The Cannavist Issue Four | Page 89

Coming soon: hemp from Jersey H emp can now be grown on the Channel Island of Jersey following the issuance of the first licence to harvest, process and store hemp flower in preparation for CBD extraction. The licence issued to Jersey Hemp was called a sig- nificant opportunity for the island by Senator Lyndon Farnham, minister for economic develop- ment, tourism, sport and culture. “Extracting Jersey-produced CBD will allow the island to take its place in this fast-developing sector, supplying controlled and reliable CBD products with strong British Isles provenance,” Farnham said. “Jersey has real potential in this area, and the issuing of this licence signals our clear intent to position ourselves as a centre of excellence in CBD production, research, genetics and intellectual property.” The island lies off the north coast of France but is politically and economically closely linked to the UK, although it is self-governing and as such can make its own laws outside of both UK and EU rules. Home-grown hemp could be an attractive selling point for CBD, according to Jersey Hemp. “We antic- ipate this will allow Jersey Hemp to be able to compete commercially on a level playing field with international producers in China, Eastern Europe and the Americas, where all CBD sold in the UK is presently grown and manufactured,” the company said. Jersey Hemp said that this was the very first licence issued in the British Isles for the production of CBD from hemp flowers. In contrast, Hempen, based in Oxfordshire, recently claimed it had to destroy its entire hemp crop due to its licence application being rejected by the Home Office. Jersey Hemp said that it has been cultivating and processing industrial hemp for three and a half years, and this year’s harvest will be its third culti- vation and the first to include the flowers. It has also used CBD in some of its products but this previously had been only imported CBD. The first licence in the British Isles to grow hemp flowers for CBD is big news. Though other compa- nies claim to be producing hemp-derived CBD in the UK already, whether it’s commercially possible to produce CBD from parts of the hemp plant other than flower remains a matter of some debate. About CBD-Intel CBD-Intel provides impartial, independent and premium market and regulatory analysis, legal tracking, and quantitative data for the cannabidiol (CBD) sector, with a focus on non- US markets. We offer a one-stop source of market and regulatory strategic data for the CBD industry. Providing all the data in one online platform reduces the amount of time and money spent monitoring the sector for multiple international markets. Our global perspective on the international CBD sector offers you key data such as market trends, key players, regulatory obligations and industry dynamics. CBD-Intel’s team is made up of lawyers, economists and journalists. The team is based in London, Barcelona and New York, and enhanced by correspondents and contributors from around the world. In addition, we offer customised research and consultancy support. We also publish ECigIntelligence for the global e-cigarette and tobacco-alternatives sector. www.CBD-Intel.com