Fast-food chain Carl’s Jr. announced on Wednesday that it will release a special 4/20-edition burger with a CBD-infused sauce. To those following the murky legality of cannabidiol, the minimally psychoactive active molecule found in hemp and marijuana, this news might come as a surprise: How can a national chain sell a product containing a substance with such an uncertain legal status? "…adding CBD to both foods and dietary supplements in interstate commerce are both illegal." Carl’s Jr., for its part, does not seem fazed by the fact that state and local health authorities cracked down on CBD in multiple regions of the United States earlier this year. Its special-edition Rocky Mountain High: CheeseBurger Delight, which will only be available in one Denver store on 4/20, will slather two beef patties, pickled jalapenos, and waffle fries with a special version of the restaurant’s Santa Fe sauce containing 5 mg of CBD, a relatively low dose. A spokesperson for the company told Inverse: Part of our strategy centers around being the first quick service restaurant bringing bold and unexpected flavors to the masses. CBD is one of the hottest culinary trends right now, and what better place to test this new burger than in Denver, a city that has been a trailblazer in the CBD movement. We’re currently testing this product at our Colorado restaurant and are certainly looking for more ways to introduce craveable flavors to our menu. But regarding the CBD burger, a Food and Drug Administration spokesperson clarified to Inverse that “adding CBD to both foods and dietary supplements in interstate commerce are both illegal.” The Carl’s Jr. Rocky Mountain High: CheeseBurger Delight will contain 5mg of CBD. Carl's Jr. CBD edibles like gummies, lattes, and chocolates are widely available online and in stores across the United States, but FDA messages like this one and this year’s early crackdowns — in which officials banned sales of CBD-containing foods in multiple parts of the country — created a lot of confusion about its legal status. As Inverse outlines below, it appears that Carl’s Jr. and other manufacturers of CBD products are not exactly working in compliance with the FDA, but recent events raise further questions about whether the FDA will enforce its own rules. The Farm Bill For most CBD manufacturers and vendors, the Agricultural Improvement Act of 2018 — commonly known as the Farm Bill — marked the dawn of a new age of prosperity when the federal bill was passed in December 2018. The Farm Bill legalized the interstate sale of hemp, from which CBD can be extracted. Unlike its relative, the marijuana plant, hemp and its derivatives are not classified as Schedule I drugs. Under this bill, industrial hemp must contain less than 0.3 percent tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the psychoactive compound in cannabis. The bill has allowed the CBD industry to flourish. “There’s a lot of interest in the CBD space, and with the Farm Bill passing, which legalized hemp production across the country, that’s obviously got everybody really excited about where it’s going,” Smoke Wallin (his real name), the CEO of a CBD product manufacturer called Vertical Wellness, Inc., tells Inverse. The Farm Bill legalized industrial hemp, which must contain less than 0.3 percent THC. Flickr / blumenbiene The 2019 Crackdown But in January, shortly after the Farm Bill was passed, state and local public health authorities across the US started cracking down on foods that contained CBD, ordering bakeries, coffee shops, bars, and restaurants to “embargo” their products from sale. In a few cases, criminal charges were filed. In January, Wyoming lawmakers killed a bill that would have decriminalized CBD, and a Nebraska man briefly faced drug dealing charges for selling CBD. In February, Maine food safety officials banned the addiiton of CBD to food, as did officials in New York City and Ohio. Florida and Georgia followed suit. In Idaho, state police seized a shipment of 7,000 pounds of industrial hemp, claiming that even the 0.3-percent THC content that’s legal under federal law is higher than the zero percent allowed under Idaho law. This multi-state tightening of restrictions left business owners and individuals feeling confused and uncertain about the legal status of CBD. As various state and local governments embargoed edible CBD products or outright seized hemp shipments, the FDA offered little insight on the future of CBD. To make matters more confusing, regulators involved in the crackdowns of Maine, Ohio, and New York City cited a crucial FDA rule — even though they themselves were local officials operating at the state or city level. They referred to the federal Food, Drug, & Cosmetic Act, which was central to their ability to crack down on food-based CBD products because it prohibits prescription drugs from being added to food products. And because CBD is the main ingredient in an anti-seizure drug called Epidiolex, it can be classified as a prescription drug. Confusingly, in these three regions, officials embargoed food products while mostly ignoring supplements, even though they both run afoul of the FD&C Act. The FDA confirmed that it had consulted with state regulators during the local crackdowns. “There is ongoing communication with state and local officials to answer questions about the requirements under the FD&C Act, to better understand the landscape at the state level, and to otherwise engage with our state/local regulatory partners,” an FDA spokesperson told Inverse in February. Wallin acknowledges that the Farm Bill was never going to be the beginning and the end of the golden age of CBD. “It’s not as simple as, ‘now it passed and now it’s going to be everywhere,’ because there’s been a crackdown since the passing, and we think that’s a normal, logical, and necessary step,” he says. Just one hydroxyl group distinguishes THC from CBD Analytical Cannabis Where Is the FDA? As the multi-state crackdowns occurred within just a few weeks of each other, the FDA maintained that its role was just one of support and advice to local officials and would not comment on whether it coordinated the crackdown. In the time since those embargoes and seizures, things have calmed down considerably. The FDA remained mostly silent regarding CBD until early April, when it announced that the first public hearing on the matter will take place at the end of May. In a statement released at that time, the FDA expressed its willingness to figure out how CBD can be safely distributed and sold. For now, CBD itself is legal for interstate commerce under the Farm Bill, but supplements and food containing CBD are still illegal under the FD&C Act. The FDA doesn’t appear to be doing anything independently to enforce these regulations, but it has given state and local regulators enough knowledge to crack down on CBD where they see fit. The enforcement of the FD&C rule by those regulators, however, remains variable. Without Federal Guidance, CBD Is the “Wild West” In spite of the crackdowns, some aspects of the CBD industry have continued to thrive, and some business owners have taken it upon themselves to self-regulate CBD. In January, Missouri regulators announced they had no authority to regulate THC-free CBD oil in alcoholic beverages, and Michigan officially legalized CBD. Illinois lawmakers are moving forward with plans to legalize hemp, and Indiana will soon host CBD retail stores. Montana lawmakers are pushing bills to incentivize hemp farming. Even more recently, the Iowa Board of Medicine expanded medical uses for CBD on Friday. On Wednesday, the nationwide retail chain Vitamin Shoppe announced it would start selling CBD products. "In a lot of industries, you can trust the supply chain. In this industry, you can’t." Some CBD industry figures welcome government scrutiny and regulation as a way to rein in a grey- and black-market industry that has a bad track record when it comes to transparency and consistency. A 2017 JAMA study of commercially available CBD products revealed that the amount of CBD they contained widely varied —and some even contained THC. Only 31 percent of the products tested contained anywhere close to the dose indicated on the label.<doc-sep>On April 20 (4/20, duh), Carl's Jr. will sell a cannabidiol (CBD)-infused burger at one of their Denver, Colorado locations. It's called the Rocky Mountain High: CheeseBurger Delight. Of course, CBD actually doesn't get you high but can provide other benefits as an analgesic, to reduce inflammation, alleviate anxiety, etc. Anyway, the fast food chain insists this isn't a publicity stunt but the beginning of an actual market test. From CNN: "It is something that feels right for the brand," (Carl's Jr. senior vice president of brand marketing Patty Trevino) told CNN Business. "We are all about innovation…" The chain first decided to explore CBD in January, after introducing a product based on another trend. Earlier this year, the chain announced a plant-based alternative to its signature burger in partnership with Beyond Meat. "I was sitting down with our head chef Owen Klein, and we were talking about trends," Trevino said. After the Beyond Meat launch, they came up with a wish list that included a CBD product. "We looked at ourselves and said, you know what, let's try." Starting small, in a market where cannabis regulation is "really strong," will allow Carl's Jr. to figure out how to move forward. Testing CBD could give the company an edge over competitors, because most of its locations are in Western states, where recreational cannabis is legal.<doc-sep>Carl’s Jr. is adding something special to its signature sauce. The restaurant will test a CBD-infused burger at one of its Denver locations for one day only: April 20, the unofficial holiday for cannabis enthusiasts. The limited-time offer makes Carl’s Jr. the first national fast food chain to add CBD-infused food to its menu. In another nod to the marijuana holiday, the burger will sell for $4.20. The burger chain’s Rocky Mountain High: CheeseBurger Delight features two beef patties, pickled jalapenos, pepper jack cheese, waffle fries — and about 5 milligrams of hemp-derived CBD extract in the burger chain’s Santa Fe Sauce. Proponents claim that CBD, a non-psychoactive compound found in hemp and marijuana, can help with anxiety and pain relief, among other ailments, although little scientific research has been done to back up those assertions. There is also a lack of agreement about dosage, particularly when CBD is added to food. Compared to its close cousin marijuana, hemp contains less THC, the psychoactive chemical in cannabis. So Carl’s Jr.’s burger is unlikely to get you high. Most products that contain CBD became legal in December when President Donald Trump signed the farm bill. However, chefs eager to cook with the ingredient have had to operate under the radar because the Food and Drug Administration prohibits adding CBD to food and beverages. The agency will hold its first public hearing next month to decide how it will regulate CBD. In the meantime, local health departments across the country have been cracking down on restaurants that sell on CBD-infused food and drinks. The choice to debut the burger in the Mile High City is no mistake. Colorado was one of the first states to legalize recreational marijuana. As a result, cannabis is one of the state’s fastest-growing industries. Last year, the state’s medical and retail dispensaries sold $1.55 billion of marijuana, according to Colorado’s marijuana sales report. The limited-time offer not only puts Carl’s Jr. ahead of the competition but also on par with those in fine dining chasing the craze. Professional chefs named CBD- and cannabis-infused food and beverages as the top food trend for 2019 in a National Restaurant Association survey. Carl’s Jr. might be willing to take the plunge because unlike McDonald’s, Wendy’s or many of its other rivals, the chain is not publicly traded. Roark Capital Group, the same private equity firm that owns Sonic, Arby’s and Buffalo Wild Wings, also owns Carl’s Jr.<doc-sep>
Photo : andipantz ( iStock ) , Graphic : Carl’s Jr. Though cannabidiol (CBD) is often name-checked as one of the fastest-growing food and drink trends, its legal status for use in restaurant food is murky. So it’s surprising to see news this morning that Carl’s Jr. will this weekend become the first national restaurant chain to add a CBD-infused burger to its menu. In a press release, Carl’s Jr. says the Rocky Mountain High: CheeseBurger Delight—see the CBD initialism?—will be available only on April 20 at one restaurant, located at 4050 Colorado Boulevard in Denver. Price tag: $4.20. Sales begin at 6 a.m. when the restaurant opens. The burger contains two beef patties and is topped with pickled jalapeños, pepper jack cheese, crunchy fries, and Carl’s Jr. Santa Fe Sauce infused with hemp-based CBD oil produced by Colorado-based Bluebird Botanicals. CNBC reports each sandwich will contain 5 milligrams of hemp-derived CBD extract. CBD is a non-psychoactive compound derived from hemp, meaning it won’t get a person high like tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) does. But its proponents say CBD promotes a feeling of calm, well-being, and relaxation, making it a popular addition to foods and beverages, even as the legal basis for such is sometimes unclear. The recently passed Farm Bill moved hemp—cannabis or cannabis derivatives with low THC thresholds below 0.3% by weight—to its own category, removing it from the federal list of controlled substances. But the U.S. Food And Drug Administration has not yet cleared CBD-infused food and drink products for sale; the agency will hold public hearings on the matter in the next few months. Currently, as former FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb stated in December 2018, “It’s unlawful under the [Food Drug & Cosmetic Act] to introduce food containing added CBD or THC into interstate commerce, or to market CBD or THC products as, or in, dietary supplements, regardless of whether the substances are hemp-derived. … It’s illegal to introduce drug ingredients like these into the food supply, or to market them as dietary supplements. This is a requirement that we apply across the board to food products that contain substances that are active ingredients in any drug.” Because the FDA has not yet approved such foods and beverages, even while marijuana may be legal in certain jurisdictions, restaurant food or beverage containing THC or CBD often is not. Health departments in New York and L.A. have recently cracked down on CBD-infused foods like cupcakes, lattes, and cocktails. In Maine, where marijuana is legal, the health department has also ordered shops and restaurants with CBD-infused products to cease their sales. Carl’s Jr. and its sister chain Hardee’s has a history of innovating in the realm of fast food burgers. In 2001, the chain (they’re owned by a parent company, CKE Restaurants) began offering The Six Dollar Burger. This was before burgers were considered gourmet, much less in fast food, and the idea of a burger that cost $6 was novel. The half-pound cheeseburger went on to become one of the chain’s top sellers. The Takeout has reached out to Carl’s Jr. to ask about where and how the CBD-infused sauce is prepared and whether that affects its legality; we will update this story with any response.