CBD start-up Bunte Blüte is acquitted

At the end of 2020, the Berlin public prosecutor's office brought charges against the start-up because its dried CBD flowers could have an intoxicating effect when baked into brownies. Now, the Berlin Court of Appeals handed down a verdict in favor of the start-up.

The Berlin Superior Court has acquitted the founders of the CBD start-up Bunte Blüte, according to information from Gründerszene acquitted. The public prosecutor's office had accused them of gang-related narcotics trafficking. If convicted, Vincent Klever, Tomas Pardios, Tim Schneider and Rami Al-Absi would have faced at least five years in prison.

The start-up Bunte Blüte sells various CBD products in its online store, including dried CBD flowers. However, these also still contain a small amount of the illegal active ingredient THC and can have an intoxicating effect when used for baking, for example. By selling the flowers, the start-up would therefore be acting negligently. The Berlin public prosecutor's office seized the goods and charged the start-up at the end of 2020.

The lawsuit has now failed at the Berlin Court of Appeal, as the founders could not have known how the CBD flowers work in brownies. Supermarkets such as Lidl and the drugstore chain DM also stock CBD products on their shelves, although these could also be misused as intoxicants.