Despite recent bipartisan calls on the FDA to regulate hemp-derived CBD products, the U.S. Food & Drug Administration appears to be adhering to the status quo, at least with respect to issuing warning letters to companies deemed noncompliant with existing regulations. Case in point: on September 18, 2019, the FDA issued a warning letter (posted to the FDA's website last week) to Alternative Laboratories, a dietary supplement manufacturer based in Naples, Florida.

According to the letter, the FDA conducted an inspection of Alternative's dietary supplement manufacturing facility over five days in May and June; the inspection focused on the adequacy of labels for certain products manufactured and distributed by the company.

The letter focuses on Alternative's allegedly impermissible representation of 2-amino-5 methylheptane and Octodrine (DMHA) as a dietary ingredient in certain products. It also calls attention to the fact that Alternative's product label for CBD oil distributed under the "Green Roads" brand name runs afoul of the Food, Drug & Cosmetic (FD&C) Act in that the product "cannot be a dietary supplement because ... [the] FDA has concluded based on available evidence that CBD products are excluded from the dietary supplement definition under" the FD&C Act.

To support its contention that CBD products cannot be dietary supplements as defined by federal law, the FDA notes in its warning letter to Alternative that "CBD is the active ingredient in the approved drug product Epidiolex," designed to treat certain rare, severe forms of epilepsy. Further, the FDA stresses that significant clinical research investigations concerning the use of CBD have been made public, including investigations related to Epidiolex and Sativex, a drug for the treatment of spasticity due to multiple sclerosis (MS) that has been approved for use in 25 countries (outside the U.S.) and for which the drug manufacturer, GW Pharmaceuticals, plans to seek FDA approval.

The fact that warning letters keep coming–from both the FDA and the FTC–signifies that although there may be a groundswell of public demand for regulatory reform and clarity on the issue of CBD products, the federal regulatory agencies appear to be staying the course. As such, companies operating in the space should remain vigilant and adhere to a compliance policy that reflects–for now–the reality of current regulations and restrictions.

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