Health Minister Aaron Motsoaledi is sticking to his guns about the need for regulations relating to food containing cannabis, despite President Cyril Ramaphosa’s decision to retract his gazetted regulations.
The Minister said there was an urgency to address loopholes in the law while balancing health and economic considerations, and told News24 his decision had been aimed at protecting children. However, he added, he was “not disappointed” at having to withdraw the regulations, but he and the President had agreed there was a need for the regulation of such products.
And, “because of the nature of this whole thing of cannabis in the country, and the number of people involved, the President still wants us to go on and persuade widely”.
Motsoaledi said importers and manufacturers had taken advantage of a loophole in the law that prevented the South African Health Products Regulatory Authority (SAHPRA) from regulating the products, as they were classified as foodstuff.
This created an influx of products from abroad that could not be managed at the borders, he claimed.
“At the borders … the Border Management Authority (BMA) asks (the importers) why are you bringing this product into our country, can you show us your SAHPRA certificate? Then they say no, SAHPRA deals with medicines. This is not medicine, this is food.
“Now, there’s already a gap…that they use to get foodstuff with cannabis into South Africa.”
Fields of Green for All’s Myrtle Clarke reminded sellers that the retraction of the proposed ban on edibles did not make them legal.
She said while they were relieved that there would be a withdrawal, they hoped that the government would heed the advice of experts as civil society was frustrated and exhausted with the slow pace, “endless promises and proliferation of misinformation out there”.
“The only thing we need is evidence-based legal regulation,” she added.
Cannabis Trade Associations Africa (CTAA), one of the organisations that had threatened legal action after the gazetted notice, called for a permanent withdrawal of the “outdated regulatory references, especially the 1972 Foodstuffs, Cosmetics and Disinfectants Act in its current form”.
Chairperson Tebogo Tlhopane said they wanted an immediate industry-government engagement on safe, regulated frameworks for cannabis and hemp-based foods.
See more from MedicalBrief archives:
Motsoaledi retracts controversial cannabis, hemp food product ban (Restricted access)
Health Department says cannabis edibles ban will protect consumers
Marijuana edibles a major risk to patients with cardiovascular disease
Cannabis law reform: experts cite possible public health consequences