EU sets THC limits for hemp-leaf tea, advancing recognition as traditional food

The European Union has formally brought hemp-leaf tea into its food-safety framework, setting THC limits that take effect Jan. 1, 2027, another step toward normalizing leaves as a traditional hemp food.

European Commission Regulation 2026/1828 establishes a maximum of 40 milligrams per kilogram for total THC equivalents in hemp leaves intended for water infusion, and 0.02 mg/kg in ready-to-drink hemp-leaf infusions.

The rules set separate limits for the dried leaves and the tea made from them. Hemp leaves intended for infusion may contain no more than 40 mg/kg of total THC equivalents, while the ready-to-drink infusion is limited to 0.02 mg/kg. At that concentration, a 250-milliliter cup could contain no more than about 0.005 mg of THC equivalents. The European Industrial Hemp Association (EIHA) had previously proposed a higher limit of 0.08 mg/kg for heated non-alcoholic beverages, including hemp tea.

“While EIHA welcomes the EU’s further recognition of hemp-leaf infusions as a traditional food, we regret that such restrictive THC limits have been adopted,” said EIHA Managing Director Francesco Mirizzi. “They may make it extremely difficult to market many products derived from legally cultivated industrial hemp.”

Questions over trade

Also, the regulation preserves more restrictive national rules, meaning it does not automatically open unrestricted trade in hemp leaves across the EU’s 27 member states.

Mirizzi said EIHA will now closely monitor both the impact of the limits on the European market and whether individual Member States impose even stricter national rules. “EIHA will assess all appropriate avenues to defend our sector, including, should our members decide to pursue it, a legal challenge against disproportionate restrictions,” he said.

The 40 mg/kg limit for dried leaves could prove the greater obstacle for producers. A 2023 German study of 23 commercial hemp teas found THC concentrations in the dried products ranging from 16 to 935 mg/kg, averaging 221 mg/kg — more than five times the EU’s new limit. The study also found that only a small fraction of THC in the leaves transferred into the water during brewing.

EIHA repeatedly submitted its position and supporting technical data during development of the rules, but the more conservative approach prevailed, Mirizzi said. “We hope that additional evidence and market data will support an increase of the limit for dried leaves from 40 mg/kg to at least 400 mg/kg, as advocated by EIHA,” he added.

Traditional food

The regulation builds on a 2023 European Commission clarification that hemp leaves separated from flowering and fruiting tops and used for herbal infusions are a traditional food rather than a “novel food” requiring pre-market authorization.

The narrow definition has drawn questions from some in the hemp sector, who argue that historical records show flowering and fruiting parts were also used in hemp teas before the EU’s 1997 Novel Food cutoff, raising questions about why the recognized traditional food was ultimately defined as leaves only. Foods without a significant history of consumption in Europe before May 1997 generally must go through the EU’s Novel Food authorization process.

The new regulation, adopted late last month, goes further by putting hemp-leaf infusions directly into EU contaminant rules. It states that water infusions made from hemp leaves without flowering or fruiting tops are not novel foods and therefore do not require authorization under the Novel Food Regulation.

The limits cover the combined amount of delta-9 THC and its precursor, THCA, expressed as delta-9 THC equivalents.

Label rules

Dried hemp leaves sold for tea must carry instructions saying they are intended only for water infusion. Labels must also warn that the resulting tea should not be consumed by infants or young children and that milk, cream or other fatty ingredients should not be added while the leaves are steeping.

THC and THCA are fat-soluble. The Commission found that relatively little migrates from hemp leaves into water, while adding fat during steeping can significantly increase the amount transferred into the drink. Fatty ingredients can be added after steeping.

The limits are based on a European Food Safety Authority acute reference dose of 1 microgram of delta-9 THC per kilogram of body weight.

Businesses have until Jan. 1 to comply, while products legally placed on the market before then can remain for sale through their minimum durability or use-by dates.

German dispute

Germany illustrates the regulatory problems that have held back the hemp-leaf market despite more permissive treatment elsewhere in Europe.

In 2021, Germany’s Federal Office for Consumer Protection and Food Safety rejected an application to import hemp leaves from Austria for sale as herbal tea. The decision was challenged in court on grounds that it violated EU free-movement rules. German authorities had argued that hemp leaves could be considered narcotics because of the possibility they might be misused for intoxication.

That same year, Germany’s Federal Court of Justice annulled drug-trafficking convictions against hemp-tea sellers and found that sales of industrial hemp flowers and leaves to consumers were not prohibited in principle when deliberate misuse for intoxication could be excluded.

The Commission’s 2023 recognition of hemp leaves as traditional food subsequently removed another major source of uncertainty. The new THC limits now provide a specific EU food-safety standard for the products.

National barriers

The remaining uncertainty is at the member-state level.

Regulation 2026/1828 applies throughout the EU, but the Commission specifically allows countries to retain stricter national rules governing hemp leaves and ready-to-drink leaf infusions. Producers therefore cannot assume that meeting the new THC limits alone guarantees market access everywhere in the bloc.

Germany will be particularly important because of its history of disputes over hemp leaves. Italy, France and other major hemp markets will also bear watching as national authorities interpret the framework ahead of Jan. 1.

For the European hemp industry, the regulation provides a clearer EU standard for a product that has gradually gained formal recognition as a conventional food. Whether that translates into a broader European market for hemp-leaf tea will now depend partly on how individual member states apply the rules.