Market growth continues to fuel CBD ferment

21-Dec-2017 - Last updated on 14-Jan-2019 at 17:17 GMT

Despite the clouded regulatory picture, development of CBD-based products is continuing in the US.

According to investment reporting service Microcapspeculators, much of the product development is based on CBD-infused foods, which possibly could get around some of the US Food and Drug Administration’s concern about this ingredient. At the moment FDA has said that CBD is illegal as a dietary ingredient, because it has been the subject of prior drug research. But the picture is less clear-cut for hemp-based foods, and whole-spectrum extracts of hemp that tour their ‘phytocannabinoid’ content as opposed to concentrating oils for CBD content.

Strong market growth

According to Hemp Business Journal, the hemp industry in the US is projected to grow to $1.8 billion by 2020. New products and companies pop up on the radar almost daily.

One of the more unusual is a startup called Nightfood Holdings, which markets products in the ‘nighttime snacking’ category. The company’s current product is a nutrition bar marketed as a health alternative to ice cream, potato chips or other less-health bed time snack options. Last month, the company announced a joint venture with a company called Player's Network Inc. to develop a CBD-infused (cannabinoid oil) line of products. The company reported $25,000 in revenue in October and is projecting 100% quarter-over-quarter revenue growth for the fourth quarter of 2017.

Another development stage company is Marijuana Company of America, Inc. or MCOA, which is partnering with HoneyB Healthy Living to develop a line of CBD-based products under the ‘BeniHemp’ brand name. The products are intended for convenience store distribution. The partners say they plan a full scale launch in early 2018, and are coordinated supply chain arrangements through partners in Colorado.

Nevertheless, drug development of CBD products continues as well, which can only complicate the regulatory picture going forward. A company called Cannabis Science Inc. recently announced the development of patentable formulary medication, a CBD inhaler meant to treat asthma symptoms. And in addition to the two drugs that are under development by English company GW Pharmaceuticals, another company called Earth Science Technologies Inc. is planning a capital raise that it says among other things will fund CBD drug development through a subsidiary called Cannabis Therapeutics.