Understanding CBD Laboratory Reports
Over the past few years, CBD products have been rapidly growing in popularity. Whether it is tinctures, edibles, or capsules, there are new products hitting the market every day. With so many options available, it can be overwhelming to find what you are looking for. It is important to find quality products, but it can be difficult to figure out where to start. The first solution is to get online and do some research. This can raise some questions:
- Which brands are reputable?
- How was the hemp in these products grown and handled?
- Does this product really contain what it claims?
- Is this product safe?
- Is this product filled with synthetic additives?
Confused yet? You aren’t alone. In a saturated industry, it is common to have concerns like the ones above. These concerns are valid. Each year, dozens of CBD products are pulled from shelves for containing misleading packaging, making exaggerated medical claims and falsifying cannabinoid percentages. This is not just an issue with smaller companies. In fact, it can be found in some of the largest CBD companies in the country. In a press release by the office of Governor Andrew Cuomo on 10/28/20, New York State notes: “While regulations exist at the federal level for the growth of hemp, there are currently no federal regulations for the processing and manufacturing of cannabinoid hemp products, resulting in the cannabinoid hemp marketplace lacking basic consumer protections that are common in similar industries”. The main answer to these concerns is laboratory testing.
What Is Laboratory Testing?
Laboratory testing is a summary report of a CBD product or cannabis flower that analyzes chemical composition and what contaminants/additives it contains. These reports can be very simple or extremely comprehensive. In an attempt to stand out in a saturated market, many companies are emphasizing that they perform laboratory testing. The problem is, not all laboratory testing is created equal. Just because a company claims a product is laboratory tested, it does NOT automatically make it higher quality. Below are some basic guidelines for understanding what laboratory reports are, how companies attempt to hide poor quality testing and why you should care.
The Laboratory Report
Laboratory testing matters because it is a true representation of what is actually inside of your CBD products. As we discussed above, a laboratory report is an analysis of a product or cannabis flower including chemical composition, contaminants and additives. Each product should have it’s own report. The report itself should be easy to find online. If it is not available, this is a red flag.
Sections
The report itself is usually broken down into sections including, but not limited to:
- Volatile Organic Compounds/Residual Solvents
- Bacteria/Yeast/Mold
- Pesticides
- E-Coli and Salmonella
- Microbiological Contaminants
- Elemental Analysis
- Terpene Profile
- Standard Cannabinoid Profile
The more sections that a product has analyzed, the more comprehensive the testing is. Poor testing may only include a few of the sections above. Many companies will attempt to hide poor laboratory testing by telling consumers their products are independently tested but then only providing a few sections in their results. This tells you almost nothing. Many companies perform minimal testing to hide poor test results from low quality hemp. Comprehensive testing can expose impurities and toxins. To ensure full transparency, Octagon Organics provides extensive laboratory testing to the equivalent of New York State Medical Marijuana Guidelines which includes every single category above.
PASS/FAIL
Not only should you see how many sections are analyzed, but you should also look at how each section is measured. In each section you will see “PASS” or “FAIL” next to measured items. These are determined by pre-set limits. Limits are the highest amount of a substance that is allowed in a product. You should be looking for most sections to be tested to Parts Per Billion. This is one of the most strict measurement standards. Some companies only test to Parts Per Thousand or Parts Per Million. At first glance, their lab testing may appear to be comprehensive if it contains many sections. However, lab testing done to the limit of Parts Per Billion is ONE THOUSAND times more precise than testing done to Parts Per Million. Just seeing “PASS” is not enough. Some toxins and pesticides can cause negative health effects in extremely small amounts. It is crucial to make sure your products are tested to the highest quality standards to ensure they are as clean as possible. Octagon Organics uses laboratories that test the sections above to Parts Per Billion when applicable.
Laboratory Quality
Now that you have a better understanding of the laboratory report, you also need to make sure this report is coming from a reputable laboratory. Any laboratory can perform an analysis. You should always make sure the company you are looking at uses one that specializes in cannabis testing. You should also see if the laboratory has accreditations based on the quality of their equipment and testing procedures. An example of this is the ISO/IEC 17025 certification. This certification ensures the laboratory is testing to the highest standards. Since testing from higher quality laboratories is more expensive, many companies will try to save money and use cheaper, unaccredited laboratories.
Bottom Line
Products that have no laboratory reports, have pages of their testing missing or that only provide you with a cannabinoid profile should raise a large red flag. Comprehensively testing to highest standard possible is the only way you can know if you are getting a premium quality product. No amount of marketing or testimonials can hide the fact that poor test results equal low quality products. Don’t assume a well-known company has quality products either. Review the lab testing yourself. Federal regulations for processing and manufacturing CBD products are poor and as a consumer you should look for the most comprehensive testing possible. To put this in perspective, Octagon Organics performed a market analysis of 40 large competitors’ CBD capsules. Almost all of them stated they had “premium quality products”. Only 17 of these companies’ lab testing standards came even remotely close to the lab testing standards we utilize for every product we produce.