The investigation against the discounter Lidl for the sale of hemp-containing foods has been discontinued. This was announced by the Heilbronn public prosecutor on Thursday. In the corresponding products either no THC content was detectable or not determinable or it was below the limit value. Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) is the main intoxicating component of the hemp plant (cannabis).

In the summer of 2021, the company briefly offered a total of 21 different hemp products for sale in several branches. The discounter then recalled biscuits, tea, a protein bar and oil because it said it had found elevated levels of THC in all foods. Also as a result of this recall, the public prosecutor's office began investigations into suspected trafficking in narcotics. The procedure was discontinued in August 2022 because this suspicion was not confirmed, as the authority announced only now.

For the property of a narcotic, it is basically not a question of a specific intoxication quality or the ability to consume. The expert opinions obtained during the course of the investigation revealed that the THC content in the products examined was either undetectable or undeterminable, or that it was below the limit of 0.2 percent, as the public prosecutor announced. According to the expert's assessment, abuse for intoxicating purposes by consuming the products is either completely impossible or practically impossible due to the amount required for this.

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