As of October, 2018, cannabis in Canada is regulated under the Cannabis Act and Cannabis Regulations by the Cannabis Legalization and Regulation Branch of Health Canada. Below are CHFA’s most frequently asked questions pertaining to cannabis products.

In Canada where cannabis is available for recreational use, CHFA strongly believes that Canadians should also have access to safe, effective and high quality NHPs containing CBD, to benefit their health.

Because Health Canada has added CBD to the Prescription Drug List, CBD is not permitted in NHPs and our members cannot produce or sell natural health products containing CBD for Canadians.

No. Cannabis-containing health products such as CBD would not be eligible for personal importation. Any product of cannabis should not be transported across federal borders.

Each province and territory has their own rules on how recreational cannabis can be sold within their respective jurisdictions. Some provinces will allow the sale of cannabis only through federally licensed retailers, while others will allow licensed private retailers, or both. To become a retailer of recreational cannabis, you must meet specific criteria to obtain a licence. For more information about cannabis in each province and territory, click here.

On October 17, 2019 the revisions to the Cannabis Regulations that will permit the production and sale of edible cannabis, cannabis extracts and cannabis topicals came into effect. Unless you have a licence under the Cannabis Regulations, it is illegal to produce or sell products of any kind containing any phytocannabinoids, including CBD. Please click here to learn more about the new regulations surrounding cannabis edibles, extracts and topicals.

CBD or cannabidiol is one of many cannabinoids (chemical compounds) naturally found in the cannabis plant. Unlike Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), CBD does not produce a ‘high’.

CBD has a history of safe use for prescribed and self-identified medical conditions and research is growing. We know that existing medical uses have included pain and inflammation management, as a sleep aid, gut/bowel health and nausea.

But more research is required! The best way to encourage research is providing industry with a clear regulatory pathway to market so they can plan and make the appropriate investments.

CBD has a good safety profile. In the World Health Organization’s Critical Review Report on CBD, they stated “CBD is generally well tolerated with a good safety profile”. And, “To date, there is no evidence of recreational use of CBD or any public health-related problems associated with the use of pure CBD”.

CHFA believes that in a Canada where cannabis is available for recreational use, Canadians should also have access to safe, effective and high quality NHPs containing CBD, to benefit their health.

Canadians have two options for purchasing CBD legally via their doctor after obtaining a medical document or through provincially approved retail or online outlets that sell recreational products.

There are no legal retail outlets that sell CBD for health purposes. We feel that Canadians who want to get well should not have to hunt for products among recreational products made to get you high.

No. Health Canada has added phytocannabinoids such as CBD to the Prescription Drug List which means that isolated/concentrated CBD cannot be legally sold in self-care products such as NHPs or cosmetics.

CHFA reiterates that Canada needs to maintain a distinct medicinal cannabis system, and that CBD in natural health products would be intended for individuals using these products for therapeutic uses that do not require physician oversight.

No. Licensed producers would also have the opportunity to bring CBD-containing NHPs to market through the Natural Health Products Regulations pathway.

Licensed producers under the Cannabis Regulations are able to create CBD-only products for Canadians that are then sold in recreational cannabis stores. However, these products are not adequately meeting the needs of consumers for a number of reasons. LPs are focused on creating cannabis products for the entire market, so the supply of CBD-only products in recreational stores is limited. Product formats are limited too, and these products lack proper labelling information for a product intended for therapeutic use. Finally, while some consumers are comfortable visiting recreational cannabis stores to purchase CBD, many consumers aren’t interested in visiting a recreational cannabis store for a product used to support their health.

CHFA believes that in a Canada where cannabis is available for recreational use, Canadians should also have access to safe, effective and high quality NHPs containing CBD, to benefit their health. We feel that Canadians who want to get well should not have to hunt for CBD among recreational products made to get you high.

For many Canadians, finding a doctor who supports cannabis use for health purposes can be difficult. Furthermore, CBD products that are available in recreational cannabis stores, are not labelled for health use – they do not provide you with information about how much to take or important risk information. In addition, they can unintentionally expose you to THC. NHPs are regulated by Health Canada for safety, efficacy and quality and are required to provide you with key health product information.

We are concerned that because of Government regulations Canadians are forced to either purchase illegal products online or experiment with recreational cannabis products that lack health product labelling, including usage, dosing and any necessary warnings.

The Prescription Drug List must be updated to remove CBD and Health Canada must work with Industry to ensure we have regulations in place that protect consumers and supports innovation.

CHFA supports access to CBD containing NHPs in Canada and is actively engaging MPs and policy makers in Ottawa to discuss the implications of adding phytocannabinoids to the Prescription Drug List, but you can help too! Head over to CBDisNatural.ca; it’s a public campaign launched to help Canadians inform their MP about the importance of access to CBD as a natural health product. Write a letter to your MP and share with your social networks too!

Questions related to the overall approach to the regulation of cannabis should be submitted to cannabis@canada.ca.

For more information on the use of cannabidiol (CBD) in cannabis and hemp products under the new Cannabis Act, read the Government of Canada's fact sheet here.