Bearstone Insights was joined by Marguerite Arnold and Dr. Francis Scanlan to discuss European cannabis regulation and compliance. The European Union is known to have stringent standards for consumer goods and pharmaceuticals, but on the nascent cannabis market it is not always clear how particular products are classified.

Following legalisation in North America, European countries have moved to remove barriers to the entry of legal forms of cannabis onto the market. For many companies, this raises the question of compliance fundamentals and best practice. Currently, no uniform Europe-wide directives exist, so every country moving towards legalisation is introducing its own laws.

Marguerite and Francis, both successful cannabis entrepreneurs in Europe, joined Bearstone Insights to discuss the peculiarities of cannabis compliance, and how to introduce compliance standards on a market where the boundaries have not yet been fully defined.

We addressed the following questions:
- Is cannabis a pharmaceutical or food product?
- What is the current state of compliance among large cannabis companies?
- How will the international trade agreements as CETA and MRA influence the European cannabis market?
- What are the trends for compliance in this young industry?

Marguerite Arnold is an American expat and entrepreneur who has covered the cannabis industry globally, from Europe, since 2014. She is also launching a digital health startup called MedPayRx across Europe, starting in Germany.

Dr. Francis Scanlan is the founder and managing director of Cloud 9 Switzerland LLC, a Health & Wellness company focused on Cannabis Edibles and Rx/OTC Pharmaceuticals. Francis has 26 years of international professional experience with increasing roles of responsibility in the Environmental, Tobacco, Phytopharmaceutical, Flavors & Food Ingredients, Food & Beverage and Wines & Spirits industries.