On Monday, the Health Ministry began the process of removing cannabidiol, also known as CBD, from its list of dangerous drugs. The government will allow its use and importation into Israel.
The government wishes to implement the measure following the committee review in December.
Israel had already considered removing CBD from its list of hazardous substances in the past but never actually implemented the measure. Last December, the country created a committee to examine the consequences of removing CBD from the list of hazardous substances.
The committee reviewed several studies regarding the safety of cannabidiol for consumers. The committee recommended that the Ministry of Health remove CBD from the list of dangerous drugs, as long as the maximum concentration of THC in the products would not exceed 0.2%. Israeli Health Minister Nitzan Horowitz reviewed the maximum concentration level to 0.3% THC.
Implementation of CBD: 2-year period to determine a framework.
The committee recommended a 2-year period during which research will determine the framework needed to implement CBD into food and cosmetics. In the meantime, a supervisory and enforcement system for cosmetics and food will be put in place.
Health Minister Nitzan Horowitz said decriminalizing CBD is part of a greater plan “for the regulation of the cannabis plant,” adding that “it is widely agreed that [CBD] should not be classified as a dangerous drug.”
“There are a lot of biases for anything related to the Cannabis plant. We are now starting to release a compound on which there is broad consensus and which should not be defined as a dangerous drug: CBD. For several years, Israel has lagged behind the advanced countries in the world in this regard, and it continues to criminalize and prevent the use of components that are not dangerous to public health. We will now make up for this delay,» Horowitz added.
Horowitz reassured the public on the fact that Israel, like other advanced countries, will soon allow the marketing and sale of CBD products. He called the decision “a required first step, and certainly not the last, in regulating the cannabis market and changing the general attitude towards its effects and benefits.”
Let’s see if things move forward in the next weeks. One thing is sure, Israel is moving forward! In February, Israeli Justice Minister Gideon Sa’ar had released a list of proposals of new regulations which, if approved, would further decriminalize cannabis use in Israel.
