Across the EU, cannabidiol and other cannabinoid extracts are classified as unauthorised novel foods under Regulation (EU) 2015/2283, and no Union list authorisation exists in any member state. The Swedish food authority applies that directly: CBD and other extracted cannabinoids are unapproved novel foods and may not be placed on the market.

Cannabidiol itself is not a narcotic in Sweden. It appears in none of the Swedish narcotics schedules and not on the list of substances hazardous to health. But three separate prohibitions operate on a CBD supplement, and all three must be cleared.

The first is narcotics law. In June 2019 the Supreme Court held that CBD oil containing THC is a preparation within the meaning of the psychotropic substances convention and is therefore narcotics, and that the industrial hemp exemption does not extend to preparations. The THC level in that case could not even be determined. The food authority states the consequence plainly: Swedish narcotics legislation contains no concentration limits for THC, unlike some other EU countries.

The second is medicines law. The medicines agency has repeatedly decided that CBD products taken orally or inhaled are medicinal products, and has prohibited companies from selling unapproved CBD oils.

The third is novel food status, which catches even a THC-free, claim-free product.

What distinguishes Sweden from every other country in this monitor is that it has used the second of those against sellers established outside Sweden, and the courts have upheld it.