Petition to the NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, the FDA Commissioner, Mayor Bill de Blasio, NYC Council Member Robert Holden, NYC Council Member Mark Levine, NYC Council Speaker Corey Johnson
 
I am petitioning the NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (the “DOH”) to lift its February 5, 2019 ban on CBD (the “Ban”) which prohibits the sale of food and drinks containing CBD in all NYC restaurants, coffee houses, bakeries, bars, etc.  The DOH has created confusion, in some cases fear, and it created a financial hardship on many NYC business owners.
 
Here Are Some Facts
1.  The 2018 Farm Bill legalized CBD, a non-psychoactive compound found in the cannabis plant.
2.  Anecdotal evidence suggests that CBD is effective in relieving pain, stress, anxiety and more.
3.  The DOH knew in 2017 that CBD food and beverages were being sold NYC.  They had plenty of time to provide CBD guidelines, or at least announced its intent to ban the sale of CBD food and beverages which would have allowed us to put funds earmarked for CBD purchases to better use.  But it didn’t.  Instead it struck without warning leaving business owners with thousands of dollars in inventory depriving us the opportunity to earn a good portion of our livelihood.
4.  NYC business owners believe we are operating within the law.
5.  The DOH Ban deprives New Yorkers the right to choose what they will consume to promote health, well-being.
6.  Any substance that is reasonably expected to become a component of food is a food additive that is subject to premarket approval by the FDA, UNLESS THE SUBSTANCE IS GENERALLY RECOGNIZED AS SAFE.  The FDA had from 2017 to prevent the sale of CBD edibles but it had no CBD safety issues until it approved GW Pharmaceuticals’ seizure drug, Epidiolex, which is basically nothing more than sweetened and flavored CBD oil. 
 
Is CBD Safe?
1.Mayor Bill de Blasio’s cannabis legalization task force released a report in December 2018 which stated that, “Many [NY] City establishments already sell CBD products, which are legal in New York State, [and CBD is]…believed not to carry significant health risks…”
2.  The World Health Organization believes that CBD is “generally well tolerated with a good safety profile.”
 
I believe all New Yorkers appreciate that the DOH has a responsibility to protect the public, but simply banning a product that is both safe and legal is not a solution. 
 
We the Petitioners request that the DOH lift its ban on CBD infused food and beverages.
 
Respectfully,
Dorothy Stepnowska, Owner Flower Power Coffee House NYC