Walgreens to sell cannabis-based products in some stores

Walgreens will begin selling cannabis-based products in nearly 1,500 stores in select states, the company told The Hill Wednesday.

Walgreens said it will sell cannabidiol (CBD) products such as topical creams, patches and sprays in Oregon, Colorado, New Mexico, Kentucky, Tennessee, Vermont, South Carolina, Illinois and Indiana.

The decision comes after competitor CVS Health announced last week that it will sell certain CBD products in 800 stores as part of a distribution deal with a marijuana company.{mosads}

Walgreens would not say which brands it will be selling.

“The CBD-related items we are planning to carry are non-THC containing topical creams, patches and sprays. This product offering is in line with our efforts to provide a wider range of accessible health and wellbeing products and services to best meet the needs and preferences of our customers,” Walgreens spokesman Brian Faith said in an email.

CNBC was the first to report the development.

CBD is derived from the marijuana plant and doesn’t give users a high. The 2018 farm bill legalized hemp-based CBD and allowed it to be shipped interstate with certain restrictions; the ingredient has been appearing in beauty and wellness products ever since.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) last year approved its first CBD-based drug, for the treatment of epilepsy, but the agency does not allow companies to put CBD in food or drinks.

The FDA has been struggling to keep up with the glut of CBD-based products on the market, as many promise to treat a range of health ailments without much evidence.