The 2018 farm bill Congress enacted in December that year and that became effective in 2019 de-scheduled hemp – defined as cannabis or any part of the cannabis plant containing no more than 0.3% concentration, on a dry weight basis, of tetrahydrocannabinol – as a controlled substance but it maintained the FDA’s oversight of the use of ingredients derived from the plant in product subject to its regulation.

That meant with the FDA previously approving synthetic hemp CBD ingredients as a drug as well as several cannabis-based drugs, its rules prohibited the use of hemp in non-drug products even though hemp no longer was an illegal substance.

The Senate legislation, which has not yet been assigned a bill number, would require manufacturers to comply with all existing federal regulations for supplements and foods and give FDA authority to establish labeling and packaging requirements for products that contain cannabinoids and other substances derived from hemp.

The Senate bill differs from H.R. 841, introduced by Energy and Commerce Committee members Hurt Schrader, D-OR and Morgan Griffiths, R-VA, by the mechanism it proposes to include hemp and hemp-derived cannabinoids as lawful ingredients.

While the Senate bill would create exceptions under the FDC Act, the House bill stated that hemp and hemp-derived CBD “shall be lawful” for use under the act as a supplement provided the materials comply with the FDA’s new dietary ingredient notification requirement and all other applicable requirements including the Fair Packaging and Labeling Act. (Also see "CBD Regulation Bill Filed In US House Again; VMS In Pre-Tax Savings Accounts In First Senate Vote" - HBW Insight, 5 February, 2021.)

Additionally, unlike the House legislation, the Senate bill doesn’t set a target date by which the substances will be considered lawful once the legislation is enacted.

US Senate Appetite For Lawful Use Of Cannabinoids Includes Food On Top Of Supplements

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