Customs authorities have announced that Hong Kong will ban CBD starting Wednesday, February 1, 2023, labeling it as a “dangerous drug” and mandating harsh penalties for its smuggling, production and possession.
Supporters say CBD can treat a range of ailments including anxiety and that, unlike the more famous THC, which is already illegal in Hong Kong, CBD does not get users high.
Cannabidiol, derived from the cannabis plant, was previously legal in Hong Kong, where bars and shops sold products containing it.
However, Hong Kong authorities decided last year to prohibit the marijuana-derived substance, a change that will soon go into effect. Residents were given three months from October 27 to dispose of their CBD products in special boxes set up around the city.
“Starting from February 1, cannabidiol, aka CBD, will be regarded as a dangerous drug and will be supervised and managed by the Dangerous Drugs Ordinance. As of then, transporting CBD for sale, including import and export, as well as producing, possessing and consuming CBD, will be illegal.”
Customs Intelligence Officer, Au-Yeung Ka-lun
Penalties include up to a life in prison and Hong Kong $5 million ($638,000) in fines for importing, exporting or producing CBD. Possession of the substance can result in a sentence of up to seven years and Hong Kong $1 million ($128,000) in fines.
Chan Kai-ho, a Divisional Commander with the department’s Airport Command, pronounced, “We will tackle all kinds of dangerous drugs from all angles and all ends, and the intelligence-led enforcement action is our major goal.”
Despite the harsh penalties mandated, Chan noted that authorities would handle enforcement on a case-by-case basis and “seek legal advice from our Department of Justice to determine what the further actions will be.”
Hong Kong maintains several categories of “dangerous drugs,” which include “hard drugs” such as heroin and cocaine, as well as marijuana.
Hong Kong’s first CBD café was opened in 2020 and the ban will force scores of businesses to remove CBD-infused gummies, drinks and other products, or shut down altogether.
Key Point Of Entry To China
A wealthy Asian financial center with a thriving commercial port and major international airport, Hong Kong is a key point of entry to China as well as a market for some drugs, especially cocaine.
Police have recently seized hundreds of kilograms (pounds) of the drug worth tens of millions of dollars, some of it hidden in a shipment of chicken feet from Brazil.
The ban is in keeping with a zero-tolerance policy toward drugs in Hong Kong, a semi-autonomous southern Chinese business hub, as well as on mainland China, where CBD was banned in 2022.
Chinese authorities have waged battles against heroin and methamphetamines, particularly in the southwest bordering on the drug-producing Golden Triangle region, spanning parts of Myanmar, Thailand and Laos.
Criminal penalties for both sale and usage are also enforced for marijuana. In one of the most high-profile cases, Jaycee Chan, the son of Hong Kong action star, Jackie Chan, served a six-month sentence in 2014-2015 for allowing people to consume marijuana in his Beijing apartment amid a crackdown on illegal narcotics in the Chinese capital.
Most Asian nations maintain strict drug laws and enforce harsh penalties for violators, including the death penalty, with the exception of Thailand, which made it legal to cultivate and possess marijuana last year.
Debate over CBD policy continues in many countries and regions.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has said that there is not enough evidence about CBD to confirm that it’s safe for consumption in foods or as a dietary supplement. It called on Congress to create new rules for the massive and growing market.
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