Food Standards Scotland insists that it will hold its own consultation.
In correspondence between Cannabis Trades Association(CTA)and the FSS (as seen by MEDCAN24, The UK devolved structure for food safety is the reason behind this. FSS confirms that while the FSA has closed their 12-week consultation with England, Wales, Northern Ireland and the FSA in November, they will be launching their own consultation early in 2026.
Because both agencies operate on a ‘four-nation basis,’ the three isolate CBD applications already cleared for risk management (RP07, RP350 and RP427) cannot proceed to ministerial approval until Scotland’s process concludes and all agree on a unified position.
The industry is concerned that, after a positive period in which the process made significant progress, the new management team now injecting fresh energy has delayed the project.
The CTA responded to this concern by publishing a 43-page proposal that proposes a completely new regulatory framework. It would replace the 10mg limit with a 3-tiered system which rewards companies who have robust toxicology studies with higher intake limits.
Regulators Defend Timeline and Acknowledge risks
Both agencies insisted that they could still achieve their goal when asked if Scotland’s separate consultative process would cause the expected ministerial approval date of autumn 2026 to be delayed.
FSA informed MEDCAN24 It stated that the FSS Consultation did not represent an important delay. The FSS is reviewing all responses at this time and will continue to make recommendations in fall 2026.
The agency has acknowledged external influences, like four-nation alignement, can impact on timelines. It also confirmed that it is seeking alignment with Food Standards Scotland, before three applications are approved by ministers.
Food Standards Scotland’s framing was much more conservative. When asked about the timeline for Scottish ministerial recommendations, FSS said, ‘it is a complex area, and the earliest FSS could make recommendations would be autumn 2026.’
The Scottish regulator also confirmed the consultation will cover ‘broader food law matters such as food supplements and nutrition requirements’, not just the three final stage dossiers.
Furthermore, it said it ‘intends to launch its consultation in early 2026 for 12 weeks,’ meaning the consultation could conclude in late March or April. FSS stated that ‘the FSS consultation and the work done by the FSA will inform recommendations made to Ministers in GB in due course,’ confirming the dependency between the two processes.
On the question of May’s Scottish Parliament elections, raised as another potential speedbump in the process, FSS said ‘a change in administration would not affect FSS’s role in providing independent and impartial advice to Scottish Ministers’, but conceded that final Ministerial approval was out of its hands.
The CTA responded by reiterating their support of the FSA’s new management team and the achievements they have achieved over the past year.
SPS Complication
This July, MEDCAN24 The report warned of the possible implications for CBD industry from the UK-EU Sanitary and Phytosanitary Standards Negotiations, and that the alignment with EU Food Regulations could undercut the FSA’s 6-year regulatory programme.
Sources in the industry had at the time hoped that UK authorisations could be finalised before SPS negotiation concluded. This would have established a standard regulatory requirement, which would enable the UK to negotiate a CBD exception under any future agreements. This scenario is becoming increasingly unlikely due to the new delays.
Under the SPS proposals, the UK would adopt a ‘dynamic alignment’ mechanism, automatically following relevant EU rules for agrifood products. While the FSA is still pursuing the world’s only active CBD novel foods programme, the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) effectively ‘stopped the clock’ on its 19 CBD applications, citing ‘many data gaps’ on human health effects, with almost no progress since.
These negotiations could have three possible outcomes in terms of CBD.
- No exceptions: Full dynamic alignment (no exemptions) with the EU. The UK will follow EU CBD rules, and the EU will authorise market authorizations for the EU as well as Great Britain.
- The UK will maintain its own policy on CBD and FSA’s CBD program will continue to be implemented as planned.
- In the absence of an agreement, things will remain as they are.
The European Commission has stated that any UK-specific exception will require the following: EU standard standards, no limitations on EU imports in UK, only EU-compliant items allowed into EU markets.
The worst case scenario for companies who have spent six years or more on UK applications is the possibility that regulatory authority will be transferred to the stalled EFSA processes.
In December, the UK trade association warned that “worse is still the SPS (Standards of Practice) negotiations between the UK & EU for Foods which now will include CBD food and supplements under EFSA’s jurisdiction.” This was something they hoped to prevent by getting the UK to sign the Isolated CBD dossiers in advance of the broader negotiation.