Alabama CBD Ban Challenged In Legal Action, Three Medical Cannabis Firms Sue Over Licensing

CBD Maker Boro Hemp Fights Back Against Alabama's Order

Alabama-based CBD manufacturer, Boro Hemp, intends to take legal action to contest an order issued by state health authorities to halt the marketing and sale of its marijuana products.

The Alabama Department of Public Health (ADPH) issued a warning to Boro Hemp, ordering the company to stop selling, offering to sell, giving away or removing its products from its premises under food processing rules, reported by Hemp Today.

According to Eric Weaver, the company’s marketing manager, an inspector from the ADPH visited the company's operations in January and acknowledged that their procedures not only met but exceeded the health agency's requirements.

Due to state health officials' orders, customers will be deprived of the convenience of shopping locally and receiving advice from their familiar retailers. "Instead, they will have to cross state lines to purchase such products or buy them online from unknown companies," stressed the only CBD producer in Alabama to receive such a warning. The company also claimed that state hemp farmers could suffer significant losses as a result.

Although Alabama has no specific laws outlawing CBD, the state follows federal guidelines on hemp, leaving CBD in a gray area that has led to the proliferation of CBD products in the state and across the country.

Legal Battle Heats Up

Meanwhile, three firms that were looking for licenses to sell medical cannabis filed individual lawsuits against the Alabama Medical Cannabis Commission last month.

According to AL Daily News, the companies claimed that their applications were turned down due to issues with the commission's online portal. The companies alleged that they were not informed about the file-size limitations in the portal, which caused them to face complications.

Late applications and technical difficulties were also reported, with Med Shop claiming that some applicants were allowed to circumvent the portal process and use a placeholder workaround. Moreover, TheraTrue had to modify its application and reduce the quality of some exhibits to meet the limit.

Both companies tried to rectify their applications after the deadline but were unsuccessful.

Though Med Shop Dispensary and TheraTrue Alabama received a favorable ruling from a Montgomery County circuit judge, but RedBud Remedies' complaint was denied by Judge James Anderson.

Commission Director John McMillan said that they received 94 applications for medical marijuana business licenses and would evaluate 96 applications instead of 94 following the rulings. McMillan added that the commission plans to award licenses in July and regulate several different types of licenses, which annual fees ranging from $30,000 to $50,000.

Photo: Courtesy Of Zach Farmer On Unsplash