b'h HEMP / END USE PRODUCTSConsumerdrug, it cannot be introduced into food or diets, which also presents a challenge.CBD products are still under FDA purview and CBD Craze,could be put back on the schedule list, but thats not stopping consumers.Production of CBD products started to show up in the United States in 2016, expanded incrementally in Demand2017, and exploded with the 2018 Farm Bill.By 2024, the CBD market is projected to reach more than $20 billion in sales. In fact, BDS Analytics Surge predicts a compound annual growth rate of 49% by 2024 across all distribution channels.Walgreens, Sprout, CVS, Ulta Beauty, GNC Holdings and Urban Outfitters are a few of the retailers looking to offer or offering CBD products to consumers.Because of the tremendous range of products WHEN YOU THINKof the industrial hemp market,in which CBD is a fit, we expect to see it on shelves, whats the first thing that comes to mind? CBD oil andliterally, everywhere, says Andy Rodosevich, CEO and its claimed benefits are all the buzz. Said to relievecofounder of Hemp Depot. Wholesale order numbers pain, reduce anxiety and depression and even reduceare climbing dramatically, which is one of the first signs acne flare ups, the CBD oil industry is booming. Andof significant market expansion.whats good enough for humans is good enough forWhen we started, we were taking orders for small our four-legged friends. companies ordering 500 units at a time. Large com-Right now, the market is 95% CBD oil, says Schiavi,pany orders are projected to reach 100,000 plus units who has exclusive North American rights to producein the next 18 months.various certified European strains of hemp seeds.However, FDAs Schiller has concerns. Flower PowerWe have seen too many hemp-derived productsCBD products primarily come from the flowers of 95%marketed with claims of therapeutic benefit, or otherharvested plants. The flowers are where most of the of U.S. hempdrug claims, without having gone through the drugcannabinoids are concentrated and are most often production goesapproval process, Schiller says. These include CBDused for direct consumption, as well as the creation of toward the CBD oilproducts that are marketed for serious diseases andoils, topicals, edibles and most other products. market. conditions . These unapproved products marketed asCBD oil is any cannabis/hemp-derived oil concen-new drugs, they are illegal. trate that contains primarily cannabidiol. Hemp extract Schiller adds there are still a lot of unknowns aboutis any concentrate that is derived from hemp plants >$ 20 CBDs potential therapeutic benefits, but he is excitedwith less than 0.3% THC. High-pressure CO2 and billion of CBD salesabout the possibility that new therapeutic uses of CBDsolvent extraction are the most widely used extraction expected by 2024.might be demonstrated to be safe and effective. methods to produce CBD products.The last thing the FDA wants to do is to discourage Hemp seed oil is harvested and produced in much research, and potentially stunt knowledge of potentialthe same manner as soybeans and corn that are used 10% uses of CBD, he says. to produce cooking oils. Hemp flowers and oil both can of demand is metBecause of CBDs potential as a supplement, foodhave varying concentrations of cannabinoids. Hemp by present dayadditive and medical drug, theres some controversyseed oil generally has little to no cannabinoid content. growers. with how FDA will move forward with regulations. Despite the oil boom in the U.S. market, Schiavi The National Hemp Associations Stark explains:expects the industrial market in the United States to The FDA doesnt see CBD as a dietary supplementventure into different territory.or food component. Hemp seeds can be used and areI think the market will develop and explode when arguably the most people friendly seed on Earth, dueit comes to fiber, plastic and hemp-grade paper, he to the heart healthy fatty acids found in it. says. Manufacturing companies are investing a lot inTheres also a roadblock for CBD because theresthese areas.a section of the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act thatIndustrial hemp produces seed and fiber, with many states once something is classified as a pharmaceuticalapplications for feed, food and industrial uses.32/ SEEDWORLD.COMOCTOBER 2019'