When looking for a reliable seller to supply your company with hemp or cannabis, it’s important to make sure you (and your clients) are getting the high quality you’re paying. Unfortunately, some sellers will try to mislead and overcharge clients for an inferior product.
Why You Shouldn’t Use an External Testing Lab
Cannabis prices are often flexible and can vary based on factors such as strain type, growing methods, and seasonality, but one of the most crucial factors is THC and CBD content. THC and CBD determine the crop’s potency and research indicates a strong link between THC and CBD levels and the price per gram. Studies conducted in Europe also indicated a higher amount of THC per Euro spent on cannabis.
The only way to check the THC and CBD levels in a crop is by testing it, which usually involves sending a sample to an external lab. Unfortunately the cannabis industry is severely under-regulated and the quality of industry contributors isn’t standardized. Each country or state has its own regulations, and laboratories (even if certified) use different methods and tools.
This lack of standardization in the industry means that the results from one lab are not necessarily comparable to those from another one. Since not all the labs are certified, for example in compliance with ISO 17025, the risk of receiving unreliable results or errors being made, and questionable practices is high. Industry insiders even report some laboratories have offered to fabricate results for an additional fee.
Another issue with laboratory testing is that protocols are based on minimal sampling per batch. This can lead to inaccurate representation – a gram or two is not an accurate sample of an entire cannabis batch. No two cannabis flowers are the same when it comes to potency and composition, even when they come from the same plant. Some growers seek labs which generally give higher THC results to raise their prices. Alternatively, to raise THC levels, growers will take the buds selected for testing and roll them into kief, resinous trichomes of cannabis, which is 30-50% cannabinoid by weight.
In 2019, hemp production was higher than demand, according to data from Hemp Benchmarks, and prices for hemp CBD biomass decreased by 79% over the last year, falling from $38 per pound to $8.10 per pound. This resulted in unscrupulous sellers marketing CBD biomass as THC to raise prices.
It Doesn’t Have to Be This Way
GemmaCert can help companies avoid being fooled by CBD marketed as THC. As a buyer, you have the ability to test samples on the spot and receive real-time results. GemmaCert allows you to compare results you get on the spot to the results given in the Certificate of Analysis provided by the seller. With GemmaCert, you can make sure you know exactly what you’re buying at all times to protect your business and reputation.2020-09-22 08:19:57Itayganot