A federal science agency announced Tuesday that it will launch a cannabis testing program to help ensure that the products people buy from retailers and dispensaries are accurately labeled.
The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) said that since hemp was federally legalized under the 2018 Farm Bill, there is an urgent need for consumers to be adequately informed about cannabis products sold on the market. To that end, the agency will spearhead a multi-phase project to promote best practice in laboratory testing.
While the immediate focus of the Cannabis Quality Assurance (CannaQAP) program will be on hemp-derived oils like CBD, officials said they may expand the program to test marijuana flower, its concentrates and edibles, a remarkable step for a federal agency while the intoxicating version of cannabis remains banned.
The program is intended to “help laboratories accurately measure key chemical compounds in marijuana, hemp and other cannabis products, including oils, edibles, tinctures and balms,” said NIST, which is part of the Department of Commerce. of the United States, in a press release. “The program aims to increase the precision of product labeling and help forensic laboratories distinguish between hemp, which is legal in all states, and marijuana, which is not.”
The first part of the CannaQAP effort will involve NIST sending hemp oil samples to participating laboratories and asking them to “measure the concentration of various compounds and report.” She added that the samples of plant material will be sent for analysis at a later stage.
NIST said that while most labels look at the concentrations of two key ingredients in cannabis, THC and CBD, many laboratories are inexperienced in performing these tests, leading to cases of “unreliable” results.
When it comes to cannabis, a small number makes a big difference. Find out how NIST is helping labs distinguish between hemp and marijuana by accurately measuring the amount of THC: https://t.co/K9jxfZrsrm pic.twitter.com/mpW2n8DbLp
– National Institute of Standards and Technology (@NIST) July 21, 2020
“When you walk into a store or dispensary and see a label that says 10 percent CBD, you want to know that you can trust that number,” said NIST research chemist Brent Wilson.
The institute will send samples of hemp oil with identical concentrations of THC, CBD and more than a dozen other cannabinoids to participating laboratories. “Those labs will not be informed of the concentrations of those compounds, but will measure them and send their results back to NIST, along with information on the methods they used to do the analysis,” he said.
“After collecting responses, NIST will publish the measurements the laboratories obtained. Those data will be anonymised so that the names of individual laboratories are not disclosed, “the notice states.” However, the results will show how much variability there is between laboratories. In addition, NIST will publish the correct measurements, so each laboratory will be able to see how accurate his measurements were and how he performed relative to his peers. “
NIST research chemistry Melissa Phillips said anonymity “means that labs don’t have to worry about what their performance will look like.”
“Our goal is to help labs improve, not call them,” he said.
Once NIST researchers can review the results, they said they will be better positioned to issue recommendations on best practices for cannabis testing. The initial exercise is expected to take six months to a year.
“We hope to see an adjustment of the numbers the second time,” said Wilson.
NIST noted that the CannaQAP program is important as a matter of criminal law since hemp growers must comply with a federal mandate that their crops contain no more than 0.3 percent THC.
The Food and Drug Administration recently submitted a report to Congress on the state of the CBD market, and the document outlines studies the agency has conducted on the content and quality of cannabis-derived products it has tested in the past six years.
Responding to a mandate that Congress attached to appropriations legislation last year, the report shows significant inconsistencies between the cannabinoid concentrations listed on the labels and what the products actually contain. At the same time, he found insignificant evidence that dangerous metals and minerals are contaminating these products.
The new federal CannaQAP effort could go beyond legal hemp products.
“NIST also plans to conduct future exercises with ground hemp and possibly marijuana,” the agency said. “Those exercises will include measuring a greater number of compounds, including terpenes (the chemicals that give different varieties of marijuana their distinct scents) and compounds that people do not want in their cannabis, such as fungal toxins, pesticides and heavy metals. ” Future exercises may also include extracts, concentrates, distillates, and edibles. “
Finally, NIST said it will develop a standard hemp reference material, or “a material that comes with known and accurate measurement values” that laboratories can use to validate their test methods.
Yes! We provide over 1,000 Standard Reference Materials (SRMs) and an accurate list of each characterizations, which labs can combine with their own equipment readings. https://t.co/HV9Ck4cgm2
Our team is also currently working on an SRM for hemp.
– National Institute of Standards and Technology (@NIST) July 21, 2020
“Laboratories can accurately measure the amount of sugar in their orange juice because they have standardized methods and reference materials for that type of product,” says Susan Audino, a chemical consultant and scientific advisor to AOAC International, a group that creates standard methods for laboratory analysis. . “But cannabis has been a Schedule I drug since the 1970s.”
NIST’s Phillips said the institute’s goal with this program is “to support American industries by helping laboratories achieve high-quality measurements.”
Laboratories that would be interested in participating in the CannaQAP program can register on the NIST website. The deadline to register for the first exercise is August 31.
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