French Government Calls For Closing Of Weed Coffee Shops
A legal loophole has allowed CBD shops to open in Paris. As customers line up for hours, officials are working to shut down these shops.
A weed coffee shop in Paris is using a loophole in French law to sell CBD legally. Though their products look and smell like weed, they’re actually high-CBD hemp. But following this weed coffee shop’s enormous success, French authorities have announced that they’re looking into the legality of selling CBD. Though Paris’ weed coffee shops are legal right now, a government crackdown is coming.
CBD Isn’t Illegal Under French Law
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Unlike the U.S., where all cannabinoids including CBD are classified as illegal under the Controlled Substance Act, French law has no definitive answers when it comes to CBD. Unlike THC, CBD is non-psychoactive, meaning that it won’t give you that high feeling. It’s also an increasingly common medicine for epilepsy, skin conditions, mental health issues, and other ailments.
French law does not specify the legal status of CBD from hemp. As CBD skyrockets in popularity, cannabis entrepreneurs are using this legal loophole to open CBD shops across the French capital.
Business Is Booming for This Weed Coffee Shop
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To stay within the law, Cofyshop only sells weed with 0.2 percent THC or less. They sell it by the gram, for which prices range between €11.5 and €13 according to Le Parisien. Though most customers intend on smoking it, the jars are labeled “do not smoke.” They also sell CBD oil, teas, and creams.
Since Cofyshop opened on June 5th, Parisians have been lining around the block. Due to the volume of customers, this CBD shop now has two security guards barring entry. The wait may have to wait hours to get in, and you might not even be able to buy anything. Cofyshop has also closed early a number of times because they ran out of weed.
Founder Joaquim Lousquy told Le Parisien, “Our weed essentially smells and looks like the kind with THC. The police can’t tell the difference.”
This CBD store, located in the 11th arrondissement, has been so successful that others are opening shop around the city. You can find similar products in the 2nd arrondissement and at E-Klop, a weed shop in the Paris suburbs.
The French Government Wants To Close Down Weed Shops
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It looks like the massive success of French CBD stores will be short-lived. Parisians prosecutors are working with the city’s narcotics division to investigate the legality of CBD. Someone inside the prosecutor’s office told French reporters that the investigation on the purchase and distribution of these products began on June 11th.
The French Minister of Health, Agnès Buzyn believes that these weed shops will be closed in a few months. She added, “We’ll have to revisit the legislation . It’s true that the law on the 0.2 percent is maybe a little ambiguous.”
CBD is Legal In France, For Now
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As CBD gets more popular and more socially accepted across the world, France is clamping down on hemp. For the time being, however, Parisians are jumping at the chance to try a legal alternative to weed. Julie, a Cofyshop customer, told The Local, “I’m a regular cannabis smoker and this is a chance to try what is legally available. In other countries, it’s no problem to smoke weed, but in France, it’s a taboo.”
