Meta, the parent company of Facebook Instagram and the new social networking site Threads, has updated its cannabis advertising policies to allow the promotion of CBD products that are not ingestible, but with restrictions, as well as loosen restrictions for hemp ads.
In a Tuesday notice, the social media conglomerate stated that CBD products with up to 0.3 percent of THC can be advertised, if they meet specific conditions.
Businesses may promote CBD sales if they have received written approval from Meta, if their products are certified by the payment compliance company Legitscript, and if local laws and regulations are followed. Advertisements must not also target anyone under the age of 18.
Meta’s policy on advertising non-ingestible products of hemp (e.g. The policy for advertising hemp fibers or seeds has been updated, so that businesses do not need to obtain written approval in order to advertise such products in the U.S.A., Canada, and Mexico, “as long as they comply with local laws and industry codes or guidelines.”
It is also now legal to run ads about hemp that “educate or advocate for CBD and related products, or make public service announcements about them, provided that they don’t promote any products that are prohibited.”
Meta stated, “We want to encourage people to learn and discover new products and services based on our technology.”
The company clarified that “advertisers are still prohibited from running ads promoting THC or cannabis products with psychoactive components related to THC.”
“Ads for CBD products that are allowed to be advertised must not make any claims that state or imply the products can cure, treat, prevent, mitigate, or diagnose a medical condition or disease in humans or animals.”
, Michal Conley LegitScript’s General Manager for Certification and Compliance Solutions, , said , in a release, that the company’s CBD certification program is used by Google to determine which products can be advertised. “It comes with an additional benefit: The ability to reach millions potential U.S. consumers through selected Meta Platforms.”
Meta’s policy update aligns it with other social media platforms that have taken steps to reform cannabis regulations following the federal legalization and derivatives of hemp, as well the growth of the marijuana legalization campaign.
Meta has received some criticism for a feature in its new text-based application Threads, which launched this month. The feature prompts users to “get help” by directing them to federal substance abuse resources when they search “marijuana”, various psychedelics, and other controlled substances. Alcohol and tobacco searches are not affected by the prompt.
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Twitter took a step similar in 2020 by warning users against “marijuana searches” as part of its partnership with SAMHSA. Alcohol and tobacco products were also excluded from the restriction. Twitter stopped this practice late last year after Elon Musk acquired the company.
Twitter’s cannabis advertising policy has been updated since. This allows “certified advertisers” to include “packaged” marijuana products in their ad campaigns.
The company made headlines in February when it revised the marijuana policy. It opened up advertising opportunities to cannabis companies, allowing them promote their campaigns and brands, as well as link back to their website in certain legal states.
Google has updated its policy in January. This allows companies to promote FDA-approved drugs that contain CBD as well as topical CBD product with less than 0.3 percent of THC.
Google limits these ad options to California, Colorado, and Puerto Rico.
Twitch is a video game streaming service. recently updated its branding policy. It now prohibits the promotion of marijuana products and businesses, while allowing explicit alcohol partnerships.
Twitch clarified its rules separately last year in a manner that included cannabis — excluding marijuana-related references, just like it does with alcohol and tobacco.
In an update to Apple’s iPhone software that was instituted last year, users were given an option to track medications and learn about possible drug interactions with other substances–including marijuana.
Apple will end its policy in 2021 that restricted cannabis companies’ ability to conduct business through its App Store. Eaze, a marijuana delivery service, announced that customers could now shop and pay on their iPhone app.
The New York State marijuana regulators requested that the social media application TikTok lift its ban on advertisements containing the word “cannabis”. This was to help educate the public about the legalization of marijuana in the state.
Meta, the company that owns Facebook, has been accused of “shadow banning” state-legal cannabis businesses and advocacy groups, as well as government agencies like the California Bureau of Cannabis Control, where their profiles do not appear on a standard search. In 2018, there were reports that social media giant was loosening their restrictive cannabis policies. However, it is unclear what steps they have taken.
Instagram has the same problem. People have reported that their accounts were deleted for marijuana-related posts, even when they didn’t promote the sale or use of cannabis.
Google’s Android App Hub , unlike Apple, updated its policy for 2019 and explicitly prohibited programs that connect users to cannabis, regardless of whether it was legal where the user lived.
Michigan Officials Vote to End Pre-Employment Marijuana Tests for Most Government Workers
Photo courtesy of Pixabay/terimakasih0.
The article Meta will now allow limited CBD and hemp advertising on apps like Facebook and Instagram first appeared on Marijuana Moment.
