When Alluvial Farms entered the hemp Cannabidiol (CBD) market in 2020 we understood we were entering the "wild west" of a new industry. The federal government made hemp legal in all states in the 2018 Farm Bill, yet as recently as 2023 Alluvial Farms has been cancelled by our Stripe payment processor, by PayPal payment processor, and by Squarespace website platform. A third party banker who I had to contract with in order to sell my hemp products on Shopify told me that we are classified as a "high risk client" because "our product is federally illegal."
According to the Industrial Hemp Association of Washington, "Hemp products made with full spectrum extracts from the hemp plant offer the greatest wellness benefits. These products are the types that are most often sold by small businesses. A complete review of the scientific literature around the safety of CBD was done by the Lambert Center at the University of Sydney recently and noted '400mg/day did not appear to be associated with an increased frequency of adverse effects.' In November 2017, the WHO Expert Committee on Drug Dependence (ECDD) came to the decision that CBD 'does not appear to have abuse potential or cause harm.'"
The Washington State legislature is currently considering policy that would establish a maximum 1mg of THC per unit size of a CBD product and 3mg of THC limit per container unit for Hemp Consumables. To give some perspective, Alluvial Farms' full spectrum CBD hemp extract tincture contains a total of 900-823 mg of CBD, and 30 mg of THC per 30 g bottle size, as analyzed by our lab partners at Confidence Analytics. This means our tincture contains 0.1% THC.
The current federal policy requires states to create their own licensing bodies for CBD hemp farmers & processors. In Washington State that body is the Washington State Department of Agriculture. As opposed to the federal Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco Firearms and Explosives, who regulate THC cannabis businesses. Alluvial Farms is licensed to grow and sell hemp by the WSDA. This agency, and Alluvial Farms, follow the federal mandate to allow no more than 0.3% THC in any hemp flower harvested under a WSDA license, per chemical lab testing within 30 days of harvest.
The current hemp-related draft policy being considered by our lawmakers are WA Senate Bill 5367 & House Bill 1612. They propose a maximum of 3mg of THC per container unit for Hemp Consumables. Contrast that with the current Alluvial Farms full spectrum hemp tincture content of 30 mg of THC per 30 mL unit. While that comparison makes our tincture sound THC heavy, it contains only 0.1% THC, well below the required amount for flower harvesting approval.
All that to say, we are very thankful that we have our salve product to fall back on if this current policy movement prevails, but curious why this small amount of THC in helpful CBD products is occupying valuable time of our law makers, when surely there are more pressing issues at hand.
Get a taste of this amazing craft CBD product by shopping our online store. Try it in your morning coffee, my latest favorite way to enjoy. Coming soon to the Skagit Valley Food Co-op. Please ask for us with wellness managers and staff at the Bellingham Community Food Cooperative.
Sincerely,
Katie, Matthew, Curtis, Alex, Rob, Ramone, Mr. Trout, Sunlight, Spots, and the pigs.