CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (KCRG) – The Iowa Department of Public Health is warning consumers of stores selling products containing cannabidiol or CBD saying it isn’t regulated on the federal or state level and is still illegal.
That’s not stopping some local businesses such as Family Video in Cedar Rapids from carrying the product.
“We have everything from $3 chapstick to 1500 mg. bottles of oil that go for $150,” said Family Video Regional Director Oliver Owen.
Owen said a number of Family Video stores rolled out the CBD products about six months ago He said all of those products contain 0 THC. That’s the portion of the cannabis plant that gets the user high.
“The CBD doesn’t really go along with watching movies at all but it does go along with us trying to be community partners,” Owens said.
Owens said the idea to carry CBD products started after the president of Family Video started using the products for pain. That is when they started researching around 200 different companies before coming across “Natural Native” based in Oklahoma.
“They invited the Oklahoma Department of Public Health into their facility to help walk them through the process of how they’re going to create products,” he said. “That’s because this company wants to do it in the safest way possible.”
On the Natural Native website, they tout following the “careful supervision and strict rules and regulations of the state health department. But those we spoke with said they don’t regulate the amount of THC goes into these products.
“If there is a complaint about the amount of THC that goes into these products that would go to the Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs to investigate,” said Communications Director Tony Sellars.
Sellars said the companies producing these products do need to obtain an FDA license and are inspected for sanitation reasons. Owen said they will continue to provide the product to help those in the community.
“Every bottle we sell comes with a QR code that you can scan and see how much THC is in each bottle,” said Owens.
Those with the Iowa DPH said businesses selling products that contain CBD are responsible for the products they are selling and are not protected from criminal prosecution.