Surveillance data from the EU’s Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed (RASFF) and various national consumer protection agencies paint a concerning picture of widespread quality control failures in the European CBD market, characterized by chronic mislabeling, contamination, and the presence of undeclared compounds. Between 2018 and 2025, the RASFF system recorded more than 400 separate notifications pertaining to CBD products imported from outside the EU or circulated within it, with the frequency of incidents increasing year-on-year as the market has expanded. The most common violation involves a discrepancy between the labelled CBD content and the actual concentration measured in laboratory analysis, with a significant proportion of products found to contain substantially less CBD than advertised, while others—less frequently but more worryingly—contained far higher doses, exposing consumers to unintended pharmacological effects. Equally problematic is the frequent detection of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) levels that exceed the legal limit of 0.2% or 0.3%, a particular issue with full-spectrum extracts where inadequate manufacturing processes fail to sufficiently reduce the psychoactive compound. Other contaminants identified include residual solvents (such as butane and ethanol used in extraction processes), heavy metals (lead, cadmium, and arsenic accumulated from contaminated agricultural soils), and pesticides (applied during hemp cultivation but not fully removed during refinement). These quality failures are not merely technical infringements but have serious public health implications, particularly for vulnerable populations such as children, the elderly, and those with compromised liver function who may be inadvertently exposed to unsafe dosages or toxic substances. The RASFF data has prompted calls for the establishment of mandatory, harmonized quality standards for CBD across the EU, including standardized testing protocols, third-party certification requirements, and stricter traceability obligations, which would help level the playing field for responsible manufacturers while eliminating substandard products from the market.