Lucky’s Market took a risk earlier this year that Target was unwilling to take. They began offering hemp derived CBD products for retail sale. The risk is still that cannabis products are illegal federally so obviously any national retail store would be hesitant to offer illegal products. However, these CBD products are derived from hemp and the laws are bit more fuzzy on hemp based products. Are you going to try the CBD products offered by Lucky’s Market?
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A natural foods grocery chain in Neptune Beach is now offering over-the-counter cannabis derivatives to shoppers, essentially skirting state and federal law.
The cannabidiol (CBD) products found on the shelves at the Lucky’s Market in Neptune Beach are said to be derived from hemp, a variety of Cannabis sativa with negligible concentrations of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the psychotropic cannabinoid that is responsible for making you “high.”
Colorado-based Lucky’s Market first began offering these “hemp-derived” CBD extracts and oils in many of its stores earlier this month. The company’s October issue of “Health & Happiness” was centered around the medicinal benefits of the drug.
The front page of the company’s monthly wellness magazine was a backdrop of cannabis leaves with tincture bottles and droppers filled with what one can only imagine was some sort of cannabis-based oil. An advertisement in the bottom corner of the magazine instructed readers to turn to page six to learn more about how CBD extracts can help calm anxiety and soothe pain.
Prior to Lucky’s recent hemp endeavors, another major American retailer briefly dipped its toe in the business of selling prescription-free CBD products. It was confirmed by multiple news outlets in September that Target.com was selling products manufactured by Denver-based CW Hemp.
The products listed on Target’s website were only available for a short time before the company either sold out or decided to pull them off the e-commerce shelf. The web page for one of the products Target was selling is still accessible, but the product is listed as not available.
The corporate decision to carry these medicinal products on the shelf is a direct challenge to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration’s classification of cannabis and more specifically, CBD. Currently, cannabis is classified as a Schedule I substance, with no current “accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse.”
Due to a growing demand for cannabis-based products in the U.S., the DEA was recently forced to address and clarify what derivatives of the plant fall under the administration’s drug code for a “Marihuana Extract.”
According to DEA code, an extract is defined as any substance “containing one or more cannabinoids that have been derived from any plant of the genus Cannabis…” By this definition, all CBD extracts and oils derived from the hemp plant would classify as Schedule I illegal substances.
Lucky’s however, isn’t backing down from its decision to stock these hemp-based CBD products, and the loophole the company is exploiting may prove to be quite the heel spur for a budding Florida marijuana industry.