The CBD industry in the UK was expected to boom… we’re still waiting for the massive influx in demand, to be honest. A handful of retailers have taken to the product and the public have certainly enjoyed CBD products and the innovation of manufacturers like Canna Solutions and Pure Origin Group. But the reality of it is, that the projected £2bn market valuation looks to be far from the truth. Overhype and over-eagerness to inflate this industry seem to have been a PR tactic from the start and this giddiness (mainly coming from from the players within the industry) has not been met by the expected demand from the public…not yet anyway.
What trails and tribulations have the CBD industry faced over the years? Why aren’t we seeing CBD everywhere we go? And why aren’t we seeing and more and more people taking to it? Is there a mass market for this wellbeing newcomer? Yes, I believe so, and I believe we are yet to see the best of CBD.
The Cannabis Stigmatism
For years and years. Nearly 100 years to be truthful, cannabis has been a substance with a very bad name and this bad name came from nowhere, it spread across countries and government law and has been illegal to supply and illegal to use in the UK for way too long.
This is due to mass bad press campagins, mass population mind control and all in all lies about this incredible plant that the human race has been denied access to for so many years. Only until recently has the positive news about cannabis come about and been welcomed back into main stream media platforms and society.
Thankfully, CBD is allowed to be sold on the market, it’s not defined as a medicine or a controlled drug and it is widely available in the UK marketplace. It will take a lot of time for people to come round to the fact that this plant is a force for good, not evil. It is up to the people within the industry to re-educate and express the wellness value of CBD in order to get this message across to the conservative populus.
If you compare alcohol deaths per year to cannabis deaths per year, you’ll see there is only good in this plant.
Novel Food
Another mastermind stroke from the UK government. Although well intended and the aim here is to keep consumers safe, the mixed messages and lack of clarity for brands and manufacturersto obtain novel food authorisation is as clear as mud. Still people are guessing and trying to read these “grey areas” between their choice of words. And better yet, they will probably be taken to court if they uphold their rule of “if its not been on the market place before Feb 2020, then you can’t be in the marketpalce” that to me, is a load of nonsense. How can they decide who is allowed to join maket place based on their own internal deadline? Surely there are laws that would not allow this to happen. To add, since the decision was made, we have seen a real stagnant market place in the UK. Many brands are waiting for the novel food debacle to bow over and see how the dust settles before they make their move. So until March 31st next year, we’ll have to wait to see what the next move is.
Brexit
Lies and government incompetence have to lead us to a no deal Brexit, well no deal worth shouting about anyway. The UK be in the dark for a while and suffer greatly in my opinion. The pound will crash, the trade between the UK and Europe will certainly slow and European countries will find alternative suppliers within the EU members to meet their needs, quicker and with less hassle. before looks to threaten the UK economy. However, if we can secure trade deals with the US, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Japan, and South American Countries and South Africa, we will certaibly be looking at a more postive outlook. We will see.
Slowing Economy
Covid-19, of course! When this is all over, what will normal life be like? Will we all wear masks, will we all be super healthy from now on? Will we learn to live with it? Who knows? For now, the econonmic crash is happening all over the world and with people losing their jobs left right and centre, it will take years for us to recover. It could be another 3 – 5 years before we see the booming sales we once saw in the later years of the 2nd decade of the century. After this period is over, I feel that the CBD industry will really take off and show us what its made of.
