, either to smoke or to drink in tea, directly to consumers, is now banned.
Under the proposed law, only the growing, importation, exportation, industrial and commercial use of Cannabis sativa L varieties are allowed.
Products that do not contain whole leaves or flowers to smoke or drink will still be allowed.
The decree also legalizes a slightly higher concentration of THC in finished CBD products, which has now been set at 0.3% rather than the previous 0.2%.
French reports echo concerns from sector professionals, raising concerns about the effects of the new ban across the country.
The European Commission (EC) has questioned a number of clauses in France’s new law, back when it was proposed in July of 2021.
The EC has also questioned the blanket ban on the sale of flowers to consumers proposed in France’s draft rule.
The draft decree states that “the sale to consumers of flowers or raw leaves in all their forms, alone or in combination with other ingredients, such as smoking products, herbal teas or potpourri, their possession by consumers and their consumption are prohibited.”
The EC responded to the ban by stating that “it is not impossible that some of the products that would fall within the scope of application of this prohibition are considered foodstuffs,” while asking French authorities to specify the reasoning for issuing the ban.
In addition to being one of the larger CBD markets in Europe, France is one of the strictest in terms of regulatory environments.
CBD was temporarily banned in France in 2018. Since then, a growing number of stores, including in major towns such as Paris, Bordeaux, Marseille, Lyon, and Nice, now have CBD products on their shelves.
Under the new regulations, they will have to remove any products containing whole flowers or leaves.
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