Switzerland’s rules distinguish hemp feed materials from hemp extracts and differentiate between animal categories. Agroscope’s guidance explains these distinctions; describing them as a new ban on every hemp product for every animal is misleading.
This overview separates the dairy-cow research, the historical account and the requirements that matter when assessing a feed product.
What the dairy-cow study found
Researchers led by the German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment (BfR) studied hemp silage in dairy cows and measured transfer of cannabinoids, including CBD and THC, into milk. The Nature Food study was published on 14 November 2022, rather than the previously stated 15 November. Its exposure scenarios indicated that THC intake through milk could exceed a health-based reference dose, including for infants and other children. These were experimental and modelled findings, not evidence that ordinary retail milk generally contains unsafe levels. The paper also says that the available data were insufficient to assess possible health risks from CBD in this setting.
Historical Context
The earlier article referred to Swiss research in the 1990s, a prohibition in 2005 and a reaffirmation in 2012. It did not identify the original studies or legal instruments for that chronology. Those dates remain part of the historical account, but should not be presented as proof that the later dairy-cow study caused a new, comprehensive CBD-feed ban.
Which materials can be used for which animals?
Agroscope confirms that hemp in any form is prohibited for lactating animals whose milk is intended for human consumption. Specified hempseed materials may be fed to other livestock, including horses. Pets may receive the catalogued seed- and stem-derived materials, subject to their definitions; this is not unrestricted permission for all hemp products. Hemp extracts, including CBD extracts, are treated separately as unauthorised feed additives.
The European Union and Switzerland
The European Union also has a feed-additive authorisation system. EFSA evaluates safety and efficacy; the European Commission and Member States decide on authorisation. Agroscope reports that no hemp-extract feed additive is currently authorised in either Switzerland or the EU. This should not be confused with permission to use specified hempseed feed materials.
For a supplier or farmer, the practical question is whether the particular feed material or additive is permitted for the animal concerned. The original discussion of administrative or criminal consequences did not identify a specific case or penalty. Nor did it document an actual dairy-export rejection. The transfer study explains why residue assessment matters, without establishing either of those outcomes.
The original account cited 1 January 2021, 30 June 2021 and 31 December 2022 in relation to a temporary route for older hemp-extract pet-feed products. Agroscope confirms that the extract transition periods have expired. Those historical dates do not provide a current right to manufacture, use or sell such feed.
What this means for feed decisions
The distinction between extracts, seed materials and other plant parts matters as much as the animal category. The dairy research informs risk assessment; the applicable feed rules determine whether a particular use is permitted. Neither a historical transition nor a general reference to hemp establishes permission for an individual product.
