The debate surrounding product labelling is one that illustrates the tension between global trends and national approaches. For Caribbean nations seeking to future-proof their economies and capitalise on growing industries, the problems may be global but the solutions must be local.
This applies to all industries but especially to the cannabis industry which is set to grow strongly around the world, and which Caribbean nations may miss out on.
Here’s what must be understood about the current labelling challenges and what local nations will need to contend with in the near term when it comes to considering their cannabis future.
The Ingredients of the Issue
Around the world recent years have seen strong international movements that push for universal standards on certain products. Arguably most prominent among these has been the efforts to implement plain packaging on (tobacco) cigarettes, with advocates maintaining there should be a ban on unique branding that seeks to make cigarette smoking seem glamorous or otherwise attractive.
Similar movements have also sought to introduce restrictive labelling and warnings on alcohol, and even soft drinks, the reasoning being that the risk of health issues, such as diabetes, due to excess consumption, justify it; albeit with less success.
Then there has been the prominent case of Monsanto’s Roundup, the herbicide banned in many countries around the world but still available in the Caribbean. For better or worse, Roundup is an example of the inconsistency of standards from one nation to the next.
Governments that want to grow industry need to recognise they have a dual role to play in the market. They need to build a reputation for clear and consistent labelling for consumers, and for businesses they need to reduce the cost and time it takes to clear the hurdles of labelling requirements.
Defining the Definitions
Striking the balance when it comes to proper labelling isn’t easy. It can also be subjective, whereby what one person deems ‘nanny state’ interventionism, others regard as necessary action to help combat society-wide threats such as obesity and cancer that can not only hamper individual lives but collectively strain the national health budget. It can be especially difficult when existing products clash with new standards.
In the United States the FDA faced criticism for allowing businesses to advertise their products as ‘light’ if they had used the term in the past, before the new regulations came into effect, even if the product would no longer be regarded as light under the new FDA dietary standards. Locally, CARICOM’s recent efforts have been far more sensical. Before its 39th Regular Meeting in July 2018, CARICOM’s heads of government listed Front of Package labelling as one of its six priorities.
The vision underwriting this goal is to provide consumers with simple and unambiguous information on packaged products, enabling them to make easier purchasing decisions about healthy products. When it comes to current labelling standards, Caribbean nations must reflect not only on existing products and those purchased in-country, but also local products set to have an international market in the years ahead.
The Cannabis Considerations
Whether one loves or loathes it, many governments around the world have moved, or are moving, to legalise the recreational use of cannabis. Certain aspects of cannabis face change for it to become legal – from where it is grown, to the purity of the product, to the ability of sellers to openly offer it for sale in public – but legalisation also creates a raft of new regulations and requirements for those involved in the business of cannabis.
This is one area where the lack of consistent labelling across the region could come back to hurt Caribbean nations. Other countries, such as Canada, have loosened the laws for recreational cannabis use, but with an accompanying strict regulatory regime when it comes to packaging and labelling of the product. As well as common prohibitions on advertising any false or misleading claims, there are prohibitions on marketing the product in a way that could be seen as appealing to children, or advertising with a testimonial or endorsement included.
As a result of these strict regulatory controls, Canada has not only provided clarity and certainty to its domestic industry, but also set the stage for its cannabis export industry to grow in the years ahead. There is little doubt that the global industry is set to grow but it’s highly questionable whether Caribbean nations will be in a position to capitalise on it – at least before it becomes too late to establish a strong market presence amid other established nations.
Presently many countries are still in the earliest years of a pro-cannabis policy, and many are still seeking to form the foundations of their own domestic industry, with the notion of serving as a market exporter an enticing but distant goal. Nonetheless, those that already have a strong regulatory regime for labelling will have a far easier path to capitalising on strong demand as exporters, compared to those that do not.
Even if nations like Canada achieve substantial consolidation within the industry, cannabis is ultimately an agricultural product. Thus, the current challenge for the Caribbean in reconciling any future ambitions with current regulatory shortcomings means that not only would aspiring cannabis businesses stand to suffer if labelling reforms are not pursued, but also the wider agricultural industry, from one Caribbean nation to the next.
The Future of Standards
The goals of building a strong labelling regime and making the process more efficient are not mutually exclusive. They are goals that will increasingly be driven by necessity as the world becomes more economically borderless. Nations that are economic powerhouses will have the ability to undercut less developed countries and consolidate the market if the smaller nations do not make use of their capacity to pursue and cement new standards faster, by virtue of their relatively reduced size of government, bureaucracy and industry.
