Some eateries in South Florida add marijuana ingredient to menus

PanARMENIAN.Net - Customers are raving about the new slices at Pizza City in Fort Lauderdale — especially the marinara sauce, which is infused with cannabidiol, aka CBD oil, the trendy but controversial compound commonly found in marijuana.

At Foxworth Fountain in Delray Beach you can order ice-cream floats, sundaes and milkshakes speared with syringes of CBD oil. Three weeks ago at Colada, a cafe north of downtown Fort Lauderdale, employees began spiking shots of Cuban cafecito with the oil, ABC10 reports.

South Florida restaurants are buzzing over CBD in recent months, touting the oil's ability to treat everything from chronic pain to anxiety.

Here's the problem: Some CBD-laced foods contain trace amounts of THC (tetrahydrocannabinol), the psychoactive substance in marijuana that produces a euphoric high. THC is illegal in Florida for those without a medical marijuana card.

The other problem: The U.S. Food and Drug Administration says using CBD oil as a food additive is illegal nationwide, says Seth Hyman, a medical marijuana expert with the Plantation law firm Kelley Kronenberg.

"(CBD oil in restaurants) is dangerous to consumers," says Hyman, a business consultant at the law firm. "You don't know where the oil is coming from. The FDA clearly states that it's unlawful to introduce CBD into food or dietary supplements. Period, end of story. What these restaurants are doing is a marketing ploy."

The FDA declared CBD products illegal as a food additive in a Dec. 20 statement after President Trump signed into law a big farm bill that reclassifies hemp — which is cannabis containing 0.3 percent or less THC — from a narcotic to an agricultural product. The bill effectively legalizes hemp, with one big caveat: Hemp-derived oils, such as CBD, must first pass FDA approval.

Regardless, CBD oil has gained a foothold in Florida, where it's widely available at markets and vape shops in glass bottles and bath bombs, dog treats and gummies.

Also complicating matters: CBD's dubious health benefits. While detractors compare it to over-hyped snake oil, proponents describe CBD as a salve, treating ailments as wide-ranging as acne and cancer. So far Epidiolex, used to treat seizures, is the only CBD-laced pharmaceutical on the market approved by the FDA.