Cannabis Trades Association

What Cannabis Trades Association does

The Cannabis Trades Association (CTA), trading under the legal name The Hemp Trades Association UK Ltd, is a not-for-profit trade association founded in 2016 in response to MHRA regulatory letters sent to CBD companies in mid-2016. Registered in England and Wales as a company limited by guarantee (company number 10472540), it is headquartered at 41 Wincolmlee, Hull, Yorkshire, and operates with a small team of 10 employees. CTA positions itself as the British Isles and Europe's largest trade association for the legal cannabis, hemp, and CBD sectors, serving medicinal cannabis businesses, CBD and wellness product companies, industrial hemp growers and processors, veterinary and animal health businesses, and functional fungi/natural product companies.

The association's core offering is a Members Portal backed by nine Sector Strategy Committees (SSCs) launched in 2025 covering medicinal cannabis, CBD and nutraceuticals, functional fungi, science and training, industrial hemp, legal and technical, animals/pets/veterinary, patient voice, and international sectors. Supplementary resources include CTA Toolkits, a Knowledge Base, bi-monthly newsletters, member and stockist directories, webinars, a Worldwide Cannabis Events Calendar, an Ambassador Program, and Compliance Assistance Services covering labelling, advertising, and regulatory matters. Distribution is multi-channel: a website-driven membership acquisition model with a gated discovery call, direct B2B networking events (CTA Medical Mixers, Winter Warm-up), social media across six platforms (Bluesky, Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, YouTube, X/Twitter), and partnerships with international cannabis expos (PTMC Portugal, CB Expo Dortmund, Agential Cannabis Thailand, Cultiva Hemp Expo Vienna, Cannafest Prague, Health for the Future Iceland).

The business model is subscription-based recurring revenue from member companies, with pricing not publicly disclosed and all prospective members required to book a discovery call. CTA is funded solely by its members and is explicitly not led, influenced, or paid for by parties outside the industry. Its regulatory advocacy involves direct engagement with the FSA, MHRA, Home Office, VMD, DEFRA, and HMRC, a Co-ordinated Primary Authority Partnership with Oxfordshire Trading Standards, and APPG participation. CTA Managing Director Marika Graham-Woods leads the organisation and represents it at international expert panels.

Name

Cannabis Trades Association

Legal name

The Hemp Trades Association UK Ltd

Website

https://cannabistrades.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2016

Operating status

Operating

Short description

The Cannabis Trades Association is a not-for-profit UK trade association founded in 2016, representing medicinal cannabis, CBD, industrial hemp, veterinary, and functional fungi businesses across the British Isles, Europe, and internationally through membership subscriptions, regulatory advocacy, compliance support, and B2B networking.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Hull

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership Subscriptions: CTA generates revenue through membership subscriptions paid by legal cannabis, hemp, and CBD businesses. The association is not-for-profit and is funded solely by its members. It is not led, influenced, or paid for by parties outside the industry.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

The Cannabis Trades Association (CTA) is a not-for-profit membership trade association that represents businesses across the legal cannabis, hemp, CBD, medicinal cannabis, industrial hemp, veterinary, and functional fungi sectors. Its core offering is paid membership delivering regulatory advocacy, compliance toolkits, sector working groups, B2B networking, and government relations to its member companies in the UK, Europe, and internationally.

Product overview

The Cannabis Trades Association (CTA) is a trade association, not a traditional product company. It provides a membership-based service offering that includes a Members Portal (core secure platform for compliance resources and regulatory guidance), Sector Strategy Committees (nine sector-specific working groups covering Medicinal Cannabis, CBD and Nutraceuticals, Functional Fungi, Science and Training, Industrial Hemp, Legal & Technical, Animals Pets & Veterinary, Patient Voice, and International sectors), CTA Newsletters (bi-monthly publications), CTA Member Directory, CTA Toolkits (resource hub), Knowledge Base, CTA Stockist Directory, Medical Cannabis UK educational resource, Compliance Assistance Services, CTA Networking Events, Worldwide Cannabis Events Calendar, Webinars, and CTA Ambassador Program. The association also coordinates with regulatory bodies including FSA, MHRA, Home Office, and VMD, and provides Primary Authority Partnership with Oxfordshire Trading Standards for member compliance support.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• CTA Membership
• Sector Strategy Committees (SSCs)
• CTA Compliance Assistance Services
• CTA Networking Events

Quantifiable outcome

• 58 detailed regulatory questions submitted to the FSA covering CBD novel foods, SPS Agreement impact, enforcement guidance, and full-spectrum hemp extracts
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Agential Cannabis 2026coreGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2026The Cannabis Trades Association is an Official Supporting Association of Agential Cannabis 2026 — APAC's premier medicinal cannabis business and technology expo and conference taking place at BITEC, Bangkok on 23–24 September 2026. The event brings together growers, executives, policymakers, clinicians, industry leaders and researchers covering the full industry value chain. CTA Managing Director Marika Graham-Woods is participating as a panel speaker. Aggregate data from farms participating in the event shows 227,000 sqm of current CEA cultivation area and 279 tonnes of annual flower production.
• MUSHEEZ®minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026MUSHEEZ® is a European supplier of certified organic functional mushroom extracts for food, beverage, and food supplement markets. Based in Estonia, it supports over 60 brands across 30 countries. MUSHEEZ® collaborated with CTA on a joint industry article highlighting the need for authenticated fungal reference materials, stronger analytical alignment, and compliance standards in the functional fungi sector. MUSHEEZ® publishes free reports on functional mushroom extract quality expectations and welcomes meetings with CTA members at Fi Europe.
• Global Cannabis Solutions (GCS)minorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting Partner · 1 January 2024Global Cannabis Solutions (GCS), founded by Christopher Tasker (author of The Canna Manual), provides the free Green Shield Training — a cannabis safety course covering UK law compliance and health and safety standards. GCS collaborated with CTA to promote the training course to CTA members. A dedicated CTA member webinar on additional training is planned for November.
• Oxfordshire Trading StandardscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 9 June 2021The CTA announced a registered Co-ordinated Primary Authority Partnership with Oxfordshire Trading Standards. This partnership brings reassurance and security to CTA members and their customers by providing consistent compliance guidance and a structured regulatory relationship with trading standards authorities.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• National Cannabis Industry Association (NCIA): The largest US trade association for the cannabis industry, providing regulatory advocacy, policy representation, and member services to licensed cannabis businesses. Highly comparable as a membership-based national trade body serving the legal cannabis sector.
• European Industrial Hemp Association (EIHA): The European-level trade association representing hemp producers, processors, and traders across the EU. Directly comparable as a continental hemp/cannabis industry association focused on regulatory engagement and member advocacy.

Emerging players

• Medical Cannabis Clinicians Society (MCCS): UK-based organisation supporting clinicians involved in medical cannabis prescribing. Comparable as a UK cannabis sector body focused on medicinal cannabis access and regulatory navigation — overlapping with CTA's Medicinal Cannabis SSC.
• Centre for Medicinal Cannabis (CMC): UK membership body for medicinal cannabis and CBD businesses focused on policy, research, and standards. Directly comparable as a UK-based cannabis industry association with overlapping advocacy and member services.

Regional players

• National Hemp Association: US-based trade association representing the industrial hemp industry across cultivation, processing, and product manufacturing. Comparable as a hemp-focused membership trade body, though operating in a different geography.
• Hemp Industries Association: Long-standing US trade group for hemp-related businesses including producers, manufacturers, and retailers. Comparable as an industry association providing advocacy and education for hemp businesses.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/cannabis_trades
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCt5flkjdxvmODvx5-JBq4sw
• Facebookfacebook.com/HempTradesUK
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/cannabis-trades-association-uk
• Instagraminstagram.com/cannabistradesuk

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Cannabis Trades Association