Holland & Barrett has removed CBD products from sale including the canned drink Trip, following the Food Standards Agency’s (FSA) decision to cut the recommended daily maximum dosage of the medicinal item.
According to The Grocer, products which have been removed from sale include canned CBD drinks – where a single serving measure would exceed 10mg of the substance – and gummies, where a single sweet would represent more than the maximum dosage for one day.
The health food retailer said the temporary measure had been made to ensure it was giving its customers “the latest guidance on safe usage of these products for short and long-term use”.
Currently, products including CBDfx gummies – which contain 25mg per sweet – and drinks from Trip – which have 15mg of CBD per 250ml can – could not be purchased on the retailer’s website.
In total, 31 products have been removed from sale online and in store, according to Holland & Barrett.
Earlier this year, Trip became the UK’s fastest growing soft drinks brand in the UK, after seeing sales growth of 522% in the 12 months to March 2023.
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A spokesperson for Holland & Barrett told The Grocer: “We are reviewing the latest voluntary guidance from the FSA on the recommended daily dose for ingestible CBD products.
“Whilst it remains legal for these products to remain on sale, we are acting in an abundance of caution and are temporarily withdrawing some products where customers cannot choose to only use 10mg a day.
“This is a temporary measure so we can make sure we are giving our customers the latest guidance across our website product descriptions, and to make sure our colleagues have received revised training to be able to answer customer questions on this.
“We are committed to working with the FSA and the wider industry to share safety data as the FSA continue to develop their thinking on this topic, they added.
The news comes as the FSA has revealed that food crime is costing the UK economy as much as £2bn per year, placing a “heavy burden” on the food and drink sector.
